United States Supreme Court Cases & Opinions

U.S. Supreme Court

County of Mahnomen v. United States, 319 U.S. 474 (1943)

County of Mahnomen v. United States

No. 684

Argued May 4, 1943

Decided June 7, 1943

319 U.S. 474

Syllabus

1. In an action by the United States on behalf of an emancipated Indian against a county to recover money paid as taxes on the Indian's nontaxable allotment, where the issue is whether the payment was voluntary, the burden of proving it involuntary is on the Government. P. 319 U. S. 477.

2. An Indian allotment was taxed by a county for a succession of years, in part before and in part after the expiration of the twenty-five year period during which the land was declared immune to taxation. The Indian then, being emancipated, voluntarily made a compromise with the county whereby the land was relieved of all the taxes and of tax sales based thereon, upon payment by the Indian of an amount less than the part of the taxes which had been laid after the twenty-five year period had expired. Held, that the payment was not recoverable by the Government in a suit on behalf of the Indian. P. 319 U. S. 477.

131 F.2d 936 reversed.

Certiorari, 318 U.S. 752, to review a judgment affirming and expanding a Judgment of the District Court in a suit by the United States to recover from the County money paid the County by an Indian as taxes on the Indian's allotment of land.

Page 319 U. S. 475