Background

The Project Director began in July of 2024. In August 2024, the Tribal Council approved a phased approach, which initiated Phase I and the creation of the Caddo Constitution Project Research & Analysis Exploratory Ad Hoc Committee. 

During Phase 1: Research & Analysis, the Ad Hoc Committee conducted comparative research on tribal constitutions and revision processes. Based on their findings, the

Committee recommended 1) that the Tribal Council adopt a revision process that focused on meeting with citizens and collecting their input and 2) create a Caddo Constitution Commission to lead the efforts working with the Project Director.

The Ad Hoc Members were:

1. Professor Lindsay Robertson (University of Oklahoma College of Law)

2. Jonathon Roher (Caddo Nation Historic Preservation Officer)

3. Steve Ward (Attorney, Conners & Winters Law)

4. Stacey Halfmoon (Caddo, Halfmoon Consulting LLC)

Based on the recommendations of the Research & Analysis Ad Hoc Committee, the Tribal Council approved the phased approach and authorized the establishment of a Caddo Constitution Commission in January 2025. Stacey Halfmoon was approved to continue as Project Director, and Aja Orcutt (CN Marketing Specialist) was approved to provide administrative and marketing support. Once established, the Caddo Constitution Commission members and staff met regularly. 

The appointed Commissioners were all Caddo citizens and included:

1. James Cussen
2. Shannon Freeman
3. Lauren Toho-Murrow Haupt
4. Amy Heath
5. Tracy Newkumet
6. Darcie Parton-Scoon
7. Becky Quinlan

During phase II, the Commission created and distributed two (2) citizen surveys and held eight (8) citizen outreach meetings. The outreach meetings were conducted both virtually and in-person at the following locations:

• Oklahoma City- Culture Hub (February 2026)
• Virtual/Online (February 2026)
• Dallas, TX (March 2026)
• Virtual/Online (March 2026)
• Los Angeles, CA (April 2026)
• Oklahoma City-First Americans Museum (April 2026)
• Albuquerque, NM (April 2026)
• Binger, OK (May 2026)

The Caddo Constitution Commission also met with two content experts and produced a final report & recommendations, which was provided to the Caddo Nation Tribal Council on July 01, 2026. The report summarized all efforts of the Commission and the staff, listed their recommendations, and included the responses provided by citizens through surveys and outreach meetings. This data will help inform Phase III activities such as which constitutional topic areas to address, topic areas requiring further education, and those requiring additional research.

The Caddo Nation Tribal Council approved the plan for Phase III in July 2026. This phase will continue to be led by Stacey Halfmoon as Project Director, with continued Administrative and Marketing Support provided by Aja Orcutt. The third phase will see the appointment of specialized Ad Hoc Committees focused on conducting research and analysis, engagement of experts & advisors, reviews of federal indian law & policy, and the drafting of legally viable constitutional language. In addition, educating Tribal members on the pros and cons of constitutional changes and gathering feedback from members are vital activities of this phase. At the end of this phase, ideally, the Caddo Nation would be ready to officially put constitutional changes to a vote of the people in a formal election. 

Please continue visiting this webpage and all official Tribal media outlets for updates and information!