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Photo of members of the Not Invisible Act Commission shown with Jolene Hardesty, far right. — After her appointment to the Not Invisible Act Commission (NIAC), Joelle Hardesty (far right) served with 35 people from across the nation to fulfill the NIAC’s goal to effectively address the missing and murdered Indigenous peoples’ (MMIP) crisis. Commission members received testimony from more than 250 surviving victims, families, and others.

Portrait of Joelle Hardesty, Missing Children’s Clearinghouse Analyst and Missing Persons Coordinator for the Michigan State Police. She served on the Not Invisible Act Commission. — When Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer appointed Hardesty to the NIAC in 2022, she praised her “extensive experience collaborating with local, state, and federal law enforcement to find and recover missing children.” Hardesty serves as Missing Children’s Clearinghouse Analyst and Missing Persons Coordinator for the Michigan State Police.

By Rebecca Sherman

Jolene Hardesty has faced challenges in her 20 years of public service—from her early days as a 911 sheriff’s office dispatcher to her current role as Missing Children’s Clearinghouse Analyst and Missing Persons Coordinator for the Michigan State Police.

And while she has helped rescue an estimated 600 children by providing analytical, resource, and training support to regional, state, federal, and Tribal law enforcement, she can now count another challenging assignment as a win: 15 months of service on the Not Invisible Act Commission.

For Hardesty, the experience was equal parts daunting, rewarding, and eye- opening. She worked with 35 others from across the nation to fulfill the Commission’s goals, as follows.

Identify, report, and respond to cases of missing and murdered Indigenous people (MMIP) and human trafficking.
Develop legislative and administrative changes to enlist federal programs, properties, and resources to help combat the crisis.
Track and report data on MMIP and human trafficking cases.
Consider issues related to the hiring and retention of law enforcement officers.
Coordinate Tribal, state, and federal resources to combat MMIP and human trafficking on Indian lands.
Increase information-sharing with Tribal governments on violent crimes investigations and criminal prosecutions on Indian lands.

The Commission held hearings across the nation, receiving heartbreaking yet critically important testimony from hundreds of victims, survivors, family members, family advocates, and members of law enforcement.

In the fall of 2023, Hardesty and her fellow Commissioners submitted their final report to U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland, the U.S. Department of the Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, and Congress.

With May designated as Missing and Murdered Indigenous Peoples (MMIP) Awareness Month (and May 5, National MMIP Day, also known as “Wear Red Day”) we talked with Hardesty about her work on the Not Invisible Act Commission—and what’s on the horizon.

Tell us a bit about your work on the Not Invisible Act Commission.
Each day was spent gearing up and prepping for meetings. I read a lot—federal statutes, statistical reports, and notes from other initiatives prior to the Not Invisible Act, such as Operation Lady Justice. Many weeks we met multiple times and brought in subject-matter experts to answer questions. I also gave in-person [congressional] testimony in D.C. as an expert on missing children, and traveled to Minnesota and Montana for public testimony. We were organized into subcommittees based on our experience. I was co-chair of Subcommittee Two, which focused on MMIP data. And on Subcommittee Four, we looked at coordinating resources, criminal jurisdiction, prosecution, and information sharing— for instance, understanding how the NCIC [National Crime Information Center] database is aggregated, and what shortfalls it presents.

How does the way data is collected present a problem?
In NCIC, there aren’t enough race categories—it’s either “Alaska Native” or “American Indian.” Beyond that, it’s also important to know if a person is a member of the Cherokee or Crow Nation, for instance, or maybe also affiliated with another Tribe. Grouping people into one category doesn’t serve justice when you are at the granular level of an investigation.

Why is the term “Indian” still used by government officials?
Growing up I was taught that term was offensive, but during my work for the Commission, I learned that when you’re speaking about Native American land, the legal term is “Indian Country.” Additionally, Alaskan Natives don’t like being called “Indian”—they live on Alaskan land. But if we explain why we need to use the term in certain circumstances, it goes a long way to show respect. I found that changed the entire conversation when talking with Native partners.

How have you built bridges of respect with your Native American partners?
By creating relationships. I reached out to our Mount Pleasant post in Michigan and the Saginaw Chippewa Tribe Police Chief and asked them to be experts on relationship matters. Michigan is home to 12 federally recognized Tribes and a few that are not. And in the state’s not-so-distant past, there were at least three state-funded Indian boarding schools, where Indigenous people were not allowed to speak their language, celebrate traditions, or practice their religion. Because of that, Native American law enforcement partners and citizens often associate non-Native [law enforcement/legal] personnel with trauma. It’s important to acknowledge that, to tell them you understand why they may not trust us. Relationships built on a foundation of mutual respect are critical. You’ve got to be able to have difficult conversations with one another honestly and openly, and still be able to respect each other. Accomplishing this is possible, but takes intentional work on both sides.

Tell us about the importance of cultural awareness and historical training.
Learning about the culture really helps. For example, when non-Native people get sick, they go to the doctor. But for Native peoples, it’s very different. [When going to] Indian Health Service care, a person is asked, “How much Indian are you, and what kind?” Some clinics only serve members of certain Tribes. All that matters before treatment. So that’s the kind of thing our Indian partners face on Indian land. Historical awareness is also important [to understand inherent conflicts between Tribes]. Many were warring Tribes for generations before [the U.S. government] put them on the same reservation and said, “Be happy.”

How have you approached the complexities involved in working with different Tribes?
Every Tribe needs its own voice to be heard, and this takes significant communication and collaboration. The best way to address our Tribal partners’ needs is to ask them. We should ask them not only “What do you need?” but also, “What can I help you with?”

As you reflect on your Commission work, what’s next for you?
My work on the Commission was some of the hardest I’ve done. It was frustrating at times, and I had a huge learning curve, but I feel like I’ve helped, and know I’ve made connections with some phenomenal people. And while I’m sad to see the Commission’s work come to an end, I look forward to the next goal: Implementing AMBER Alert in Indian Country. For many of us on the Commission, the focus will be to bring our Native American partners to the table as advisors, equals, and subject-matter experts. Together, we can really address their needs.

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Advances in rapid DNA sequencing are helping to solve missing persons cases long gone cold, such as that of 20-year-old Ashley Loring Heavyrunner, who disappeared from Montana’s Blackfeet Reservation in 2017. New testing kits can extract thousands of genetic markers from unidentified human remains, making it easier to link them to missing persons. Because few genetic data are available for Native Americans, Hopi Tribe member Haley Omeasoo, a classmate and distant relative of Heavyrunner, decided to pursue forensic anthropology to help locate missing Indigenous people. As a Ph.D. student at the University of Montana, Omeasoo and her graduate advisor, anthropologist Meradeth Snow, are working with the Blackfeet Tribe to create a DNA database of tribal members that can be compared with unidentified human remains. More than 4,000 sets of human remains are found in the U.S. each year; about a quarter remain unidentified, according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics. Nearly 5,500 reports of missing Indigenous women and girls were filed in 2022 alone. Omeasoo is hopeful Ashley Heavyrunner will be found alive, but she knows that her DNA work could ultimately identify her friend’s remains. If that happens, she hopes it will at least give the family closure.

Leah Gazan, a member of Canada’s Parliament, is leading discussions on a proposed “Red Dress Alert” system for missing Indigenous women, girls, and two-spirit (gender-diverse) people, who face a murder rate six times that of other females. Similar to AMBER Alerts for children, Red Dress notifications would be sent to the public on their phones. Ottawa, which recognized the crisis as a national emergency, included funding for an alert system in the federal budget in March 2023. Calling it a matter of life or death, Gazan is urging the federal government to implement the Red Dress program before the next election.

Despite being separated during childhood, two Sioux City, Iowa, sisters and members of the Winnebago Tribe reunited as adults and set out to learn more about their Native American heritage. While digging into their family history, Trisha Rivers and Jessica Lopez-Walker learned of an aunt, Paulette “Paulie” Walker, who left Iowa for California in 1984, and shortly afterward was murdered. The sisters struggled to understand why no one reported the young woman missing, and now aim to have her remains returned to Iowa for burial near family. Their aunt, whose case remains unsolved, is one of the countless Indigenous women who suffer disproportionately higher rates of violence, sexual assault, and murder compared to the rest of the U.S. population. The sisters’ work with the nonprofit organization Great Plains Action Society involves helping find missing or murdered Indigenous people (MMIP) and providing support for other issues Iowa’s Indigenous population faces. Native Americans made up 1.5 percent of missing persons cases in Iowa, despite the state’s Native American population accounting for less than one half of 1 percent, according to an Iowa Public Radio report. “Native women and girls, our relatives, are not expendable,” Rivers said, adding that they’re seeking better treatment for Native communities.

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By Denise Gee Peacock

Photo of Tyesha Wood, AMBER Alert Training & Technical Assistance Program Manager of the AMBER Alert in Indian Country Initiative — Tyesha M. Wood

Tyesha M. Wood—a Program Manager for the AMBER Alert Training & Technical Assistance Program (AATTAP) who oversees the AMBER Alert in Indian Country (AIIC) Initiative—is one of five public servants selected by the End Violence Against Women International (EVAWI) organization as a 2024 “Champion of Change.”

EVAWI operates as a catalyst for justice and healing, “so that every survivor of sexual assault and domestic violence gets the right response, every time,” the non-profit group says. “Champions of Change work on a state or national level, to create system-level reforms in the way we respond to sexual assault, intimate partner violence, and other forms of gender-based violence.”

Wood was chosen as a “Champion of Change” because she is a “powerful advocate with an unwavering commitment to justice for children and victims of interpersonal violence in Indian Country,” the EVAWI notes.

Crediting Wood’s 17-year career in law enforcement—during which she was a detective specializing in domestic violence cases and crimes against children—EVAWI notes this about her:

Ms. Wood, a member of the Navajo Nation, is revered for her expertise in helping communities develop strategic, cross-jurisdictional responses to safely recover missing or abducted children. … A national speaker on issues of protecting Native youth from human trafficking and abuse, Wood works directly with communities, traveling to remote villages and Tribal lands around the country. Because culturally specific responses are crucial to protecting Indigenous children, she helps communities apply relevant solutions and implement comprehensive child recovery strategies. …

Wood’s leadership in promoting culturally and trauma-informed responses also extends to survivors of sexual assault. As a detective with Gila River Police Department, she helped launch the first “Start by Believing” campaign in Indian Country.

Wood’s personal dedication and professional effectiveness in strengthening responses to sex trafficking, aiding missing and exploited children, and driving implementation of culturally sensitive approaches make her an inspiration to all.

AATTAP’s AMBER Alert in Indian Country Initiative was established in 2007 by the Department of Justice’s Office of Justice Programs with the goal of creating and expanding child recovery practices, capacity, and resources in Tribal communities. For more details about the AIIC’s training opportunities and outreach, visit https://bit.ly/AIICinfo or its website, amber-ic.org.

The EVAWI was founded in 2003 by Sergeant Joanne Archambault of the San Diego Police Department. During her decades of work with victims, Sergeant Archambault saw a critical need for training law enforcement in how to investigate sexual assault and domestic violence. Criminal justice practitioners simply did not have the training and support they needed to conduct thorough investigations guided by best practices. EVAWI was created to fill this void. For more details about the 2024 “Champions of Change,” visit https://evawintl.org/creating-change/.

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Group of law enforcement and AATTAP staffers during presentation of AMBER Alert in Indian Country Technology Toolkits in Oneida, Wisconsin — Members of the AMBER Alert Training & Technical Assistance Program /AMBER Alert in Indian Country Initiative team recently presented Technology Toolkits to six Wisconsin Tribal Nations during a quarterly Native American Drug and Gang Initiative Task Force Advisory Board meeting at Oneida Indian Nation Police Headquarters in Oneida, Wisconsin.

Oneida Nation Police Lieutenant Justine Wheelock with a Technology Toolkit in Oneida, Wisconsin — Oneida Nation Police Lieutenant Justine Wheelock shows off her agency’s new Technology Toolkit in Wisconsin.

By Denise Gee Peacock

The AMBER Alert Training & Technical Assistance Program’s AMBER Alert in Indian Country (AIIC) team recently provided Technology Toolkits to nearly two dozen Tribal nations in Minnesota and Wisconsin.

Each durable toolkit—containing a rugged laptop, webcam, digital camera, scanner, and hotspot device with six free months of WiFi—can help Tribes work more quickly and efficiently during missing child cases.

Funding for the toolkits, offered to any federally recognized Tribe, is provided by the U.S. Department of Justice and Ashlynne Mike AMBER Alert in Indian Country Act of 2018.

In Wisconsin, the toolkits were provided during the quarterly Native American Drug and Gang Initiative Task Force Advisory Board meeting at the Oneida Nation Police headquarters in Oneida.

In Minnesota, Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe Holistic Health Spiritual Care CoordinatorGary Charwood blessed the event with a smudging ceremony. — In Minnesota, Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe Holistic Health Spiritual Care Coordinator Gary Charwood blessed the event with a **smudging** ceremony.

In Minnesota, the toolkits presentation occurred during a quarterly meeting with leaders from state Tribal law enforcement as well as the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) and Minnesota Department of Public Safety (DPS).

The event was held at the Cedar Lakes Casino and Hotel, owned by the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe.

Law enforcement leaders from six federally recognized Tribes in Minnesota recently met with representatives from the AMBER Alert Training and Technical Assistance Program and AMBER Alert in Indian Country Initiative, as well as the state’s Bureau of Criminal Apprehension and Department of Public Safety. — In Minnesota, law enforcement leaders from six federally recognized Tribes recently met with representatives from the AMBER Alert Training & Technical Assistance Program and AMBER Alert in Indian Country Initiative, as well as the state’s Bureau of Criminal Apprehension and Department of Public Safety, to accept Technology Toolkits.

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According to a newly released “2022 Missing American Indian and Alaska Native Persons: Age 21 and Under” report from the U.S. Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP), of the more than 10,000 cases of American Indian and Alaska Native youth reported missing in 2022, 65 percent were between the ages of 12 and 17; girls represented 4,000 of those cases compared to 2,500 males. Additional statistics from the report, based on data from the FBI’s National Crime Information Center (NCIC), showed that 190 of the case entries (about 4 percent) were for males under age 12, compared to 165 entries (3 percent) for missing girls under age 12. More detailed information can be found in the report.

In response to the ongoing crisis of people missing from Tribal communities, California has enacted a new Feather Alert. The statewide notification, similar to an AMBER Alert, can be issued for missing Indigenous people or Tribal members. “We’re hoping it’s beneficial, because we really need it,” said Keely Linton, who heads the Strong Hearted Native Women’s Coalition in Escondido. Linton noted that while much of the concern is for missing Indigenous women, some Tribes report more missing men.

Native Americans who lost loved ones to violence, or experienced injustice, testified during a Not Invisible Act Commission field hearing in Minneapolis. As part of the federal government’s efforts to address the Missing and Murdered Indigenous People (MMIP) crisis, Tribal members detailed their emotional losses and the apathy they experienced in trying to get cases investigated. They recommended more collaborative training between law enforcement and Tribes. Minnesota Lieutenant Governor Peggy Flanagan, a Native American, said there is “an urgent and critical need” to keep communities safe and support those who have lost loved ones. The commission will use information gathered at its hearings to recommend best practices for solving MMIP cases.

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Photo of Chitimacha Tribal Police Chief Jada Breaux, right, with a happy young D.A.R.E. essay contest winner. — Chitimacha Tribal Police Chief Jada Breaux, *right,* beams with pride after giving a young member of her community a certificate for a winning D.A.R.E. essay.

By Rebecca Sherman

As the new Captain of the Chitimacha Tribal Police Department in south Louisiana, Jada Breaux’s days are often packed with administrative duties and supervisory obligations.

The work she’s most passionate about, however, is looking out for all those she calls “my children” on the Chitimacha Reservation. It gets her out from behind her desk to work with youth as an instructor for the D.A.R.E (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) program.

This passion also keeps her training for any missing child case she may have to handle— and sometimes requires giving law enforcement colleagues in surrounding parishes a crash course in two words that tend to stop people in their tracks— “sovereignty” and “jurisdiction.”

“Many think Tribal sovereignty means working with outside law enforcement is not welcomed or encouraged. But even though we’re on sovereign land, we function just like everyone else—and know working with our regional and state colleagues is crucial,” Breaux says.

Confusion over the Tribe’s authority to issue AMBER Alerts or subpoena critical information can create life-threatening delays. Thankfully Breaux has a good working relationship with the St. Mary Parish Sheriff’s Office, which can help her with such needs. But neither the Chitimacha, nor the state’s three other federally recognized Tribes, have Memorandums of Understanding (MOUs) in place to seamlessly engage with state law enforcement when time is of the essence—particularly when searching for Tribal missing children. Breaux aims to change that. “Without collaboration, nothing can be accomplished,” she says. We spoke more with her shortly after seeing her at the 2023 AMBER Alert Training and Technical Assistance Program (AATTAP) and AMBER Alert in Indian Country (AIIC) Symposium in Arizona.

What challenges are unique to your job?
I started my law enforcement career at the Iberia Parish Sheriff’s Office before making the move to the Chitimacha Tribal Police Department 17 years ago. It was an entirely new world for me. One of the most unique challenges is understanding jurisdiction. You have to learn where [oversight] falls— be it Tribal, state, or federal. Currently Louisiana’s Tribes do not have active MOUs allowing us to directly initiate AMBER Alerts or request search warrants. And while I respect the system, it can be frustrating. For instance, in investigating one juvenile case, I submitted a search warrant to a social media company, and they replied that they were not able to honor it because they don’t recognize the Chitimacha Tribal Court as a legal entity. Before having to go through all the extra steps needed to issue that warrant, we fortunately were able to locate the child; but the situation was eye-opening. It would have cost us a lot of extra time, which is not on our side when children are missing. I would like to see this change.

What are some of the initiatives you’re working on to foster understanding?
One of the biggest challenges is the lack of awareness about Indian Country. I’m a firm believer in knowledge and education, so I’m working with AATTAP/AIIC Program Manager Tyesha Wood and Project Coordinator Valerie Bribiescas to bring training here this fall. We plan to invite all the Tribes in Louisiana and the law enforcement agencies with whom we work. We also want to host trainings on Missing or Murdered Indigenous Persons (MMIP) investigations. We need to strengthen and sustain our public safety partnerships.

What motivates you to go into work? One of my motivations is the community I serve. While I’m not a member of the Tribe—my father’s mother was a member of the Choctaw Nation—everyone here has embraced me as one of their own. I have attended countless weddings and graduations, and watched a whole group of children become young adults and succeed as they chase their dreams. I’d like to think that I’ve had a small hand in that from being their D.A.R.E. instructor, or just the officer who hung out with them at school. I’ve had former students thank me years later for helping them make difficult choices by using tools from the D.A.R.E. program. There’s nothing more rewarding than being able provide resources to our children and watch them not only become productive members of our Tribe, but also of our society.

Ashlynne Mike’s legacy:
A law to help Tribal children—and law enforcement

Photo of Ashlynne Mike on a poster of loving messages to the girl, who was abducted and then murdered on the Navajo Nation in 2016. — A poignant tribute to Ashlynne Mike, whose tragic story broke hearts across the nation—and prompted Indian Country to embrace AMBER Alert training.

Chitimacha Tribal Police Captain Jada Breaux remembers the deep sense of loss she felt after hearing the news that Ashlynne Mike had been abducted and murdered on the Navajo Nation in 2016.

“But it was only after I heard Ashlynne’s mother, Pamela Foster, speak at the 17th annual National Indian Nations conference that I learned more about the heartbreaking story—and the jurisdictional confusion following Ashlynne’s abduction being reported.”

Like many Tribal leaders across the nation, Breaux realized that if communication weaknesses and jurisdictional misunderstandings could happen to the nation’s largest Tribe (spanning three states and 27,000 square miles) what did that portend for the 573 other federally recognized Tribes, which have much significantly fewer resources?

Born from this tragedy was the Ashlynne Mike AMBER Alert in Indian Country Act of 2018, created to foster greater collaboration between Tribes and their state and local law enforcement counterparts, and to strengthen resources. To accomplish this, the U.S. Department of Justice’s AMBER Alert in Indian Country initiative helps Tribes learn what the law entails, and provides numerous no-cost resources, from training events to Technology Toolkits (“which we’ve already put to good use,” Breaux says).

“At the end of the day, everyone in law enforcement should have the same goal: to find a missing child as quickly as possible, using every available resource,” Breaux adds.

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Group photo at the AMBER in Indian Country Toolkit Presentation in Wisconsin October 12, 2023 — Shown at the October 12, 2023, AATTAP AMBER Alert in Indian Country Technology Toolkit presentation in Oneida, Wisconsin: **FIRST ROW** *from left*: **Tyesha Wood**, AATTAP-AIIC Program Manager; **Valerie Bribiescas**, AATTAP-AIIC Program Coordinator; Lieutenant **Mary Creapeau**, Stockbridge Munsee Tribal Police; **Jenniffer Price-Lehmann**, AATTAP Program Manager; **Todd M. Otradovec Sr**., Deputy Chief, Menominee Tribal Police; Chief **Jessie Hall**, Red Cliff Tribal Police; and **Janell Rasmussen**, AATTAP Administrator. **SECOND ROW** *from left*: **Chuck Fleeger**, AATTAP Region 3 Liaison; **Chad Racine**, Special Agent, Wisconsin DOJ/DCI; Chief Eric Boulanger, Oneida Nation Police; Chief **Timothy DeBrot**, Lac Courte Oreilles Tribal Police; Dispatch Supervisor **Nicole Reiter**, Oneida Nation Police; **Melissa Marchant**, AMBER Alert Coordinator/Missing Persons Clearinghouse Manager, Wisconsin DOJ/DCI; Detective **George Hopfensperger**, Lac Du Flambeau Tribal Police; **Jim Hoffman**, NADGI Intelligence Coordinator; and Chief **Keith Tourtillott**, Menominee Tribal Police.

By Denise Gee Peacock

The AMBER Alert Training and Technical Assistance Program (AATTAP)/AMBER Alert in Indian Country (AIIC) Initiative recently presented Technology Toolkits to six Wisconsin Tribal Nations during a quarterly Native American Drug and Gang Initiative Task Force Advisory Board meeting at the Oneida Indian Nation Police Headquarters in Oneida.

Each durable, portable Technology Toolkit—containing a rugged laptop, webcam, digital camera, scanner, a hotspot device with six free months of WiFi (in partnership with the FirstNet Authority and AT&T)—is geared to help Tribes work more quickly and efficiently in the field during missing child investigations. Funding for the Toolkits, offered to any federally recognized Tribe, is provided by the U.S. Department of Justice and Ashlynne Mike AMBER Alert in Indian Country Act of 2018.

From left: Oneida Nation Police Chief Eric Boulanger; Assistant Chief of Police Joel Maxam; and Dispatch Supervisor Nicole Reiter.

14) Lac Du Flambeau Tribal Police Detective George Hopfensperger

Lieutenant Mary Creapeau, Stockbridge Munsee Tribal Police.

Menominee Tribal Police Chief Keith Tourtillott.

Lac Courte Oreilles Tribal Police Chief Timothy DeBrot.

Chief Jessie Hall, Red Cliff Tribal Police.

Melissa Marchant and Chad Racine with the Wisconsin DOJ/DCI.

Oneida Nation Police Chief Eric Boulanger, center, meets with the AATTAP's AMBER in Indian Country team Tyesha Wood, left, and Valerie Bribiescas.

Oneida Nation Police Lieutenant Brandon Vande Hei, left, with his colleague, Lieutenant Justine Wheelock.

Oneida Nation Police Lieutenant Justine Wheelock.

Menominee Tribal Police Chief Keith Tourtillott wears his jacket badge with honor.

AIIC Program Manager Tyesha Wood, left, talks with AATTAP Administrator Janell Rasmussen at the start of the event.

AATTAP Janell Rasmussen discusses the Technology Toolkits with meeting attendees at Oneida Nation Police Headquarters.

AATTAP Region 3 Liaison Chuck Fleeger, left, with AATTAP Program Manager Jenniffer Price-Lehmann.

The Toolkit endeavor was devised during the pandemic, “when we saw a significant need for tools and resources in Indian Country that would allow law enforcement to work remotely,” said AATTAP Administrator Janell Rasmussen.

“Some Tribes didn’t have a webcam to participate in virtual meetings, or they had issues with broadband or Wi-Fi access, so we decided to put together a Toolkit that could help in any way possible when a child was missing in Indian Country.”

“Often when Tribal law enforcement go to a home to get a photo of a missing child, the picture they need may be the only one they have—and they don’t want to give it away because they might not get it back. The printer’s scanner feature helps to capture a digital image of the photo and allows the family to keep the photo.”

“And with the hotspot it provides, that photo can be immediately transmitted to whoever is creating the Alert to send out,” said AATTAP Program Manager Jenniffer Price-Lehmann, a Wisconsin native with decades of high-level law enforcement experience in the state. “That’s a major time saver, and we all know how critical time is when searching for a missing child.”

Rasmussen also highlighted the training provided by the AMBER Alert in Indian Country team led by AATTAP/AIIC Program Manager Tyesha Wood and AATTAP/AIIC Program Coordinator Valerie Bribiescas, who have so far provided more than 100 Toolkits to Tribal nations—and countless hours of training and assistance.

Wood told the group that “Indian Country training is completely customized to your needs, and all the trainings are free, whether they’re online or in person,” she said. “As for the in-person trainings, we also have travel scholarships available to help people attend any training session that would increase their agency’s response within their Tribal community.”

Rasmussen praised Wisconsin for its successful, proactive work to “build bridges of communication”—pointing out meeting attendee Melissa Marchant, the AMBER Alert Coordinator and Missing Persons Clearinghouse Manager for the Wisconsin Department of Justice (DOJ)/Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI). “Not every Tribe or state has such a dynamic system or team in place to work seamlessly during a missing child crisis. That’s why we’ve been working with Tribes across the nation to ensure that those without ready access to the equipment or contacts needed to issue an AMBER Alert can be prepared before an Alert is needed.”

“As of today, 1,146 kids are back at home safe because an AMBER Alert was issued, the public saw the Alert, and someone helped law enforcement get that that child back home. So this program works. And it works because of everything you do to make it work.”
– AATTAP Administrator Janell Rasmussen

Funding for the AATTAP’s AMBER Alert in Indian Country Technology Toolkit project is provided by the U.S. Department of Justice and Ashlynne Mike AMBER Alert in Indian Country Act of 2018—passed nearly two years after Ashlynne was kidnapped and killed May 2, 2016, near Shiprock, New Mexico, on the Navajo Nation Reservation.

At the time, Navajo Nation law enforcement officers did not have an AMBER Alert plan to notify the people living in the 27,000 square mile reservation that stretches from Arizona to Utah. As Ashlynne’s case progressed, it brought to light gaps in public safety preparedness and coordination to best respond to cases involving missing and abducted children.

Ashlynne’s mother, Pamela Foster, lobbied legislators such as the late Senator John McCain of Arizona to pass the law, which provides funding and training for increased law enforcement coordination, new and expanded resources, and renewed hope for protection of children living on Tribal lands across the U.S.

“The Navajo Nation has worked very hard to put together an incredible alert system in Ashlynn’s memory,” Rasmussen said. After eliminating jurisdictional confusion and hurdles, the Nation now issue their own Alerts. And they have resulted in the successful recoveries of Navajo children. So this initiative is definitely working.”

“Traditionally the cooperation between federal, state, local, and Tribal law enforcement is not good. So kudos to my predecessors, who were able to lay the foundation for the solid relationships with have in this state, one we continue to build on. We wouldn’t be able to function properly without that.”
— Oneida Nation Police Chief Eric Boulanger

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California’s largest Tribe and a longstanding leader in criminal justice issues is getting an assist in dealing with the crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous people. The U.S. Marshals Service has tapped Northern California’s Yurok Tribe as the pilot partner for its Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons (MMIP) Initiative. The Tribe’s priorities will drive specific areas of the collaboration, which could include training on missing child investigations and sex offender registration. “We are fully committed to supporting the Yurok Tribe’s efforts to keep their communities safe,” said U.S. Marshals Service Director Ronald L. Davis.

Calling Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEAs) “an important lifeline to Americans,” two New York lawmakers are leading a charge to remove language barriers in the bulletins—a measure that could impact Tribal communities. (Larger Tribes such as the Navajo Nation already are working to share emergency alerts in their native language.) U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand and U.S. Representative Grace Meng and 43 lawmakers who signed a bicameral letter urged the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to expand requirements beyond English and Spanish to ensure more of the nation can respond to such WEAs as AMBER Alerts and severe weather notices. Lawmakers pointed to 2021’s Hurricane Ida, when many Asian immigrants did not receive language-accessible warnings that could have alerted them to, and protected them against, deadly flash flooding.

Colorado has become the second state to implement a Missing Indigenous Person Alert system. The new public alert, designed in response to the disproportionately high number of Indigenous people who are missing or have been murdered, comes on the heels of a similar one launched in Washington State. The Colorado Bureau of Investigation operates the system, which is the result of Indigenous advocates to pass legislation to raise awareness about missing members of Tribal communities. “It just feels like we’re always put on the back burner,” said Southern Ute member Daisy Bluestar, member of the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Relatives Taskforce of Colorado, which advocated for the alert.

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Nearly two dozen law enforcement leaders from six federally recognized Tribes in Minnesota recently met with representatives from the AMBER Alert Training and Technical Assistance Program and AMBER Alert in Indian Country initiative as well as the state’s Bureau of Criminal Apprehension and Department of Public Safety.

By Denise Gee Peacock

The AMBER Alert in Indian Country (AIIC) team recently provided Technology Toolkits to six Tribal nations in Minnesota during a quarterly meeting with leaders from state Tribal law enforcement as well as the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) and Minnesota Department of Public Safety (DPS).

The Technology Toolkits—durable cases with high-tech equipment to help Tribes act quickly when a child goes missing—were provided for free to the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa; Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe; Lower Sioux Indian Community; Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe; Upper Sioux Community; and the White Earth Nation. Five other Minnesota Tribes also have received the Toolkits.

Toolkit distribution is administered by the AIIC—an initiative of the AMBER Alert Training and Technical Assistance Program (AATTAP)—and funded by the U.S. Department of Justice and the Ashlynne Mike AMBER Alert in Indian Country Act of 2018.

The May 4 regional meeting took place at the Cedar Lakes Casino and Hotel, which is owned by the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe.

Since the meeting was held just prior to the National Day of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls on May 5, special attention was paid to to the profoundly important issue during the half-day discussion.

“This is also an important week for another reason: May 2 marked the seventh anniversary of Ashlynne Mike’s murder on the Navajo Nation,” said AATTAP Administrator Janell Rasmussen.

“At the time of her abduction there wasn’t really an AMBER Alert plan in place, so her mother, Pamela Foster, fought very hard to see the AMBER Alert in Indian Country Act become law. Tribes now have access to the AMBER Alert system through training, technology, and collaboration with state AMBER Alert Coordinators—all of which is central to the work we do.”

Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe Holistic Health Spiritual Care Coordinator Gary Charwood blessed the event with an eagle feather used to waft a cleansing smoke over each person. “We are relatives,” he said. “We all do the work to take care of one another.” — Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe Holistic Health Spiritual Care Coordinator Gary Charwood blessed the event with a smudging ceremony, which involves using an eagle feather to waft a cleansing smoke over each participant. “We are relatives,” he said. “We all do the work to take care of one another.”

“Our children are our most precious commodity,” Minnesota BCA Superintendent Drew Evans told the group. “Our entire existence is literally to serve the people in this room.”

The meeting underscored these best practices:

The need for families or caregivers to quickly report a child missing, instead of trying to first find the youth on their own.
The importance of immediately entering a case involving a missing child into the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) database and to “never, ever take them out of the system until they are located,” said Minnesota DPS Tribal Liaison Jenna Lehti. “NCIC entries also help us keep up with much-needed data on Tribal missing.”
The importance of having current photo(s) for a missing poster or alert.
The careful wording of missing posters related to any health issue a child may have. “Instead of saying a child ‘suffers from’ a medical condition, for privacy reasons we recommend saying, ‘There is great concern for his safety,’ ” Lehti said.
Ongoing efforts to strengthen community trust in Tribal, state, and national law enforcement through greater cultural outreach and understanding.

“We’re always available to help Tribes with any guidance or resources,” said AATTAP/AIIC Project Coordinator Valerie Bribiescas, a former detective and member of the Navajo Nation.

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A California lawmaker is proposing a “Feather Alert” that would notify the public when indigenous people go missing under certain circumstances. Assembly member James C. Ramos said the alert would be activated through California’s AMBER Alert system and would be similar to the state’s Endangered Missing Advisory.

“This bill brings further attention and effort to end violence on tribal lands and across the state,” Ramos said.

The bill is co-sponsored by the Yurok, California’s largest tribe, in Northern California. On July 1, 2022, a bill in Washington State created the first statewide emergency alert system for missing indigenous people. Similarly, Colorado passed a bill in June that created the Office of Liaison for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Relatives, tasked with creating an indigenous alert system.

“It is a top priority for us to make change and not just talk about it; this creates action through legislation,” Yurok Tribal Chairman Joe James told The Press Democrat.

According to the Sovereign Bodies Institute and Yurok Tribal Court, Northern California has 107 missing and murdered indigenous women. In 2016, the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) tracked more than 5,700 missing indigenous women and girls – but according to the Urban Indian Health Institute, only 116 were reported in U.S. Department of Justice statistics.

The Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations (FSIN) issued a missing person alert after an indigenous woman and her 7-year-old son went missing July 24, 2022, in Saskatchewan, Canada. Both were found in Oregon August 5. Dawn Walker is now facing charges of parental abduction and public mischief.

Several First Nation women, however, say Walker was fleeing from domestic violence. “Until you walk the mile in the shoes of women who have to protect their children or themselves, you have no room to talk,” said Mary Culbertson, Treaty Commissioner of Saskatchewan. The FSIN declined to comment.

Canadian Minister of Public Safety Marco Mendicino said more dialogue is needed to find out if enough is being done when a First Nation member goes missing.

Tribal leaders have been critical after AMBER Alerts were not issued in two cases involving indigenous children. “At a minimum, there should be dialogue about whether the criteria [for AMBER Alerts] are providing as much support as is needed in those very early and fragile moments, when every minute can make a difference,” he said.

Mendicino has been meeting with indigenous political and law enforcement leaders about efforts to protect First Nation members.

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By Denise Gee Peacock

When a child goes missing, law enforcement response time is critical. So is having the right tools.

An endeavor to donate nearly every technological resource necessary for responding to missing and abducted children cases – a rugged laptop, digital camera, scanner, and more – is now underway thanks to the AMBER Alert in Indian Country (AIIC) initiative, a component of the AMBER Alert Training and Technical Assistance Program (AATTAP), funded by the U.S. Department of Justice and the Ashlynne Mike AMBER Alert in Indian Country Act of 2018.

These Technology Toolkits are being provided to Tribal communities that currently administer their own AMBER Alert program, or that participate in (or are in the process of adopting or joining) a regional or state AMBER Alert plan.

So far, dozens of the Technology Toolkits have been distributed to Tribal law enforcement agencies (LEAs) spanning from Alabama to Washington. The goal is to ultimately provide a total of 150 Toolkits to agencies that request them, said AIIC Program Manager Tyesha Wood.

“The Toolkit doesn’t give tribes the capacity to initiate an AMBER Alert on their own. It’s a source of supplemental equipment to help agencies expedite their work in finding missing and endangered children,” said Wood, a member of the Navajo Nation and former law enforcement detective.

Getting the 41-pound packages to their destinations – often in remote areas – is not always easy. Many Tribes use post office boxes for mailing addresses, so the Toolkits sometimes need to be re-routed to locations that can pose a challenge for delivery drivers.

“It’s a special privilege to deliver the toolkits in person,” said Wood, who is assisted by AIIC Liaison Valerie Briebecas. “As we meet the community’s leadership, there’s a bond that forms, which is nice, and we plan future collaborative work, including training initiatives.”

“It’s also been rewarding to see each Tribe’s environment and experience any challenges they may have,” such as a lack of cellphone coverage or knowledge about state or regional AMBER Alert plans. “Understanding each Tribe’s needs gives us insight into their way of life, their community. And that’s important, because every Tribe is unique,” Wood said.

Moapa Tribal Police Chief Jeff Harper displays the toolkit outside of MTP headquarters — Moapa Tribal Police Chief Jeff Harper displays the Toolkit outside of MTP headquarters.

The AIIC team kicked off the Technology Toolkit initiative on March 22, 2022, with a visit to the Eastern Band of the Cherokee Nation in Cary, North Carolina.

Cherokee Nation Police Chief Josh Taylor was happy to receive both the Toolkit and the AIIC visitors. “This Toolkit provides us with the equipment to be successful in Indian Country,” he said at an event to honor the occasion. “And with the opportunity for additional training, we will benefit from staying connected with the AMBER Alert Training and Technical Assistance Program.”

AMBER Alert Coordinator Nona Best, Director of the North Carolina Center for Missing Persons at the North Carolina Department of Public Safety, agreed. “This Toolkit will ensure that if a child goes missing, the most effective, efficient, and quickest response time will be in the hands of the Cherokee Nation Police Department.”

Speaking before a large crowd, AATTAP Administrator Janell Rasmussen noted, “It’s unusual to see such a phenomenal partnership between a state agency and a tribe, and the great work being done here. The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indian Tribe and the North Carolina AMBER Alert Coordinator should be commended for their collaborative efforts to bring missing children home.”

Another Technology Toolkit presentation took place May 2, 2022, at the Navajo Nation Police Department in Window Rock, Arizona.

“Preparation and coordination are key to bringing a child home safely, and the Toolkits will assist our law enforcement officers if a child should be reported missing. Responding officers can access the kit and have everything they need to send out an alert as quickly as possible while still in the field, including in rural areas,” said Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez. His administration is now working to expand the AMBER Alert system and provide a comprehensive 911 system that can effectively cover the largest tribal nation in the U.S., spanning 27,000 square miles in three states (Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah).

In 2016, 11-year-old Navajo Nation member Ashlynne Mike was abducted and later found murdered. A lack of coordinated response and jurisdictional understanding led to a delay in the issuance of an AMBER Alert, prompting her mother, Pamela Foster, to lobby legislators to enact a law to ensure such a tragedy never happens again.

“Through the Ashlynne Mike AMBER Alert in Indian Country Act of 2018, many partnerships were established between tribal communities and external agencies to protect our children,” said Navajo Nation First Lady Phefelia Nez. “Many families know the personal heartbreak and trauma of missing loved ones on the Navajo Nation and throughout Indian Country. Multiple jurisdictional systems have historically failed the victims, their families, and survivors. Today we have to set a new tone of hope on this issue that impacts our homes and tribal communities.”

Navajo Nation Police Chief Daryl Noon added, “One of the things we recognize is we can’t do this alone. We will continue to welcome the support from our community partners, especially for AMBER Alert initiatives, and remain focused and committed to the protection of our children here in the Navajo Nation.”

In addition to receiving the Toolkit, Tribal AMBER Alert program personnel and law enforcement officers involved in AMBER Alerts and child protection in their communities are being invited to access the Partner Portal on the AMBER Advocate website. With portal membership, they can connect with other AMBER Alert partners and find additional resources to assist in AMBER Alert program work, as well as first response and investigative efforts for endangered missing and abducted child cases.

These resources are provided to tribes at no charge thanks to efforts by the U.S. Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) to facilitate implementation of the Ashlynne Mike AMBER Alert in Indian Country Act. Programs and action items within the Act are designed to provide Tribes with access to state, regional, and Tribal AMBER Alert plans and improve response to endangered missing and abducted children in Indian Country.

“The Toolkit provides many technologies needed when responding to and investigating missing and abducted children. By creating a response plan when a child goes missing, and working with state and federal law enforcement agencies, Tribes will be one step closer to bringing their missing children home,” Wood said, adding, “I just wish we could visit every tribe in the nation.”

For more information on AMBER Alert in Indian Country training, technical assistance, and/or resources – including the Technology Toolkit – contact [email protected], call 877/712-6237, or visit https://amber-ic.org.

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Tribal leaders and other U.S and Canadian public officials recognized National Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women Awareness (MMIW) Day on May 5.

Hundreds of Yakama Nation members gathered in Toppenish, Washington, to share stories and pray. They marched with signs reading “No more lost sisters.”
The Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribe held a march in Kitsap, Washington, to bring awareness to the plight of missing and murdered indigenous women.
In Madison, Wisconsin, members of state tribes gathered for MMIW Day at the state capitol and read the names of all missing indigenous women who have been found dead in the state. “This epidemic of missing and murdered Native women and girls must stop,” said Shannon Holsey, president of the Stockbridge Munsee Community, one of the state’s 11 federally recognized tribal nations.
South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem issued a proclamation for MMIW Day. Noem highlighted the actions she has taken to address the ongoing crisis, including establishing investigation procedures for missing Native women, creating a missing person clearinghouse, and developing and fully funding the Office of Liaison for Missing and Murdered Indigenous People.
In Saskatchewan, Canada, the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations (FSIN) also declared May 5 as National Red Dress Day to encourage protections for tribal members from all forms of violence. “Our First Nations women and girls must be protected from the unacceptable levels of violence experienced in Canadian society and our communities,” said Chief Bobby Cameron.

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On March 31, 2022, Washington Governor Jay Inslee signed into law the nation’s first Indigenous Alert for missing Native Americans. The alert will send messages to law enforcement, news agencies, social media, and electronic highway signs. The alert is designed to address a much needed and improved response to the high rate of missing and murdered Indigenous women. Women in some Tribal communities face a murder rate 10 times higher than the national average, according to the Department of Justice. Additional efforts are underway to help Indigenous communities from the DOJ’s Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and People Task Force, which is led by the Washington Attorney General’s Office.

The Cherokee Indian Police Department in Cary, North Carolina, received an AMBER Alert in Indian Country (AAIIC) Technology Toolkit that includes a computer, camera, and other digital technology resources to help law enforcement officers and investigators in missing and abducted child cases. The Toolkit initiative is funded through AAIIC work that is part of the Ashlynne Mike AMBER Alert in Indian Country Act. AATTAP Administrator Janell Rasmussen said the award recognizes the evolving cooperation between state and tribal agencies. “It’s unusual to see such a phenomenal partnership between a state agency and a tribe, and there is great work being done here,” Rasmussen said.

The White Earth Nation in Minnesota received a $1.2 million donation for its Boys & Girls Clubs. The gift from author and philanthropist MacKenzie Scott is part of a $281 million donation to 62 clubs across the nation. “Today young people face an unprecedented number of obstacles to their success and well-being,” said White Earth Nation Boys & Girls Club Interim Chief Executive Officer James Hvezda. “Studies show a lack of access to technology, positive mentors and guidance, food insecurity, and other critical factors can cause long-term setbacks and trauma for millions of young people.”

Two Indigenous women from New Mexico spoke before a U.S. Congress subcommittee in March 2022 about the high number of murdered Native American women and relatives. Angel Charley, of the Laguna Pueblo, spoke about the failures of the federal government to stop “a crisis” of missing and murdered Indigenous individuals. Pamela Foster, a Navajo and mother of murder victim Ashlynne Mike, said Tribes have been hampered during the pandemic from implementing AMBER Alert systems. “Thousands of stories have fallen through the cracks of the judicial system,” Foster said.

About 150 Navajo Nation members took part in a two-mile walk in March 2022 to raise awareness of the growing problem of missing and murdered Diné (Navajo) people. The march in Kayenta, Arizona, was sponsored by the Navajo Nation Council. “We are marching to bring a voice to the families searching for missing relatives and to tell the stories of the victims that never returned home,” said Council Delegate Nathaniel Brown. “In the Navajo language, there is no word for human trafficking, the missing, and the inhumane violence experienced.” Brown said Navajo men must reclaim traditional teachings to protect women from violence.

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The Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons Awareness Day events of May 5 will come in many forms — documentary premieres, educational symposiums, marches, and more — but all will share a singular goal: To spotlight the disproportionately high number of missing or murdered Indigenous women and girls while promoting resolution, collaboration, accountability, and prevention.

“The Missing and Murdered Indigenous Peoples crisis is centuries in the making,” said U.S. Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland, a member of the Pueblo of Laguna and 35th generation New Mexican. “It will take a focused effort and time to unravel the many threads that contribute to the alarming rates of these cases, but I believe we are at an inflection point. We have a President and a government that is prioritizing this. And we can’t turn back.”

In early 2021, Haaland became the first Native woman appointed to a cabinet position. Soon afterward, the U.S. Department of Justice created its Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW) Task Force as part of Operation Lady Justice, formed in 2019 to fight the abduction, homicide, violence, and trafficking of Indigenous women.

"Lady Justice" used by the U.S. Dept. of Justice, with permission from DG Smalling, Choctaw Nation — “Lady Justice” used by the U.S. Dept. of Justice, with permission from DG Smalling, Choctaw Nation

The MMIW Task Force now has U.S. and Tribal law enforcement and government officials working to strengthen social service organization responses, improve data collection/reporting, and address factors exacerbating the crisis, including sexual and domestic violence, human trafficking, economic disparities, and substance abuse.

Ingrid Cumberlidge, Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons (MMIP) Coordinator at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Alaska, spoke at the 2022 AMBER Alert and AMBER Alert in Indian Country National Symposium March 29-30, 2022. The annual event was delivered by the AMBER Alert Training and Technical Assistance Program, a U.S. Department of Justice initiative, and the National Criminal Justice Training Center of Fox Valley Technical College. Cumberlidge, a former educator and Tribal court judge of Aleut and Tlingit heritage, shared several unsettling trends during her presentation:

Native women living on Tribal lands are murdered at up to 10 times the national average, according to DOJ-funded research. “Because of jurisdictional challenges, the disappearances can be hard to track and prosecute, so it’s difficult to know exactly how bad the problem is,” she said.
Homicide is the third leading cause of death for Indigenous women, and those under age 35 have a higher murder risk than any other demographic in the nation.
A study by the Urban Indian Health Institute recorded 5,712 reports of missing American Indian and Alaska Native women and girls in 2016, while the DOJ’s Missing Persons database logged only 116 cases.
“There is an urgent need to diagnose the symptoms of the problem and develop sustainable protocols,” Cumberlidge said. “We have to find long-term resolutions that Tribal communities need and deserve.”

Contributed by Denise Gee Peacock, AATTAP-NCJTC Associate

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: Navajo Nation member Christopher Becenti at Window Rock Park’s “Ear of the
Wind” sandstone formation in Arizona. As Executive Director of the Navajo Nation Telecommunications
Regulatory
Commission
(NNTRC), Becenti is making meaningful strides in bolstering
the Navajo’s technological
infrastructure, which is vital for public safety. Less than half of all homes on the
reservation had fixed Internet service as of 2020, according to the American Indian Policy Institute, “but that’s rapidly changing,” Becenti said.
Credit: Navajo Nation

Yes WEA Can

With the Navajo Nation’s COVID-19 emergency response in high gear, tech leader Christopher Becenti is closing ‘the digital divide’ to make life safer in his community

May 2, 2016, was supposed to be a happy occasion for Christopher Becenti; it would mark his 30th birthday. “But it was one of the worst days I can remember,” he said. “All I could do was sit on the sidelines and watch” as confusion and grief shook the Navajo Nation to its core.

On that fateful day, 11-year-old Ashlynne Mike was abducted by a stranger near her home in Shiprock, New Mexico. Her family’s frantic outreach efforts to find her were fraught with jurisdictional misunderstandings and slow communication responses that delayed the issuance of an AMBER Alert by 12 hours. By then it was too late. Ashlynne had been brutally murdered.

The Navajo Nation vowed never to allow a similar situation to happen again. And Becenti, a tech-savvy member of the Navajo Nation who then worked in the private sector, knew “something had to be done,” he said. “I knew one day I wanted to help my people get better connected.”

In April 2018, the Ashlynne Mike AMBER Alert in Indian Country Act was enacted, providing the country’s 574 federally recognized tribes with funding and opportunities for more technology, training, and pathways to stronger partnerships with state, regional, and federal authorities.

Within a year of the law’s passage, Becenti was tapped by Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez to be the Executive Director of the Navajo Nation Telecommunications Regulatory Commission (NNTRC). His task: untangle a web of problems posed by local and national wireless carriers and mobile device manufacturers to ensure Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEAs) could be sent to everyone eligible to receive them.

He also needed to “creatively strategize how to expand broadband access to our most remote territories,” since he had few resources at the time.

A year into his position, however, the Navajo Nation would face down a devastating public health crisis: the COVID-19 pandemic. Pre-pandemic, the Navajo Nation had been at the forefront of strengthening public safety infrastructure to bolster its emergency/crisis response capabilities, including AMBER Alerts. “The pandemic, however, accelerated everything we were working on,” Becenti said.

Though his mission is clear-cut, the work is not. But major advancements are occurring thanks to his tireless efforts, Navajo Nation leadership support, and COVID-19 financial relief from the U.S. government.

The Navajo Nation is the country’s largest Indian reservation, encompassing three states (Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah) and 27,000 square miles (about the size of West Virginia). But only a small percentage of its 173,000 citizens have access to broadband for reasons ranging from their homes being in remote locations to prohibitive costs. And 911 emergency services are problematic. When a Navajo Nation citizen uses a mobile phone or even a land line to call 911, the call is rerouted up to two times in order to reach the nearest law enforcement agency (LEA) communications center. Many Navajos who live in rural areas do not have standard addresses, and must rely upon P.O. boxes. In addition to the delay and potential dropped calls that rerouting causes, the lack of a street address can impede or altogether prevent the ability of the LEA to pinpoint the caller’s location.

These problems became painfully clear during the pandemic, when Navajo citizens could not immediately connect with emergency services. Reportedly, some citizens died trying to reach a payphone, or a neighboring home with telephone access (which might be 20 miles away) or while attempting to get to a place with a stronger cellular signal.

Additionally, people in remote areas could not receive COVID-19 WEAs or connect to online sources of news, specifically the Facebook page of Navajo Nation President Nez. “Many use computers at community centers, which shut down along with most public spaces,” Becenti said. “On top of that, people could not work from home or have their children learn remotely.”

: Lavina Willie-Nez, Deputy Director of the Navajo Nation’s Department of Emergency Management, sends an historic Wireless Emergency Alert (WEA) to the Navajo Nation on March 23, 2020. “The Navajo Nation was among the initial alerting authorities, and the first from a tribal nation, to issue a live [WEA] as part of the COVID-19 public health emergency response,” said Bambi Kraus, National Tribal Affairs Advisor for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
Credit: Navajo Nation

The situation was bleak, and a lot to tackle, but with lives at stake, Becenti set his sights on fixing WEAs, since many Navajos reported being unable to receive them on their cell phones.

After numerous conversations with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), Becenti began to see the big picture. And the source of the problems.

Becenti began working directly with a host of carriers to resolve technical issues while also enticing major carriers such as AT&T and T-Mobile to invest in providing coverage to the Navajo Nation. And while he was able to rectify issues with Android phones that prevented some users from getting WEAs, one smartphone maker was a holdout: Apple. WEAs were inaccessible to phones sold by smaller companies who were unable to order units in the large numbers Apple required for the phones to be fully provisioned to accept WEAs. Becenti and smaller carriers that serve the Navajo Nation made numerous attempts to discuss the situation with Apple, but repeated calls and emails got them nowhere.

Fortuitously, when the FCC invited the public to submit comments about WEA concerns in early 2021, Becenti recognized the Navajo Nation needed to respond immediately. It would be their best chance at getting Apple to pay attention and resolve the situation.

On April 20, 2021, the NNTRC and Navajo Nation Office of the President and Vice President (OPVP) formally submitted comments to the FCC with the assistance of Washington D.C. area attorney James E. Dunstan of the Mobius Legal Group.

“Thankfully, our concerns were heard loud and clear,” Becenti said.

Within eight months, Apple announced all iPhone users who upgraded their software to iOS15 would have access to WEAs.

Despite feeling like David taking on Goliath, Becenti was amazed by the win. So was the Navajo Nation leadership. After Apple’s announcement, Navajo Nation President Nez said, “The safety of our elders and those most vulnerable is important as we keep our Navajo families informed of any emergency. We can now immediately alert the Navajo people should one of our family members go missing or there exists a public safety threat.”

“Now we have about 99% penetration of WEAs on our wireless devices,” Becenti said. “We just need everyone to update their iPhones to get to 100%.”

To mitigate COVID-19’s devastating impact on the U.S. economy, the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) was signed into law (Pub L. No. 117-2) on March 11, 2021. It built upon many of the measures of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act of 2020 by ensuring affordability and access to broadband infrastructure for federally recognized Indian tribes/indigenous communities and other rural regions. Additional help followed with the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (H.R. 3684), signed into law November 15, 2021.

Funding for the construction of new broadband connections across the Navajo Nation primarily stems from Legislation No. 0257-21, which provides more than $1.16 billion in ARPA funding.

In November 2021, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) began accepting applications from tribes for the Tribal Broadband Connectivity Program, which provides $980 million through the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021. (NTIA limits funding applications to $55 million per tribe.) And by December 1, 2021, the 24th Navajo Nation Council met to discuss allocation of the myriad ARPA funds and grant applications for broadband internet expansion and public safety.

: On January 4, 2022, Navajo Nation leadership signed Resolution CD-62-21, approving $557 million in American Rescue Plan Act funds for the Navajo Nation. Credit: Navajo Nation

“Through the American Rescue Plan Act, our administration has a proposal before the Navajo Nation Council to allocate $208 million for broadband projects,” said Navajo Nation President Nez. “The Navajo Nation Telecommunications Regulatory Commission Office continues to look at many ways of leveraging many sources of funding to expand broadband for homes, first responders, schools, businesses, and others.”

Navajo Nation Vice President Myron Lizer added, “We are very optimistic that these collective efforts will lead to many new towers, fiber lines, and high-quality internet for our Navajo people and communities.”

As millions of dollars in funding awaits approval and allocation, Becenti is working with Navajo Nation leadership to achieve a number of goals, including: creating a single network, FirstNet, to be dedicated for first responders; gradually consolidating the Navajo Nation’s seven emergency dispatch call centers into a single facility that has full 911 routing capabilities; completing the Nation’s rural addressing initiative, which will allow 911 dispatchers to see the caller’s location and develop a database for record-keeping; and partner “in more creative ways” with the Navajo Tribal Authority, the Nation’s utility company.

Beyond the technical achievements, Becenti is most deeply motivated by knowing WEAs are reaching the Navajo Nation and saving lives, while he works to “close the digital divide.”

Six children have been recovered following two separate AMBER Alerts thanks to WEAs that would not have been as widespread as they are now. “Knowing the public can now receive such alerts is an amazing feeling,” Becenti said. “Every minute counts when there’s an active AMBER Alert. We all have to be connected.”

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Nearly 10,000 Native Americans—more than 7,000 under the age of 18--went missing in 2020. Those statistics from the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) were shared at the first virtual AMBER Alert Indian Country Symposium—which was held in conjunction with the National AMBER Alert Symposium on August 17-19, 2021.

Tribal AMBER Alert partners in attendance at this year’s event learned powerful lessons on the accelerated efforts to find missing and abducted children from American Indian and Alaska Native communities. Beyond the startling statistics, these cases represent real people and show that in 2020, homicide ranked as the #3 cause of death for Native American males, and #6 for Native American females. In that same year, 46% of homicides were preceded by an argument, 18% after a physical fight, and 18% involved an intimate partner.

Chris Chaney, Senior Counsel for Law Enforcement and Information Sharing, Office of Tribal Justice, DOJ, shared the findings but warned the overall statistics for Native Americans do not show what is truly happening in each tribal community.

“When you’ve seen one tribe, you’ve only seen one tribe,” said Chaney.

The U.S. has 574 federally recognized tribes—including 229 Alaska Native villages. California has 108 tribes; the remaining 237 are located throughout 34 states. Only 14 states have no tribes, yet all have Native American residents. The Navajo Nation has more than 300,000 members while the Augustine Band of Cahuilla Indians has 8 members.

Chaney shared recent efforts to protect Indigenous communities, including:

The Memorandum on Tribal Consultation and Strengthening Nation-to-Nation Relationships, issued in January 2021, directs “all Executive departments and agencies consult with Indian Tribes and respect Tribal sovereignty as they develop policy on issues that impact Indian communities.”
DOJ invested $1.5 million to hire Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIP) Coordinators in 11 states to provide training and support local response efforts.
The MMIP coordinators created a Tribal Community Response Plan to implement culturally appropriate guidelines when investigating cases of missing and murdered American Indians.
Operation Lady Justice began in 2019 to improve the response to murdered Native Americans, particular missing and murdered women and girls.
Savanna’s Act clarifies federal, state, Tribal and local law enforcement responses to murdered Indian people.
The Not Invisible Act increases intergovernmental coordination in identifying and combatting violent crime within tribal lands.

According to the Indian Law Resource Center, four in five indigenous women have experienced violence, and Alaska Native women report assault rates 12 times higher than other U.S. citizens. On some reservations, indigenous women are 10 times more likely to be murdered.

In the Face of Tragedy: Fierce Hope, Radical Change

At this year’s symposium, AATTAP Administrator Janell Rasmussen welcomed Pamela Foster, “the warrior mother who led the grass roots efforts to establish AMBER Alert in Indian country after her daughter Ashlynne’s abduction and death. Foster remains active in engaging Tribal leaders and government officials across the country to implement AMBER Alert plans and was invited to attend the State of the Union address in 2018, where she had the opportunity to speak with lawmakers.

Foster asked them to support legislation that would expand AMBER Alerts on Native American reservations by clarifying that Indian Tribes are eligible for DOJ grants. She received NCMEC’s Champion Award for her advocacy and efforts to encourage Native American communities to adopt AMBER Alert plans. She continues to work tirelessly, encouraging Indian communities to adapt AMBER Alert programs to protect children from predators.”

“Today marks five years, three months and 17 days since the loss of my daughter Ashlynne,” Foster told participants. “Those heart-wrenching days prompted me to voice my concerns and bring to light the problems that we face in Indian Country. It was the worst way to find out we didn’t have an AMBER Alert when we needed it most.”

Foster tragically learned firsthand about the limited means available in Indian Country when her daughter was abducted and murdered on the Navajo Reservation. On May 2, 2016, her 11-year-old daughter Ashlynne Mike, and 9-year-old son, Ian Mike, were taken by a predator who tricked them into getting into his van. Ashlynne was raped and beaten to death but Ian was able to get away.

After the abduction, Foster learned the Navajo Nation lacked the resources and training to issue an AMBER Alert. Nearly two years after Ashlynne’s death, Foster was instrumental in persuading Congress to pass the Ashlynne Mike AMBER Alert in Indian Country Act, a law enhancing the training and technical assistance tribes receive, and which paves the way for tribes to access state AMBER Alert plans. “I became Ashlynne’s voice,” said Foster. “I didn’t want another parent to have to experience what we did. Shortly after her funeral I started advocating in her sweet little spirit. And everywhere I went, I carried her spirit with me, and I brought about awareness of child abduction and missing children and what we can do to safeguard our children on the reservation.”

In closing, Foster offered a beautiful prayer for her daughter, and thanked the participants for their work and dedication. “I am elated by all the work that’s been accomplished since the passage of Ashlynne’s Law,” Foster expressed. “I thank every one of you who work hard to protect our children. I could not have done this without you.”

Resources for Indian Country

Foster worked closely with former AATTAP Administrator Jim Walters to pass the Ashlynne Mike Act and assisted with expanding efforts to help missing and abducted children in Indian Country. Walters spoke at the symposium about the resources needed for tribal AMBER Alert plans.

Walters advocated making sure the plan is able to deliver emergency alerts through as many means as possible like wireless messages, traffic signs, website, email, television and radio. But he said the system should be simple enough so everyone can use it.

“It needs to be something that in the middle of the night, you don’t need a technician or vendor to help with; or something you can get locked out of, or can’t use if there’s an issue,” said Walters.

He added that DOJ provides qualifying tribes with technology toolkits to assist in implementation of Tribal AMBER Alert plans. The kits include mobile tablets, scanners, headsets, web cameras, digital cameras and accessories.

Walters also urged tribal leaders to contact NCMEC. “You’ve got to be ready to reach out to them because they’ve dealt with these programs, and they already have access to them,” he said. “They can tell you what works and what doesn’t work. We forget AMBER Alerts are low-frequency high-risk events; they don’t happen all the time, so we have to train on these things. Exercise and collaborate with partners before you need them.”

Tyesha Wood is a member of the Navajo Nation and the AATTAP Project Coordinator for the AMBER Alert in Indian Country. Before the pandemic, she had been visiting tribes in-person around the country to help set up AMBER Alert and community response plans.

Wood said many Tribal leaders have access to state AMBER Alert coordinators but few had made strong connections with key partners. They also did not know if a response plan was available.

“So, yes, we had AMBER Alerts available to us five to 10 years ago, but when you think about those tribal nations within the United States, there was a disconnection there,” said Wood. “The Ashlynne Mike AMBER Alert Act is about making those connections. We know who to call, we know who’s going to be responding. It’s about getting the information and making the resources available to tribal communities.”

Wood said the program can help get documents and flyers to tribes in English and their native languages. She and her AIIC colleagues continue to work with tribes on their response plans.

Wood added it is critical for Tribal leaders to have close contacts with all community members, including representatives from transportation, fire departments, Boys & Girls Clubs, Head Start, and others. “Let’s start talking about it now before something bad happens,” she said.

Ernie Weyand, the MMIP Coordinator in Montana, said Tribal leaders told him they did not want to use the national protocol for their community response plans.

“They didn’t think that would be effective,” said Weyend. “In fact, they really called for something that was specific to their community, to their culture and to their needs.”

Weyend said he is continuing to help tribes develop their own community response plans on how each will specifically respond to missing persons.

Tribal Breakout

As with the other regional breakout sessions held during this year’s virtual symposium, Tribal partners met together during a specific session to network, identify what is working, and what areas need improvement. Topical areas discussed during the Tribal breakout included:

Participation in their State AMBER Alert Plans
Obstacles in Requesting and Issuing an AMBER Alert
Tribal Community Education on AMBER Alert in Indian Country
AMBER Alert Program Partnership
Training Needs

This collaboration opportunity was especially important at this time, as most of the participants have not been able to meet with each other regularly due to the pandemic.

Final Thoughts and A Call to Action

AATTAP Administrator Janell Rasmussen concluded the online symposium by sharing her hope that the next national gathering will be in-person. “This is our first time holding the symposium virtually and your attendance was critical in the continued collaboration and improvement of the AMBER Alert program during this pandemic. The fact that children’s lives are put in danger each and every day did not stop with the pandemic, and we must continue to be prepared and respond.”

Rasmussen thanked everyone for being champions for children. “We must continue to be prepared and respond,” she said. “We value your input and suggestions and look for ways to implement initiatives that help to deal with the issues you are facing. You are dedicated and committed to protecting kids, and we appreciate the work that you do each and every day to make this program more successful and protecting children.”

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Contributed by Pamela Foster, mother of Ashlynne
May 2, 2021, will mark five years since the abduction of my children Ashlynne and Ian Mike. Ian was at a tender age of 9 and still very young and spent a majority of his time cementing his relationship with his sister. Ashlynne was 11 and she was in the “in-between” years of 9 and 12 and was flourishing as she moved through her childhood. I was blessed with two amazing children and life was just about as perfect as it could be. I’m not sure how to begin the story of the abduction of my children, but I can say we were “not ready” for the shock that occurred that day.

On the morning of May 2, 2016, Ian and Ashlynne woke up like any other morning, they got dressed for school, gave a round of morning hugs and off they went to school not knowing the terror that awaited them. My children were abducted after school from their school bus stop and my sweet angel never made it home.

Since that horrific day, I became my children’s advocate, fought for Justice, and raised awareness about the lack of AMBER AMBER Alert programs across Indian Country. With hard work from so many dedicated leaders who saw the loop hole in the system, we were able to pass the Ashlynne Mike AMBER Alert in Indian Country Act of 2018 on April 13, 2018.

I am elated we now have the Ashlynne Mike AMBER Alert in Indian Country program, a life-saving system for our indigenous children and their families. Tears flow down my cheeks because I am so passionate about making a change, and the very source of my movement started from the grassroots. Not sure if I’d get this far, I put all my faith in Ashlynne and the universe. My angel was with me in spirit every step of the way.

Since the tragedy, we remember Ashlynne with an annual walk. Unfortunately, we were not able to gather this year with each other like last year. Because the spirit of the walk is important to us, this year we met virtually.

On May 2, 2021, we honored Ashlynne and our thoughts were with our beautiful angel. A time to commemorate her life, a day in which we give so much respect to her. Although she is no longer with us, she is still moving mountains and her spirit still lives on. There’s always a special feel in the air when I’m working and doing things for her and I know she is with me/us. We love her dearly; she has touched the lives of so many people during her short time on earth. Eleven beautiful years filled with cherished memories, and they are kept safe in our hearts.

By commemorating this day to Ashlynne, we remember the times we shared together, celebrations from her birth to her death, and all the milestones in between. We will never forget those precious moments, the twinkle in her eyes, the sound of her laughter.

Some Oklahoma lawmakers are seeking enactment of the Kasey Alert Act to address the problem of missing and murdered Native Americans. The bill is named after 26-year-old Kasey Russell who went missing five years ago. The law would enable law enforcement to send out an emergency message to phones and road safety signs, similar to an AMBER Alert, for adults ages 18 to 59 who are believed to be in danger. Last year, Oklahoma passed Ida’s Law, which makes investigating missing and murdered Indigenous women easier for law enforcement.

A new report finds Wyoming’s Indigenous residents have a disproportionately higher homicide rate than the general population. Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon created the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Task Force in 2012 and assigned the group to address the barriers for investigating and helping victims. The report finds Indigenous people make up less than 3% of Wyoming’s population, yet account for 21% of homicide victims. These rates are also higher than the national average.

Tribal communities identified three key barriers to consistent reporting and response to cases.
Lack of trust in law enforcement and/or the judicial process.
Absence of a single point of contact among law enforcement, agencies and communities to help families navigate the system.
Perceived lack of information concerning the timely progress of an investigation or judicial proceeding.

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Navajo Nation President Russell Begaye is joined by NDEM Director Harland Cleveland, Vice President Jonathan Nez, Chief of Police Phillip Francisco and DPS Director Jesse Delmar.

“Thankfully, we were prepared.”

On Nov. 25, 2020, the Navajo Nation AMBER Alert faced its first real test – and aced it. The AMBER Alert led to two young sisters being safely returned to their home in northwest New Mexico, and that left Navajo Nation Department of Emergency Management Harlan Cleveland breathing yet another sigh of relief. Three years of intense planning, training, and testing for just such a day had paid off.

Prior to November 25, Cleveland and his team had practiced issuing the child recovery alert in a simulated lab environment. “We were wondering how it would go in real-time,” he shared. “Thankfully, we were prepared.”

Also thankful is the family of Jayda John, 7, and Jaylee Spencer, 14.

On Saturday, November 21, the girls were taken from their uncle’s home in Fort Defiance, New Mexico, without his knowledge or permission. His girlfriend, Kristy Marie Pinal, had taken his car, and his nieces, to visit her parents several hours away on the Fort Apache Indian Reservation in Whiteriver, Arizona; that is what Pinal told him when reached by cell phone. She also said she would return with the girls the next day.

But Sunday came and went, and Pinal was not responding to calls and voicemails. By Monday November 23, Jayda and Jaylee’s family reported them missing to the Navajo Nation Police Department in Window Rock, New Mexico.

In issuing a Missing and Endangered Persons Advisory, Cleveland and Deputy Emergency Management Director Lavina Willie-Nez worked with the Navajo Nation Public Information Officer (PIO) to create a flyer that could be shared far and wide – on social media and at well-traveled locations throughout the reservation. Reaction to the girls’ disappearance gained attention, but no leads, and by the next day, Navajo Nation Police Department investigators filed kidnapping charges against Pinal.

An AMBER Alert – the first for Cleveland’s team to independently issue – would be needed. And quickly. Although Cleveland and Willie-Nez were working in separate locations in different states that day, they got the job done. “The good thing about our system is that it’s cloud-based, which allows us to respond instantly, wherever we are.”

Communicating by cell phone, with open laptops at the ready, Cleveland and alert co-coordinator Willie-Nez confirmed the Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS) had the necessary information to push out the AMBER Alert to two states simultaneously. The AMBER Alert needed to go statewide in New Mexico and Arizona; the states in which Pinal and the girls were likely traveling.

With every minute holding the very lives of the missing girls in hand, Willie-Nez recalled her resolved mindset. “There’s no panicking in this line of work. We’re trained to get it done.”

After working with AMBER Alert Coordinators in New Mexico and Arizona to finalize alert elements, the AMBER Alert was activated, notifying citizens via their phones and other devices. “It was great to see how quickly the alert went out,” remarked Willie-Nez. Social media activity around the alert and case rose quickly as well.

Within 30 minutes, the girls were found safe, some 50 miles west of Window Rock, by a Navajo Nation public safety officer. Pinal was arrested and the girls were returned home to a greatly relieved family. The case remains under investigation.

In the debrief following the AMBER Alert, Cleveland and Willie-Nez identified a few small internal adjustments that could be made toward improved process efficacy with future alerts. In concluding their overall review of their AMBER Alert response and with having identified those process improvements, they feel good about their progress and readiness.

“We’re thankful to have budgeted for a system with all the bells and whistles, one that doesn’t leave us without add-on capabilities that we didn’t know we needed until we did,” Cleveland said.

While the Navajo Nation’s first AMBER Alert ended on a high note, the roots of their mass-notification system were born from a tragedy – the May 2016 abduction and murder of 11-year-old Ashlynne Mike.

The anguish over Ashlynne’s disappearance intensified after it was discovered that a series of miscommunications around jurisdictional issues had delayed the issuance of an AMBER Alert. In response, the Navajo Nation vowed never to let such a situation occur in the future. And Tribal Nations throughout the country realized that, like the Navajo Nation, they needed to enact their own comprehensive child recovery strategy.

Foundational to the heart of Tribal communities working to make that happen was the passage of the 2018 Ashlynne Mike AMBER Alert in Indian Country Act, championed by Ashlynne’s mother, Pamela Foster, and the late Arizona Senator John McCain. The Act gives Tribal Nations access to state AMBER Alert plans, provides federal grants to support related technology and training, and serves as the catalyst for the AMBER Alert in Indian Country initiative. As Tribal Communities and Nations partner with their states, either in utilizing the state AMBER Alert plan or adopting and operationalizing their own plans, the overarching result is clear: the continued growth and strengthening of the nationwide network of law enforcement, public safety, media, transportation, citizens, and numerous organizations working in partnership to bring endangered, missing, and abducted children safely home.

Building the Navajo Network
Building and maintaining an emergency communications network that would effectively serve the nation’s largest Indian reservation has been a gargantuan undertaking. First among the challenges was the sheer size of the reservation, a geographically diverse region spanning 11 counties in New Mexico, Arizona, and Utah; comprising a total 27,000 square miles (about the size of West Virginia).

Additionally, without its own plan and procedures, the Navajo Nation would need to contact each AMBER Alert Coordinator in the three adjoining states to provide information for AMBER Alert and IPAWS notifications. “We couldn’t risk any delay that might cause,” Cleveland said. “We had to have our own system.”

Building an emergency alert system that integrated IPAWS took a few years, but thanks to a unique Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the Navajo Nation now has the authority to access IPAWS to issue AMBER Alerts. It also has the capability to push out non-emergency alerts (e.g., for COVID-19, traffic, and weather) via radio, television, and instant messaging.

In finding a platform that could not only integrate IPAWS but also provide personalization, Cleveland, his team, and a Navajo Nation task force comprised of law enforcement and public safety officers, as well as civic and community leaders, spent countless hours evaluating 40-plus vendor products for their capabilities and effectiveness. Ultimately, they chose Everbridge, and “so far so good,” Cleveland said.

The Nation’s mass-notification system, approved in December 2018 and launched a year later, is overseen by the Navajo Division of Public Safety (NDPS) and managed by the Navajo Department of Emergency Management (NDEM). To stay on their game, Cleveland and his team participate in monthly meetings with Everbridge and FEMA while also hosting beginner-level webinar training sessions for new Navajo Nation law enforcement officers.

While the idea of future missing and abducted child incidents is never easy to consider, Cleveland and Willie-Nez understand it is inevitable. This is what drives their daily work and never-ending commitment to being prepared to respond – swiftly and effectively. They will be ready for it, they said.

“As a mother, I can’t even imagine how I’d feel if one of my children went missing,” shared Willie-Nez. “When a child’s life is on the line, all of us know we have to get the word out to as many people possible, as quickly as possible.”

When searching for the perpetrator of an abduction, “Anybody can be everywhere,” she said. “That’s why the public has to be our eyes and ears.”

SOUND ADVICE

An independently operated mass notification system is well suited to the Navajo Nation due to its vast size and ample resources, but it may not be feasible for most Tribal Nations. Harlan Cleveland and Lavina Willie-Nez of the Navajo Nation Department of Emergency Management offer these tips for Tribes working to create a solid communications plan:

Work with your state’s AMBER Alert Coordinator to build from existing AMBER Alert programs. Any Tribal leaders who are reticent about tapping into state/national resources and expertise “should consider that at the end of the day, it’s not about us, it’s about our children,” Willie-Nez said.
Learn what criteria your state’s AMBER Alert program needs to ensure your alert goes out quickly and accurately. Also make sure law enforcement, public safety leaders, and community members know what is required so that families can be prepared.
Assess your technological strengths and weaknesses. Do the cellular or broadband service/wireless transmitters in your community/area need updating?
Participate in training whenever possible. Ask FEMA to provide an IPAWS tutorial. Also take courses provided by the AMBER Alert in Indian Country (AIIC)/AMBER Alert Training and Technical Assistance Program (AATTAP) and the National Criminal Justice Training Center. “Both paint a really good picture of what’s required,” Cleveland said.
Network with knowledgeable sources and attend regional/national conferences.
Maintain a dynamic social media presence and encourage others to like and share important information. Also stress the importance of opting in for AMBER Alert notifications. “If it were your child, wouldn’t you want everyone to see the AMBER Alert?” Willie-Nez said.
Be ready for the media to call after an AMBER Alert is issued. They will want a good quality, emailable photo of the child and a flyer, if available.
Check out the FEMA fact sheet, “How Tribal Governments Can Sign Up for Public Alerts and Warnings.”

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The afternoon of Jan. 13, 1996, Amber Hagerman, a 9-year-old girl who lived in Arlington, Texas, was last seen riding her bike in a parking lot. A witness saw a man with a black, flat-bed truck snatch Amber from her bicycle. Four days later, Amber’s body was found in a creek 3.2 miles from her home. Her murder remains unsolved. Dallas-Fort Worth area residents were outraged and began calling radio stations, not only to vent their anger and frustration but also to offer suggestions to prevent such crimes in the future.

One person, Diana Simone, suggested a program be implemented allowing use of the Emergency Alert System (EAS) to notify the public when a child has been abducted. If the community was aware, then residents could also assist in the search. Simone followed up with a letter, and her only request was the program be dedicated to the memory of Amber Hagerman. That letter was used by broadcasters who met with local law enforcement and created Amber’s Plan in Amber Hagerman’s memory.

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A nine-member task force has begun compiling a report on murdered and missing Indigenous women and girls in Utah. The task force hopes to understand the scope of the problem and stop further injustices from occurring. The members include representatives from Restoring Ancestral Winds, the Urban Indian Center, the Paiute Indian Tribe, and several state officials.

Utah Rep. Angela Romero sponsored a 2019 resolution making May 5th Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, and LGBT+ Awareness Day. The resolution passed, providing support for a task force. “We ran the resolution honoring the memory of murdered and missing Indigenous women and reminding people that this is an epidemic in our country,” said Romero, who identifies as Hispanic and Assiniboine (part of the Sioux Nation). “And when the resolution passed, we knew that we had enough support to put together a task force.” The report was slated for completion by November 2020, but has been pushed back due to the pandemic.

The Native Women’s Association of Canada wants law enforcement to update how it applies the AMBER Alert criteria for cases involving Indigenous girls. The demand comes after a 14-year-old Indigenous girl was found in a wooded area with the suspect a week after she went missing. Law enforcement listed the girl as a runaway, but the group said an AMBER Alert should have been issued because of her age and the larger issue of missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls. “They may have run away, but we have to look at it more in depth,” said Lorraine Whitman, president of the association. “We just can’t take it as a case that they wanted to leave. We have to look into it because there are more underlying areas that we have to investigate as well.” The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) in Nova Scotia is reviewing its protocols and policies.

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Amber Hagerman, for whom the AMBER Alert is named.

A case that ended with the safe recovery of four missing children from the Arapaho Tribe in Wyoming became the 1,000th AMBER Alert success story. AMBER Alerts were issued in Wyoming and Colorado for the missing children, ages 5, 6, 11 and 14. Authorities believed they were be in imminent danger after being taken by their non-custodial mother. A citizen saw the alert and helped police recover the children from a motel in Colorado. The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children has been documenting all successful AMBER Alert recoveries after the program began in 1996.

Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul launched a new task force to help fight the abduction, homicide, violence, and trafficking of Native women in the state. The Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW) Task Force will examine contributing factors to the crimes and focus on understanding the roles of federal, state, and tribal jurisdictions. The task force will also improve and implement data collection and reporting methods.

“The problem of violence against women and children and the disproportionate impact on Native women and communities is the responsibility of all of society to address,” said Kristin Welch, Menikanaehkem Women’s Leadership Cohort-MMIW Coordinator. “For meaningful long-term reform, we must look to solutions that are Indigenous-led while addressing both historical acts of violence against Indigenous women as well as those that still exist today within modern institutions.”

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By Patricia Davis

07-23-2020

A home movie was being shown on the evening news, and Diana Simone stopped what she was doing to watch, curious why they were featuring an excited little girl opening her Christmas presents nearly three weeks after the holiday. The blue-eyed brunette happily held up a Barbie doll for the video camera and waved and smiled as she took her new pink bicycle for a test drive.

Simone was eager to hear what this child had done to warrant a spot on the news. Her curiosity quickly turned to heartbreak. The news anchor said the 9-year-old girl, Amber Hagerman, had just been yanked off that new pink bicycle by a stranger and thrown, kicking and screaming, into his black pickup truck in the parking lot of an abandoned Winn-Dixie in Arlington, Texas. Her family was there visiting her grandparents, and she’d been riding bikes with her 5-year-old brother. He pedaled as fast as his little legs would go to get help.

Like Simone, her Arlington community desperately wanted to help search for Amber but didn’t know what to look for, even though there had been an adult who saw the whole thing. Frustrated, Simone called a Dallas-Fort Worth radio station with an idea: We have weather and civil defense alerts – why not alerts for critically missing children? Amber’s body was found four days after her Jan. 13, 1996 abduction in a creek bed, her throat slashed. Her killer has never been found.

In the wake of the tragedy, Simone’s idea eventually took off and became what is known today as the AMBER Alert System, which was designed to quickly galvanize a community to help search for critically missing kids. Now, 24 years after it began, America’s Missing: Broadcast Emergency Response (AMBER) has reached a remarkable milestone: its 1,000th success story with the recovery of four children in Wyoming believed to have been in imminent danger.

“It’s so uplifting, especially during this time when you’re seeing so many negative examples of selfishness,” said Simone, describing the public’s enduring response to AMBER Alerts as humanity at its best. “To see that the country’s spirit and caring is still very active is heartwarming to say the least.”

*Diana Simone at White House with President Bush in 2003 for signing of the PROTECT Act.*

The 1,000^th successful recovery came when the Fremont County Sheriff’s Office in Wyoming requested an AMBER Alert for four missing children, ages 5, 6, 11 and 14, from the Arapaho Tribe. Their non-custodial mother had taken them from a home outside the reservation where they had been placed by the tribe for protection.

Chris McGuire, Wyoming’s AMBER coordinator, confirmed that the children were in imminent danger and that there were sufficient descriptions of the vehicle, suspect and children for the public to help find them. A tribal court had issued a protective order to keep the mother away from the children, and McGuire activated the alert in the state.

The alert generated a lead when the mother, Stacia Potter-Norris, 30, stopped at a glass company to have a rear-window of the vehicle replaced and, with no money, offered to sell some guns in exchange for the work, McGuire said. She left her phone number with the clerk, who turned it over to law enforcement. Another tip came when a homeless man saw the vehicle described in the alert at a truck stop. He watched the driver swapping her vehicle with someone she appeared to know in another vehicle.

Using the phone number the mother gave the store clerk, investigators were able to track her movements to the Denver area. At Fremont County’s request, Colorado issued an AMBER Alert in that state with the updated vehicle information. That prompted a call from someone who saw a vehicle matching that description parked at a Motel 6. Using the motel’s surveillance tape, the children were found safe in Room 222, but the mother had disappeared. She was later found, arrested on felony charges and extradited back to Wyoming.

“This is a success story that could have gone really bad, really quick,” said McGuire, who’s proud of the milestone success story. “It really does show how the AMBER Alert works.”

AMBER got its start in 1996 after Simone, a self-described “ordinary woman and mother” who saw the report about Amber on TV, called the radio station and was asked by the station manager to follow up with a letter, explaining what she envisioned. The station manager promised to present Simone’s idea at an upcoming meeting of regional station managers. In her letter, dated 14 days after Amber’s abduction, Simone wrote that if the radio station could gather enough support for such an emergency broadcast system, she had one request: “That it be known as Amber’s plan.”

*Diana Simone’s letter proposing an AMBER Alert system after Amber’s abduction.*

Simone’s persistence paid off, and, with the media and law enforcement working together, the alert system was given FCC permission to operate. But after the first two years, Simone said, when there had been no successful recoveries, she feared its demise was imminent. Then, in November 1998, Arlington, Texas police received a report that an 8-week-old girl, Rae Leigh Bradbury, had been abducted by her babysitter, who may be headed to a crack house.

After she'd been missing for a day, law enforcement decided to give the new AMBER Alert system another try. This time it worked – and it only took 90 minutes for someone to recognize the babysitter's turquoise truck. Rae Leigh was recovered unharmed and now, as an adult, has become a strong advocate for AMBER and a symbol of hope for all families of missing children.

Since that first success, the AMBER Alert system, which is administered by the Justice Department and has 86 plans nationwide, has vastly expanded its reach, using all available technology to get vital information into the hands of people in the best position to help. They’re only used in the most serious child abduction cases, and only those that meet the individual state’s strict criteria. At the direction of law enforcement, the alert is first sent to radio and television stations, the lottery, the Department of Transportation and to us at the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children. (NCMEC) Then we, as secondary distributors, send it out to a wider audience, including internet service providers such as Facebook, Google and Twitter, digital billboards, the trucking industry and truck stops.

Then, seven years ago, AMBER Alerts got a significant boost. Law enforcement began enlisting the public’s help through their cell phones via a Wireless Emergency Alert, dramatically increasing the chance that the right person, at the right time would see the alert and help save a child. Because so many people have cell phones, more people are getting the information faster than ever before.

“It was a game changer,” said Carly Tapp, AMBER’s program specialist at NCMEC. “Awareness skyrocketed. Now, almost everyone knows what an AMBER Alert is. And when you receive one on your cell phone, please know that the child is in extreme danger. That’s what they’re helping with – the worst of the worst cases.”

Of the 1,000 success stories, 75 have already been attributed to alerts on cellphones, Tapp said. She said there are likely many more than 1,000 cases that have been resolved due to AMBER Alerts, but that it’s not always easy to confirm when someone calls in a tip resulting in a recovery that they had seen the alert, she said.

Twenty-four years later, Simone is thrilled by the sustained success of AMBER Alerts, a wonderful legacy for Amber. And why was she so certain that an alert system would work when others weren’t so sure? Said Simone: “Because I believe in the goodness in people.”

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Tyesha Wood, Project Coordinator, AMBER Alert Training & Technical Assistance Program and ITCN Council Members

On January 31, 2020, AMBER Alert Training and Technical Assistance Program and AMBER Alert in Indian Country (AATTAPAIIC) team members Tyesha Wood and Tanea Parmenter attended the quarterly meeting of the Inter-Tribal Council of Nevada (ITCN) in Sparks, Nevada. During this meeting, they provided a brief presentation on the Ashlynne Mike AMBER Alert in Indian Country Act of 2018 and the ongoing efforts by AATTAP-AIIC to support its implementation. The ITCN is comprised of members from the 27 tribes in Nevada. The purpose of the Council is to promote opportunities for the tribes and to assist with the tribe’s partnerships with local and state organizations. AATTAP–AIIC staff will continue to collaborate with the ITCN council members and assist tribes in developing programs that protect children and support the work being done with missing and exploited children programs in their communities.

Wyoming law enforcement agencies are now required to collect more information and better collaborate across jurisdictions on cases involving missing or murdered Native Americans. Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon signed a bill on March 9, 2020, that will also help the state’s two tribes implement their own AMBER Alert systems. The legislation requires Wyoming law enforcement to include biographical information on reports to give the state better data on the number of missing and murdered Indigenous people.

“For the Eastern Shoshone and the Northern Arapaho, we all have our stories,” said Wyoming Legislative Representative Andi Clifford, an enrolled member of the Northern Arapaho Tribe. “This is a step in the right direction.”

AATTAP–AIIC Team Members and Representatives from the Wyoming State Patrol and Wind River Inter-Tribal Council

On March 11, 2020, the AMBER Alert Training and Technical Assistance Program and AMBER Alert in Indian Country (AATTAP-AIIC) team, in partnership with the Wyoming State AMBER Alert Program, conducted a one-day AMBER Alert in Indian Country Implementation Meeting with the Wind River Inter-Tribal Council in Fort Washakie. The Wind River Inter- Tribal Council is comprised of members from the two tribes on the Wind River Indian Reservation, Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho, which combined have approximately 12,500 total enrolled members. Representatives from the Wind River Indian Community, Wind River Police Department, and surrounding state and county law enforcement agencies were also in attendance. The purpose of this meeting was to bring together representatives from Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho, and the Wyoming State AMBER Alert Program, to develop strategies for implementing AMBER Alert Plans for tribes in the aftermath of a child abduction.

During this meeting, staff from the Wyoming State AMBER Alert Program provided a presentation on its missing persons programs and resources, specifically explaining the protocol for working collaboratively to request and issue an AMBER Alert. Presenters emphasized their continued commitment to cooperate and assist the Wind River Indian Reservation and the Wind River Chief of Police with continued AMBER Alert training. The Wind River Tribal Community representatives and State Representatives also met to discuss state resources and valuable information to ensure a cooperative effort to enhance response in the event of an endangered missing or abducted child. The meeting concluded with a discussion of the role and duties of a possible AMBER Alert Coordinator within the Tribe to represent the Wind River Indian Community, and with concurrence to work with the Wyoming AMBER Alert Program on development of an AMBER Alert activation plan for the Tribe.

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In honor of Missing and Murdered American Indians and Alaska Natives Awareness Day and to support the efforts to fight this crisis, the City of Portland Tribal Relations Program sponsored “Strengthening the Safety Net: Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women Awareness Week” from May 3-8, 2020. During this week, the City of Portland’s Tribal Relations Program invited the AMBER Alert in Indian Country program to participate in their Educational Panel during its May 7^th Law Enforcement Day.

Panel members included, Tim Simmons, Tribal Liaison for the Oregon United States Attorney’s Office; Sarah Sabri, Oregon Department of Justice; and Tyesha Wood, AMBER Alert Training and Technical Assistance Program – AMBER Alert in Indian Country (AATTAP-AIIC). The event was moderated by Laura John, Tribal Relations Director for the City of Portland.

Throughout the panel, members provided an overview on the complexities surrounding missing and murdered indigenous women, including the dynamics of enforcement in tribal protection orders, a review of Operation Lady Justice, and additional resources available to assist programs in the City of Portland in addressing this issue. AATTAP-AIIC team member Tyesha Wood also provided a presentation on the Ashlynne Mike AMBER Alert in Indian Country Act of 2018 and ongoing efforts to assist tribes with missing and exploited children programs in their communities.

To learn more about this event and view the recording, please visit: https://www.facebook.com/TribalRelationsPDX/videos/233727178063153/

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During this 2020 National Police Week, we wish to thank each of you for your service and sacrifice on behalf of the tribal communities across the United States. During these unprecedented times you have stayed strong, placing yourselves on the front lines, facing the dangers of the corona virus while protecting our children and our communities. Each of you have left family members at home as you head out, facing the unknown, but willing to sacrifice everything in the line of duty.

As a community of many tribal nations, we know all too well the cost of sacrifice and the dangers of this profession. Let us not forget our fallen brothers and sisters. Take the time to visit the Fallen Officer Memorial Page https://www.odmp.org/search/browse/tribal-police and learn about some of the heroes lost in 2019. The names include Sergeant Steven Gaspare Greco of the Miccosukee Tribal Police Department, Conservation Officer Shannon Lee “Opie” Barron or the Red Lake Conservation Department, Officer Clayton Joel Townsend of the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community, Lieutenant Joseph P. Johnson of the Seminole, FL Police Department and Officer David Kellywood of the White River Police Department who died February 17, 2020, while responding to a call of shots fired. David, like those listed here laid down his life, going towards danger to protect others.

Law Enforcement is both a profession and a calling. It is not for everyone, and at times it can be dangerous, frustrating, and unforgiving. We are held to a higher standard and are often unable to say what we think or feel. We see and do things so that others will not have too. Many of us will carry scars, both physical and emotional for the rest of our lives. However, we do so with pride. We realize that our duty is to protect and serve the community, to keep the peace, protect the rights of others; to serve as mediator, counselor, warrior, peacemaker, and servant. It is a noble calling.

This year, 307 names are being engraved on the walls of the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington, DC, bringing the total to 22,217 officers killed in the line of duty memorialized there. If you have not had the opportunity to watch this year’s Law Enforcement Memorial program, I encourage you to do so.

Please remember that each of you are incredibly important, you are the protectors and are in our thoughts and prayers. Continue to serve with pride and professionalism.

With Great Respect,

Jim Walters | Program Administrator

AMBER Alert Training and Technical Assistance Program | National Criminal Justice Training Center

AMBER Advocate Website: https://amberadvocate.org

AMBER Alert in Indian Country Website: https://www.amber-ic.org

Contact AMBER Alert:

(877) 712-6237 | [email protected]

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With the signing of a proclamation declaring May 5^th as Missing and Murdered American Indians and Alaska Natives Awareness Day, President Trump has taken a step forward in our nation’s efforts to raise awareness and protect Native American and Alaskan Native communities.

Before we can make any real progress, we as a nation must first acknowledge there is a problem. We must collectively open our eyes to the reality that for far too long, women and children in these communities have faced levels of violence that should make the nightly news in every major media market in the US, and which would draw the ire of the nation.

Throughout this nation’s history, the dangers faced by the most vulnerable in these populations have been obscured by distance and isolation. Many have suffered, many have gone missing, and many have been murdered over the decades. Thanks to the courage and persistence of community members who have worked to raise awareness, we are finally beginning to see progress.

The Missing and Murdered American Indians and Alaska Natives Awareness Day proclamation takes a strong and important step in acknowledging the problem as it states “…we reaffirm our commitment to ending the disturbing violence against these Americans and to honoring those whose lives have been shattered and lost.” And with this much needed progression in awareness comes great responsibility for action.

Each of us should now be engaged in the fight to protect those who for too long have not been protected. We have an opportunity to make a difference in the lives of communities across the country, and we should all commit to strengthening the ability of tribes to end the violence, protect their citizens, and recover the missing.

Please heed this call and do your part; be it on the front lines of child protection, by volunteering in your community, or by learning and sharing more about the challenges facing our native communities. As you commit to learning and doing more, please engage with and share our AMBER Alert in Indian Country website.

Jim Walters | Program Administrator, AMBER Alert Training and Technical Assistance Program

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As shared from WhiteHouse.gov’s Law and Justice Proclamation on May 5, 2020:

The American Indian and Alaska Native people have endured generations of injustice. They experience domestic violence, homicide, sexual assault, and abuse far more frequently than other groups. These horrific acts, committed predominantly against women and girls, are egregious and unconscionable. During Missing and Murdered American Indians and Alaska Natives Awareness Day, we reaffirm our commitment to ending the disturbing violence against these Americans and to honoring those whose lives have been shattered and lost.

Resiliency, collaboration, and resourcefulness are all necessary to eradicate the heartbreaking incidents of missing persons and fatal violence experienced by American Indian and Alaska Native communities across our country. My Administration stands squarely behind the tribal governments that are leading the efforts to address this pattern of violence so that their people can live in peace and thrive. The Yakama Nation in southern Washington is using the State’s major violent crime database to track the disappearance of tribal members. On the Navajo Reservation, the Missing and Murdered Diné Relatives Work Group is working to end sex trafficking, child abductions, and other challenges within the largest tribal jurisdiction in the Nation. In Montana, the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes are engaged with State officials to prioritize cases of missing and murdered tribal citizens. Beyond these and other efforts, tribal communities are leveraging rich cultural traditions of healing ceremonies and spiritual practices to offer refuge, compassion, and comfort to individuals and families in crisis.

Under my Administration, tribal governments are not alone in fighting the epidemic of violence against American Indian and Alaska Native people. In October of 2019, the Department of Justice (DOJ) awarded more than $270 million in grants to improve public safety, serve victims of crime, combat violence against women, and support youth programs in American Indian and Alaska Native communities. The DOJ’s Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons Initiative is placing coordinators in 11 United States Attorneys’ offices to develop comprehensive law enforcement responses to missing persons cases. These responses also include the use of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s advanced capabilities, enhanced data collection, and analysis to support local efforts when required.

The Department of the Interior (DOI) is also taking action to address the critical concerns of American Indian and Alaska Native communities. DOI’s Bureau of Indian Affairs has launched a series of “Reclaiming Our Native Communities” roundtables focused on domestic violence prevention of missing or murdered American Indian and Alaska Native women, children, and men. The Bureau of Indian Affairs Office of Justice Services (BIA-OJS) is equipping officers to handle long-standing cold cases and child abduction investigations, including positioning Special Agents on cold‑case task forces in strategic locations throughout the country. BIA-OJS has partnered with the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System to aid in identifying missing persons cases involving Native Americans.

Additionally, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has made the health and safety of American Indian and Alaska Native communities a priority. HHS is developing a comprehensive, whole-person approach for strengthening these vulnerable populations through prevention, health, and education activities. The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) partners with tribes and tribal organizations to strengthen responses to Native American victims of domestic violence. ACF will soon disburse $22 million to increase the public health response and expand shelter and supportive services to victims of family violence, domestic violence, and dating abuse in tribal communities.

To help bolster these efforts to address this terrible crisis, last November, I was proud to sign an Executive Order establishing Operation Lady Justice. This interagency task force is developing an aggressive government-wide strategy for ending the cycle of violence and providing grants to improve public safety in American Indian and Alaska Native communities. The task force is consulting with tribal leaders to develop and strengthen investigative protocols to resolve new and unsolved cases, improve information and data sharing, establish best practices for communicating with families throughout an investigation, and raise public awareness through outreach to affected communities.

Tragically, violence is prevalent in tribal communities, but we are determined to reverse this unacceptable trend. Through partnerships across Federal, State, and tribal governments, we are aggressively working to ensure that members of tribal communities can live lives free from fear of violence. We will not waver in our mission to bring healing, justice, hope, and restoration to our American Indian and Alaska Native communities.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim May 5, 2020, as Missing and Murdered American Indians and Alaska Natives Awareness Day. I call upon all Americans and all Federal, State, tribal, and local governments to increase awareness of the crisis of missing and murdered American Indians and Alaska Natives through appropriate programs and activities.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
fifth day of May, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-fourth.

DONALD J. TRUMP

And as shared from the U.S. Department of Justice:

Attorney General William P. Barr issued the following statement:

“American Indian and Alaska Native people have suffered injustices for hundreds of years, including today’s rampant domestic and sexual violence carried out primarily against women and girls. Today, President Trump has proclaimed a day to remember all those missing and lost to this unacceptable violence. Through the Presidential Task Force – co-chaired by Katie Sullivan, who heads our Office of Justice Programs – and in partnership with Tribal Nations, we are all committed to ending this cycle of violence. To that end, we have brought unprecedented resources to support public safety and victim services, including $270 million in grant funding in fiscal year 2019. The department is also hiring 11 coordinators to consult with tribes and develop common protocols to address this scourge of violence. From this day forward, today’s proclamation marks a time for all of us to honor Native Americans who have been lost and rededicate ourselves to what President Trump has called ‘our mission to bring healing, justice, hope, and restoration’ to American Indian and Alaska Native communities.”

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Written by: Tyesha Wood

On January 31, 2020, AMBER Alert Training and Technical Assistance Program and AMBER Alert in Indian Country (AATTAP-AIIC) team members Tyesha Wood and Tanea Parmenter attended the quarterly meeting of the Inter-Tribal Council of Nevada (ITCN) in Sparks, Nevada. During this meeting, they provided a brief presentation on the Ashlynne Mike AMBER Alert in Indian Country Act of 2018 and the ongoing efforts by AATTAP-AIIC to support its implementation. The ITCN is comprised of members from the 27 tribes in Nevada. The purpose of the Council is to promote opportunities for the tribes and to assist with the tribe’s partnerships with local and state organizations. AATTAP – AIIC staff will continue to collaborate with the ITCN council members and assist tribes in developing programs that protect children and support the work being done with missing and exploited children programs in their communities.

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Written by: Tyesha Wood, Project Coordinator, AMBER Alert Training & Technical Assistance Program and ITCN Council Members

On March 11, 2020, the AMBER Alert Training and Technical Assistance Program and AMBER Alert in Indian Country (AATTAP-AIIC) team, in partnership with the Wyoming State AMBER Alert Program, conducted a one-day AMBER Alert in Indian Country Implementation Meeting with the Wind River Inter-Tribal Council in Fort Washakie. The Wind River Inter-Tribal Council is comprised of members from the two tribes on the Wind River Indian Reservation, Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho, which combined have approximately 12,500 total enrolled members. Representatives from the Wind River Indian Community, Wind River Police Department, and surrounding state and county law enforcement agencies were also in attendance. The purpose of this meeting was to bring together representatives from Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho, and the Wyoming State AMBER Alert Program, to develop strategies for implementing AMBER Alert Plans for tribes in the aftermath of a child abduction.

During this meeting, staff from the Wyoming State AMBER Alert Program provided a presentation on its missing persons programs and resources, specifically explaining the protocol for working collaboratively to request and issue an AMBER Alert. Presenters emphasized their continued commitment to cooperate and assist the Wind River Indian Reservation and the Wind River Chief of Police with continued AMBER Alert training. The Wind River Tribal Community representatives and State Representatives also met to discuss state resources and valuable information to ensure a cooperative effort to enhance response in the event of an abducted or endangered missing child. The meeting concluded with representatives in attendance discussing the role and duties of a possible AMBER Alert Coordinator within the Tribe to represent the Wind River Indian Community, and with concurrence to work with the Wyoming AMBER Alert Program on development of an AMBER Alert activation plan for the Tribe.

Janell Rasmussen, Associate, AMBER Alert Training & Technical Assistance Program

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Lawmakers in Wyoming are drafting legislation to address issues involving missing and murdered victims from Indian communities. On October 31, 2019, the Judiciary Committee voted for a bill that would: 1) gather and publish data on missing people with biographical data; 2) require law enforcement agency cooperation; 3) offer training on missing and murdered Indigenous people; and 4) assist the Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho tribes if they choose to implement and manage their own AMBER Alert system. Lawmakers are also considering a proposal allowing tribal police to arrest or cite non-Native American offenders.

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The Navajo Nation held a two-day symposium to address child sex trafficking in tribal communities. The training, entitled “Responding to Child Sex Trafficking & Exploitation in Tribal Communities,” was held May 30-31 in Shiprock, New Mexico.

Provided by the AMBER Alert Training and Technical Assistance Program (AATTAP), the training emphasized group collaboration, planning and implementation of awareness projects to keep tribal communities and children safe. Participants discussed specific threats and warning signs of sex trafficking involving indigenous children.

The symposium was a homecoming for Tyesha Bahe-Wood, a presenter and then- associate with the AMBER Alert in Indian Country initiative. She’s a Navajo member from Window Rock, Arizona, and attended Navajo Preparatory School in Farmington, New Mexico, 30 minutes east of Shiprock.

“It is uplifting to know that tribal communities, and my community in particular, are taking initiative to become more aware of the threats of sex trafficking,” said Bahe-Wood. “We work together as a group because we are all part of a family protecting our children.”

Bahe-Wood and AATTAP Program Manager Byron Fassett were given protection beads made by an eight-year-old boy and a 14-year-old girl. The beads are made from dried juniper and are also called “ghost beads.”

“As a non-tribal person, this not only allowed myself and Tyesha to provide our knowledge on the crime of sex trafficking, but also provided me with the opportunity to learn more about its impact on tribal communities,” said Fassett.

The class also presented Bahe-Wood with a three-pound bag of Cortez Bluebird flour, something she said is an “essential item in a Navajo household.” Bahe-Wood was recently promoted to a project coordinator with AATTAP.

Montana Governor Steve Bullock has signed legislation to create a Missing And Murdered Indigenous Person’s Task Force in that state. Under Senate Bill 312, the Looping in Native Communities (LINC) Act creates the task force which includes a representative from each tribal government on Montana’s seven reservations; other members represent the state’s AG’s Office, the DOJ and the Highway Patrol.

The task force’s primary duties include identifying jurisdictional barriers between federal, state, local and tribal Law enforcement and community agencies; and work on interagency collaboration, communication and cooperation to remove jurisdictional barriers and increase reporting and investigation of missing indigenous persons.

Eleven members of the task force have been appointed by Montana Attorney General Tim Fox. “I’m confident the members of the Missing Indigenous Persons Task Force will make positive strides in determining the scope of this issue as well as bring forward good recommendations to increase cooperation among public safety agencies and tribal governments,” Fox said of the task force.

Training on missing indigenous persons and the crime of sex trafficking, such as one held in June in Helena, are aligned with the task force’s work, a joint effort of the Montana AG’s Office and DOJ, and include presenters from state and federal agencies.

Mark Pollock, a member of the Montana Missing Indigenous Persons Task Force and the Blackfeet Tribal Council, spoke with a reporter about the June training event in Helena. “To hear their stories, you can’t help but be affected by it,” he said. “My hope is that we don’t have to have those stories like that out there anymore.”

Pamela Foster, the mother of Ashlynne Mike, an 11-year-old girl who was kidnapped and murdered in the Navajo Nation, challenged tribal, federal, state and local officials to do more to protect and find missing and abducted Native American Children. Foster was one of the featured speakers at the National AMBER Alert in Indian Country Symposium, held July 30-August 1 in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

The symposium brought together more than 200 tribal leaders, public safety, and emergency management officers to focus on implementing the Ashlynne Mike AMBER Alert in Indian Country Act of 2018, a law providing funding and resources to integrate state and regional AMBER Alert Plans with federally recognized tribes. A complete report on the Indian Country Symposium will be included in the next issue of The AMBER Advocate.

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The 2019 National AMBER Alert in Indian Country Symposium will focus on the Ashlynne Mike AMBER Alert in Indian Country Act to support states and tribes in work to integrate AMBER Alert plans. The symposium, to be held July 30-August 1 in Albuquerque, New Mexico, will include tribal public safety and emergency management leaders, state AMBER Alert coordinators and federal officials.

The AMBER Alert Training and Technical Assistance Program (AATTAP) is responsible for implementing the 2018 legislation. The act requires AATTAP to provide resources and policies to develop AMBER Alert plans in tribal communities. At this year’s symposium, participants will:

Learn about the Ashlynne Mike AMBER Alert in Indian Country Act of 2018;
Discuss methods for improving the process of integration between state or regional AMBER Alert communication plans with federally recognized tribes from across the nation;
Examine current resources, tools, and technologies to enhance the AMBER Alert network within Indian Country; and
Increase collaboration with OJJDP, NCMEC, AATTAP, state AMBER Alert coordinators and other federal and state officials.

The U.S. Senate is considering legislation that would commission a study on missing and murdered indigenous people. The bill was initiated after a Senate Committee on Indian Affairs Committee held a hearing on the epidemic of missing persons in Indian Country, including Ashley Loring Heavyrunner, a woman from the Blackfeet Tribe in Montana.

“In dealing with this tragedy of missing and murdered women, we must do better,” said Montana Senator Steve Daines, the bill’s cosponsor. “This legislation would hold federal agencies accountable and would help get the families and communities of these victims the answers they deserve.”

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The Navajo Nation brought a nine-month-old baby safely back to his mother after issuing its first Endangered Missing Person Advisory. The Department of Emergency Management issued the advisory for Nickolias Elias Tom on September 26 after his non-custodial father took him and authorities determined the baby was in danger. The advisory was issued at 7:13 a.m. and the baby was found safe by 5:14 p.m. The public and members of the media who signed up to receive the advisories were notified by text messages. Navajo officials said the new advisory is free, quick and worked flawlessly.

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Tribal leaders, law enforcement, and child protection advocates came together September 25-26 in Fort McDowell, Arizona, to learn, dialogue and network at the inaugural session of what will be a series of collaborative training and technical assistance events under the new Ashlynne Mike AMBER Alert in Indian Country Law. The AMBER Alert Training and Technical Assistance Program (AATTAP) delivered the event under the direction and funding of the U.S. Department of Justice, and featured presentations by: Pamela Foster, mother of Ashlynne; the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC); the Arizona State AMBER Alert Coordinator; NCJTC Associates who serve as subject matter experts in Indian Country law and AMBER Alert implementation; and AATTAP Administrator Jim Walters.

Topics discussed included lessons learned from the 2008 - 2010 AMBER in Indian Country pilot project, Tribal access to the Arizona State AMBER Alert System, facilitated discussions on Tribal resources and AMBER Alert planning, as well as important next steps and recommended actions for implementing AMBER Alert and developing comprehensive child protection strategies.

The primary mission of the AMBER Alert in Indian Country (AIIC) initiative is to design, develop and implement AMBER Alert programs in Indian Country; to foster relationships between tribes and their State and Regional AMBER Alert plans and partners; and to provide tribal communities with training and resources to quickly recover missing, abducted or exploited children.

AATTAP has developed a five-element process for implementing AMBER Alert in Indian Country under the new law. That process involves educating and informing, assessing needs, conducting meetings, developing tribal resolutions and partnership agreements with state AMBER Alert systems, and delivering training and technical assistance to ensure the support needed is provided every step of the way. Watch future issues of the Advocate for updates and progress as AATTAP works with tribes across the country to bring AMBER Alert into full realization in Indian Country.

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Kathleen Piccione (left), Pamela Foster and John Clark with the painting “Never Forgotten”

Near the steps of the Great Hall of Justice in Washington D.C., a work of art was displayed for all who took part in the 2018 National Missing Children’s Day ceremony. The painting depicts a sorrowful Native American girl holding a single eagle feather. The painting by Santa Fe, New Mexico, artist Kathleen Piccione is titled “Never Forgotten” and is dedicated to the memory of Ashlynne Mike, a Navajo child abducted and murdered at the age of eleven in May of 2016.

Piccione said she was in the process of painting a Native American child when she learned of the abduction of Ashlynne. “I began sobbing as I saw her picture and heard the horrific story of her death. I couldn’t shake the sick feeling that came over me. Her face would not leave my mind. I walked into my studio and looked at the painting I had been working on for the past month. Her face was sweet and young like Ashlynne, yet it was deeply sad.”

“I knew at that moment I had somehow painted this for Ashlynne, not knowing the tragedy that was about to unfold. I painted an eagle feather in the young girl’s hand to represent Ashlynne and called the painting ‘Never Forgotten,’ dedicating it to her forever.”

Before the start of the Missing Children’s Day ceremony, Piccione and Pamela Foster, mother of Ashlynne, met with John Clark, CEO of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), presenting him with a framed print of “Never Forgotten.” The portrait will be displayed at NCMEC’s headquarters in memory of Ashlynne and all missing and abducted Native American and Alaskan Native children. Clark recognized Piccione for her generous donation and for the spirit of her work to bring awareness to the tragedy of child abductions in Indian Country.

“It’s a beautiful painting,” said Clark. “It’s also important that we not forget the families of missing children. When a child goes missing, the heartbreak and pain has a ripple effect. It’s not just the parents who suffer. It’s the brothers, the sisters, the grandmothers, the grandfathers. The aunts, the uncles, the cousins. Extended family and friends. We know caring people want to help, but they often don’t know what to do or what to say.”

Piccione is originally from Wisconsin and has a family with strong ties to law enforcement and public service. She has also worked with tribal youth and community members for years, using art as a way to teach and heal. Santa Fe Print and Images donated its services for the print to be displayed at NCMEC.

Piccione plans to continue collaborating with NCMEC and the AMBER Alert Training and Technical Assistance Program to raise awareness regarding AMBER Alert in Indian Country and hopes her work will inspire others to do the same.

Friends and family gather to celebrate the signing of the Ashlynne Mike AMBER ALERT in Indian Country Act

President Donald Trump signed into law a bill on April 13, 2018, that expands the AMBER Alert system to tribal communities. The passage of this legislation comes nearly two years after eleven-year-old Ashlynne Mike was sexually assaulted and murdered on the Navajo Nation reservation in New Mexico. The Ashlynne Mike AMBER Alert in Indian Country Act gives tribes direct access to federal grants to improve AMBER Alert systems and provide additional training and technical assistance.

“This new law makes critical resources available to protect American Indian children and, we hope, will spare others the loss and suffering endured by Ashlynne’s family,” said Acting Associate Attorney General Jesse Panuccio.

Friends and family of Ashlynne Mike gathered in Waterflow, New Mexico, the day after the act was signed. Hundreds of people participated in a 5k run, bike race and a visit to Ashlynne’s school for presentations on safety awareness. “It is wonderful to have this AMBER Alert available to all the native nations across the United States,” said Gary Mike, Ashlynne’s father. “But it is also bitter in knowing it had to come in our lives; to have something like this happen to our child to open the eyes of people.”

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The Navajo Nation can now issue its own AMBER Alerts when a child is abducted on tribal lands. The AMBER Alert system is in effect for the eleven counties that cover the reservation in Arizona and Utah.

According to Harlan Cleveland, Emergency Coordinator and Acting Director for the Navajo Nation Department of Emergency Management, the system has been live since the beginning of 2018.

“In the event we do need to issue an AMBER Alert, we can issue it on (the) Navajo Nation,” said Cleveland.

The Navajo Nation has not yet issued an AMBER Alert, but did issue an Endangered Missing Person Advisory on January 26, 2018. A man took his 15-month-old daughter despite not having legal custody. The suspect and the child were found the next morning and two people were arrested.

U.S. senators from New Mexico, North Dakota, Montana and Minnesota are sponsoring the ‘Savannah’s Law’ bill requiring the federal government to take a more active role in addressing and combating the needlessly high rates of violence experienced by Native America women.

The bill is named after 22-year-old Savanna LaFontaine-Greywind, a member of the Spirit Lake Tribe of North Dakota. On August 19, 2017, she was reported missing by her family. Five days later Savanna’s daughter was found in a neighbor’s apartment. A week later, police found Savanna’s body.

Savanna’s family feels things may have ended differently if police would have taken the missing person report more seriously and initiated a more thorough search.

‘Savanna’s Law’ includes the following actions:

Improving tribal access to certain federal criminal history record information databases.
Creating standardized protocols for responding to cases of missing and murdered Native Americans.
Producing an annual report to Congress with data on missing and murdered Native women.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention determined homicide is the third leading cause of death among American Indian and Alaska Native women between 10 and 24 years of age, and the fifth leading cause of death for American Indian and Alaska Native women between 25 and 34 years of age.

The Government Accountability Office report in 2010 found U.S. Attorneys declined to prosecute nearly 52 percent of violent crimes that occur in Indian country.

Pamela Foster, the mother of 11-year-old Ashlynnne Mike

Pamela Foster, the mother of 11-year-old Ashlynne Mike, who was abducted and murdered on the Navajo Nation reservation in May 2016, attended President Trump’s first State of the Union address on January 30, 2017, in Washington, D.C. She was joined by Arizona lawmakers and law enforcement officials who successfully championed the AMBER Alert in Indian Country Act which, if signed into law, will expand AMBER Alerts to Native American communities and support them in developing comprehensive child recovery strategies.

“It is such an honor to attend this historical event,” said Foster. “I hope to use my time in Washington advocating for passage of this legislation in the House so that President Trump can sign it into law.”

Foster was invited by Arizona Representative Andy Biggs. “I believe we are extremely close to passing this lifesaving law,” Biggs said. “No child – regardless of race, ethnicity, sex or birthplace – should be outside the protection and jurisdiction of the AMBER Alert system.”

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The following press release was originally posted on: https://www.mccain.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=D8F87771-66A8-47F5-9F83-E598051004BE

Washington, D.C. – Last night, the House of Representatives passed the Ashlynne Mike AMBER Alert in Indian Country Act, legislation introduced by Senators John McCain (R-AZ) and Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND) in the Senate that would expand the AMBER Alert child abduction warning system on Native American reservations. Specifically, the legislation would clarify that Indian tribes are eligible for Department of Justice (DOJ) grants that help assemble AMBER Alert systems for law enforcement agencies. The amended legislation now moves back to the Senate for final passage.

The DOJ currently operates a pilot program that offers AMBER Alert training services to Native American tribes, but the Ashlynne Mike AMBER Alert in Indian Country Act would make that initiative permanent and enhance DOJ oversight of how the grants are used. The legislation would also reauthorize the DOJ grant program that assists state and local governments in developing and implementing AMBER Alert communication plans. These communication plans are used by law enforcement agencies to expedite child abduction alerts to the public. The bill would also require the DOJ to perform a needs assessment of AMBER Alert capabilities on Indian reservations.

“In 2016, the Navajo community was devastated by the abduction and murder of 11-year old Ashlynne Mike,” said Senator McCain. “In that high profile case, authorities did not issue an AMBER Alert for Ashlynne until the day after family members reported her abduction. We must do more to ensure Native American tribes have the resources they need to quickly issue AMBER Alerts and give abduction victims the best possible chance to survive. It’s critical the Senate quickly takes up this much-needed legislation and sends it to the president’s desk.”

“Tribal lands should not be a safe haven for criminals or a weak link in our ability to find and protect children who have been abducted or run away,” said Senator Heitkamp. “Making AMBER Alerts more accessible to Indian Country is critical to improving safety on tribal lands in North Dakota and across the country. Indian Country can often be remote and vast – and the lack of a consistent AMBER Alert system results in major delays in alerting law enforcement and community members in and around Indian Country when a child has been abducted or is missing. Every minute counts in these situations, and AMBER Alerts are a valuable tool in the critical first moments after someone goes missing. We must continue the fight to give law enforcement agencies at all levels the tools they need to prevent crimes in Indian Country and bring criminals to justice, which is why I also introduced Savanna’s Act and fight every day to keep communities in North Dakota strong and safe.”

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"Never Forgotten" by Kathleen Piccione (Chippewa)

Over the holidays I received a package in the mail which contained a framed print of a Native American child. When I looked closely I saw that the print was signed by the artist and included the inscription; “Never Forgotten, In Memory of Ashlynne”. While the artwork itself is remarkable, depicting a young Native child holding an eagle feather, it was the inscription that caught my attention. I looked on the reverse of the print and found a note from the artist, Kathleen Piccione, that explained how she had been working on the painting when she heard the terrible news about the abduction of 11 year old Ashlynne Mike on the Navajo Nation in May, 2016. She realized that this work of art was destined to represent Ashlynne and her memory.

“When I began this painting in April of 2016, I wasn’t’ sure why I was prompted to paint the sad faced Caddo child that was photographed by a friend of mine a year earlier. Then one morning in May as I as watching the morning news they announced the abduction and murder of Ashlynne Mike. I began sobbing as I saw her picture and heard the horrific story of her death. I couldn’t shake the sick feeling that came over me. Her face would not leave my mind. I walked into my studio and looked at the painting I had been working on for the past month. Her face was sweet and young like Ashlynne’s yet it was deeply sad. I knew at that moment I had somehow painted this for Ashlynne, not knowing the tragedy that was about to unfold. I painted an eagle feather in the young girl’s hand to represent Ashlynne and called the painting “Never Forgotten” dedicating it to her forever.”

Sadly, Ashlynne’s story is all too familiar to those of us who have worked in the field of missing children. To quote the joint letter written by surviving family members who participated in the 2017 Family Roundtable; “We know the pain and agony of the search. Some of us had all of the media help we could get, while others couldn’t get anyone in the media to cover their story and tackle the challenges of their missing case. We have experienced the political challenges and jurisdictional challenges. While we know that the criminals don’t care which city, which county or which state that they happen to be in, it matters in terms of the investigation. When it comes to missing children, we earnestly wish that we could all forget about jurisdictional boundaries and just find our kids.”

Kathleen Piccione (Chippewa), in this beautiful work, has eloquently captured a powerful message, and one that is so important to all of us; never forget. We can never forget Ashlynne or the other children across our country who are taken from their families, whose lives are changed or even cut short by those who would prey upon them.

Each of us in our own way is working to keep the memory of Ashlynne alive and to bring about improvements in how we serve our nation’s most vulnerable. From the work of state, local, federal and tribal officials across the country to implement comprehensive child recovery strategies to the pending legislation in congress to implement the AMBER in Indian Country Act of 2017, we are all doing our part to make sure our missing children are never forgotten.

Jim Walters
Program Administrator, AMBER Alert Training and Technical Assistance Program
National Criminal Justice Training Center at Fox Valley Technical College

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It took only a few minutes for 10-year old Ashton Fish to express for everyone at the 2017 AMBER Alert Symposium, through both word and dance, why everything possible must be done to protect missing and abducted children in Indian Country.

“I want to be the voice for all the Indian children,” said Fish. “I want the AMBER Alert to be on the reservation so none of our children can go missing, no one can steal our children and we won’t be afraid to walk in the dark.”

The young man then performed a traditional dance for all missing children. Fish first became aware of the issue of for Native American children when he heard about the abduction and murder of 11-year-old Ashlynne Mike on the Navajo Reservation in May 2016. Fish created a YouTube video to perform a dance in honor of Ashlynne Mike and to plead for all parents to watch over their children.

“I have been called by the Spirits to come around here and dance for Ashlynne Mike and all the other stolen kids,” said Fish on the video. “I dedicate this song for all the children, the aunts who are sad. Aho!”

Fish is a member of the Assiniboine Nation and traveled from Blackfoot, Idaho, to speak and dance at the symposium. His grandmother, Kristen Lowdog, said her son’s dancing is a good way for Native Americans to combat this problem because it involves their own culture and ways.

“He is very spiritually mature and voices his opinion out,” said Lowdog. “He has a big heart and he wants to do what he can to help.”

The artistry of Ashton’s expression of dance, combined with the wisdom of his words and vision for AMBER Alert’s protection of children on tribal lands, left symposium participants eager to meet this young man and shake his hand following the presentation.

Ashton and his grandmother presented AMBER Alert Training and Technical Assistance Program Administrator Jim Walters with a handmade ceremonial quilt in honor of his work with AMBER Alert and Child Protection in Indian Country.

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By Denise Gee Peacock

WINDOW ROCK — On December 12, 2017, Navajo Nation President Russell Begaye signed a contract to purchase a mass notification software to implement an emergency alert system for road closures, weather notifications, hazardous waste spills, wildfires, and AMBER Alerts.

“We always pray that we will never have another abduction, but we need this in place so that the whole Nation can be alert and help make sure that a child is recovered safely and quickly,” President Begaye said. “I appreciate the work of everyone that made this possible. This is will make life safer here on the Navajo Nation.”

The Navajo Nation had previously negotiated the use of New Mexico, Arizona and Utah’s AMBER Alert system. However, the extra steps to run through all three states delayed notifications.

“We appreciate the assistance the Navajo Nation received to issue alerts, but with this purchase, the Navajo Nation will have the ability to issue our own notifications immediately,” Vice President Jonathan Nez said. “We are proud to be the first tribe to have our own alert system now in place for the safety of our people.”

Once installed, the emergency alert system will officially be under the Navajo Division of Public Safety (NDPS) and managed by the Navajo Department of Emergency Management (NDEM). NDEM expects to have the software deployed for use by the end of the year.

“We’re very interested in improving the efficiency of services to the Navajo people,” Jesse Delmar, director of DPS said. “We’re glad to be a part of this and what we’re so proud of is never before has an independent tribe had this system to themselves.”

With the mass notification software, the department is able to issue alerts for a variety of emergencies – not only for AMBER Alerts, which was the only emergency alert situation covered in the agreement between the tribe and states.

In May 2016, President Russell Begaye gave the directive for the Navajo Nation to secure an AMBER Alert system. Before the end of the year, the Navajo Nation signed a memorandum of understanding with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to allow Navajo public safety officials the authority to access the Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS).

With training and certification to use IPAWS, the next step in the process was to go through the procurement process and internal checks-and-balances of the Navajo Nation to purchase the software. Everbridge was the company ultimately chosen.

“In an emergency situation, time is of the essence to get information out to community members,” Harland Cleveland, acting NDEM director said. “Especially, in the instance of a child abduction, the public is our eyes and ears.”

According to Cleveland, with the President’s signing, the Navajo Nation will have the capability to push alerts over radio, television and text messaging to all 11 counties that fall within the Nation’s borders. In the future, efforts will be made to add a Blue Alert and Silver Alert to the system.

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This one-hour self-directed course is designed provide child protection personnel working in or with Native American and Alaskan Native communities with an understanding of both historical and ongoing problems of child sex trafficking and exploitation in Indian Country, and to offer careful consideration of important strategies to build awareness of the problem, and support tribal communities in identifying and reporting suspected or known trafficking and exploitation. The course provides important considerations for law enforcement in working with the community on these awareness and identification efforts, as well as for preparing for effective response to safely recover victims, interdict these crimes, and prosecute offenders.

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Tribal officials and AMBER Alert partners gathered for a child protection symposium on June 1-2, 2017, in Bismarck, North Dakota, to share ideas on helping children in Indian Country. The symposium included presentations on child exploitation, human trafficking, and endangered and abducted children.

Presentations addressed the latest tools and technologies to support AMBER Alert programs and ways to promote long-term solutions for public safety in Tribal communities. Speakers included Human Trafficking Victim Advocate Cindy McCain, North Dakota Senator Heidi Heitkamp and a child sex trafficking survivor. The 2-day symposium was free of cost.

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“He is very spiritually mature and voices his opinion out,” said Lowdog. “He has a big heart and he wants to do what he can to help.”

CHALLENGES IN INDIAN COUNTRY

AATTAP director Jim Walters has been working for years to help bring training and resources to Indian Country. Although much has been accomplished, he said most tribes do not have what is needed to slow the tide of missing and abducted children from their communities.

“Child abductions are down in the U.S. with one exception, and that is in Indian Country,” said Walters. “Children in Indian Country are especially vulnerable.”

Walters emphasized the problem of lacking data on missing and abducted children from tribal lands, noting the actual numbers are unknown because no federal or Native American agency is collecting that information.

Walters cited the murder of Ashlynne Mike as a tragic example of the challenges being faced in Indian Country. When Ashlynne was first discovered missing on May 3, 2016, her brother ran two-and-a-half miles to find a car with a phone—but the phone did not work. Twelve hours into the investigation, authorities were still unclear whether the state or the tribe should issue an AMBER Alert.

“Our priority is to save lives,” said Walters. “We can work out the jurisdictional issues later.”

The Navajo Nation is now working with Arizona and Utah to improve the AMBER Alert program on the reservation.

Walters offered other examples of unique challenges in Indian Country.

The unique history of cultural intervention and jurisdictional complexities
High turnover and lack of staffing
Lack of understanding of Indian Child Welfare laws
Use of the internet to lure Native American children away from their homes, yet these children are most often reported as runaways

Ashlynne Mike’s case did bring to light one very strong feature of Native American communities - they have the best trackers in the world. Walters gave examples of the superior skill and coordination tribal law enforcement and community members demonstrate when conducting searches. He discussed other child protection efforts and collaborative approaches that can help make a difference in Native American community efforts to prevent child exploitation and abduction.

Needs assessments should and will continue to be conducted in more than 100 Native American communities
State and community strategies with strong leadership from the tribal government must be developed
Child Abduction Response Teams (CARTs) comprised of tribal, state and federal agencies should be championed, developed and maintained
Prevention education in elementary schools and additional training for law enforcement should be developed as a key component of a comprehensive child protection strategy

“Children are a precious resource,” said Walters. “We have to take a tribal approach where every member is responsible for the community. We want to assure the victim’s family and community that all resources are utilized in the successful recovery of a child.”

More information about child protection resources available for Indian Country can be found at the Tribal Database website – https://www.tribaldatabase.org.

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Casey Jo Pipestem was raised in Oklahoma City as a member of the Seminole Tribe. Casey’s grandmother raised her until she passed away when Casey was just 7 years old. She then lived with other relatives, but found it difficult to fit in while living in rural communities.

Casey dropped out of high school, moved back to Oklahoma City and became involved with drugs. Ultimately, she fell victim to exploitation and trafficking at truck stops in Texas and Oklahoma as a way to survive.

Casey’s body was found on January 31, 2004. She had been beaten, raped, strangled and thrown off of a bridge. She was only 19 years old.

Grapevine, Texas, Police Lieutenant Larry Hallmark shared with Symposium participants how he helped find Casey’s killer. Hallmark spent a decade interviewing pimps, sex trafficking victims and family members in order to determine what happened to her.

Hallmark also interviewed many truckers who remembered having seen Casey, and almost all of them said the same thing, “She was a sweet girl and did not deserve to die.”

The investigation received a big break when “America’s Most Wanted” profiled Casey’s murder, resulting in 84 tips - including one about John Robert Williams, the so called “Big Rig Killer.”

Grapevine, Texas Police LIeutenant Larry Hallmark

Williams was already serving a life sentence in prison for murder when he agreed to be interviewed by Hallmark. The veteran detective said the vast majority of killers will talk if you do not show any judgment over what they say.

“If you could show Williams a picture he would identify the victim,” said Hallmark. However, Williams did not recognize any of the pictures of Casey.

Hallmark finally asked a family member if there were any pictures of Casey that showed her dressed in clothing she would wear when she was at the truck stops.

“He [Williams] snapped his fingers and said, ‘That is Little Bit. I killed her.’ He named every detail of that case and admitted to strangling her from behind,” said Hallmark. The detective also learned the victim had a ‘Little Bit’ tattoo on her shoulder.

“He is a psychopath,” said Hallmark. “He went and showered and ate while her body was in the truck.”

In 2013, Williams was charged with the murder of Casey Pipestem. He has been implicated in killing 14 additional women and has admitted to murdering 30 others. The man who pimped and exploited Casey was also caught and charged, and is serving time in federal prison. One of other girls exploited by him was just 13 years old.

The U.S. has 2 million truck drivers, and 3 out of 4 are long-haul drivers. It is estimated that 120-140 murders of sexual exploitation and trafficking victims occur each year at truck stops.

“Truck driving is a good job for this type of psychopath-sociopath personalities,” said Hallmark. “You have highly mobile offenders who have to get from point A to point B. They get cash for incidentals and lots of routes and time flexibility.”

Hallmark does credit the trucking industry for helping solve crimes committed by truckers, but emphasized that “Truck stops are a den of rattlesnakes” and trafficking victims are very vulnerable with truckers and in these environments.

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Jeri Jimenez has had a lifetime of trauma. She was molested at age 4, grew up in a family with physical and sexual violence and became a victim of sex trafficking after leaving her violent husband.

Jimenez is a member of the Klamath Tribe. During the Tribal Symposium, she shared her story with tribal law enforcement and child protection leaders from across the country. Jiminez explained how her experience is part of the long history of Native Americans facing trauma, genocide and stolen lands.

“We are finding it is in our DNA,” she said. “I figured that this was what life was like.”

Jimenez left her abusive husband but had to battle him in court for custody of their daughter. “Every time we met he would beat the crap out of me,” she said.

She went back home, but did not find any job opportunities on the reservation so she moved in with a friend in Portland, Oregon. Her friend convinced her to join “the life” of prostitution so she could pay her bills.

“Prostitution happens when you do not have a choice. When you have no choices you are not making a choice. It is a lack of choice,” said Jimenez. “When we blame young women or boys and call them prostitutes that is victim blaming. If you could do anything else, you would.”

One man stabbed her in the arm and neck and then drove off with her clothes. Jimenez watched as young Native American girls were picked up by the police or human services, but found it hard to return to their families.

“The families do not know what to do with her,” she said. “She usually ends up in a shelter and calls her pimp and takes another person with her from the shelter. It was people saying ‘I see you and I care.’ That was the thing that turned things around for me the most.”

When Jimenez finally escaped her sexual exploitation and got help she went back to the reservation and met with her female relatives. She found most of them had gone through the same things she had suffered and were also in recovery.

“Our traditions taught us to only take what you need and to give back,” she said. “We have to come back to the way we were before.”

Jimenez challenged parents to keep loving their children no matter what has happened. She asked law enforcement officers to let trafficking victims know they ‘see them’ because their pimps make them feel invisible.

She also urged counselors to never give up on trafficking victims. “You need to be kind,” she said. “You may have to pick them up 20-plus times, but you try to break that shell.”

Jimenez now has 4 children and 10 grandchildren. She works with other victims of sex trafficking to help others heal, and for her own continued healing. “Without faith there is no hope,” she said. “Without hope there is no change.”

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Tribal members joined together for a 5-mile walk to Window Rock, the seat of the Navajo Nation, to raise awareness about the AMBER Alert and abducted children. They carried banners, signs and ribbons to keep the memory of 11-year-old Ashlynne Mike alive following her May 2016 abduction and murder.

“If something was ever to happen to another child, God forbid, we would have no way to get the word out,” said walk organizer Charlietta Gray to KOB-TV.

Gray also started an unofficial AMBER Alert Facebook page for the Navajo Nation which already has 17,000 members.

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The Navajo Nation will now issue AMBER Alerts through the New Mexico Child Abduction Alert System. The state would also notify Arizona and Utah if the Navajo Nation issues an AMBER Alert. New Mexico will issue the alerts as the Navajo Nation Alert System Task Force works to fully develop an AMBER Alert program, a 911 system and an improved identification mechanism for homes in rural areas.

The task force was created after residents raised concerns about the AMBER Alert system following the May 2, 2016, abduction of 11-year-old Ashlynne Mike and her 9-year-old brother Ian. Although Ian escaped and was found and taken to safety, Ashlynne was brutally murdered, her body discovered the day following the abduction.

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The Tribal Child Protection Leadership Forum and Symposium began with a traditional Native American blessing that included the words, “Oh child where are you?” The events took place in Scottsdale, Arizona, July 19-21, 2016, and included representatives from more than 25 tribes who shared lessons learned and experiences with AMBER Alert Coordinators, Missing Persons Clearinghouse Managers and Child Abduction Response Team (CART) members.

“We are all here with the goal of protecting children,” said Robert Listenbee, Administrator for the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP), Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice. “The children in Indian Country are overlooked and underserved.”

Listenbee said technology has increased the victimization and trafficking of Native American children and noted American Indian and Alaska Native children are exposed to violence more than any other minority in America.

Recognizing the Risks

Director of “Not Our Native Daughters” Lynnette Grey Bull said the biggest problem is that people do not believe sexual trafficking and exploitation is happening in Indian Country. “I have not been to a tribe where it was not happening,’ said Grey Bull. “You won’t see a pimp with a big purple hat come on to the reservation. Anywhere you see poverty, you will see trafficking.”

“Not Our Native Daughters” is a non-profit organization focusing on ending human trafficking in tribal communities. Grey Bull shared startling statistics for Native Americans.

A 50% higher rate for sexual assault for Native American women
The highest suicide, rape and murder rates for all ethnicities
14% have no education and 20 percent do not have indoor plumbing
The lowest life expectancy - between 47 and 55 years old
The highest rate of death from tragedy, accidents, alcohol and drug use

The U.S. Department of Justice found 70 percent of the violence was caused by non-Native perpetrators.

Arizona State University professor Dominique Roe-Sepowitz has also been studying the unique and critical challenges for Native American sex trafficking victims. The university’s study interviewed victims ages 13 to 42.

60% of victims’ parents never married, 59% of family members have drug and/or alcohol problems, 54% of victims ran away and 75% had family members in jail
63% of victims had been molested, 46% had been raped and 28% experienced emotional abuse
58% of victims were addicted to alcohol or drugs, with 90% taking drugs and 50% believing they drink excessively

“Trafficking victims do not leave, because they have nowhere to go, they have no income and they need shelter,” said Roe-Sepowitz. She emphasized that we need to develop a collaborative way to help Native American victims of sex trafficking.

“You can’t go anywhere without people talking about human trafficking,” said longtime human trafficking victim advocate Cindy McCain. “It used to be no one talked about it or that it even exists.”

McCain called trafficking an “epidemic as deadly as Zika or Ebola.” She said many children from the reservations are ending up in other countries. McCain added that the problem is exasperated by a culture that demeans women and children.

“Real men do not buy little girls,” McCain remarked. “Pimps are not cool. They are not ‘good-old’ boys. They are pedophiles and sex offenders and need to be treated as such.”

AMBER Alert Training and Technical Assistance (AATTAP) Program Administrator Jim Walters said he first learned about the problem while working as a police officer. “I remembered meeting a woman who said, ‘Give me the drugs I want and you can have sex with my daughter.’ The girl was 14.” Walters explained law enforcement at that time was just beginning to recognize and understand the problem of human trafficking and must be trained and prepared to better and more fully understand the scope and complexity of the problem in tribal communities and across the U.S.

Tribal Challenges

Tribal communities have additional barriers in prosecuting child sex abuse cases. Geri Wisner is the Tribal Prosecutor for the Pawnee Nation Court and Wyandotte Tribe of Oklahoma, and the Executive Director for the Native American Children’s Alliance (NACA).

“I look at our tribal codes and there is no language to deal with child sex abuse and no tribe has a law against human trafficking,” said Wisner. “If we are truly sovereign, it is our responsibility to make the laws that can be enforced so we can have justice.”

Wisner recommended taking the Native American oral tradition and writing it into law. “We cannot wait for the federal government to fix all this,” she said. “If we write it down, we can write it in our own way with our own traditions and sense of justice.”

Valerie Bribiescas is a member of the Navajo Nation and a detective with the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office in Arizona. She said non-Indian investigators often do not understand the culture, and as a result can offend victims who are already reluctant to talk.

“A lot of our victims go home and do not want to come back and testify,” said Bribiescas. “They do not want their families to know they are part of trafficking and want to leave it be. It is going to be difficult to get victims to come to court.”

Bribiescas challenged Native Americans to teach others about the culture so more victims can be helped.

“Our girls are being utilized over and over and that is why we have to work with outside entities,” she added. “We have to learn from each other.”

Additional Resources

The U.S. has 61 Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Forces, yet no tribal teams. However, the White Mountain Apache tribe has created the first tribal ICAC affiliate.

Phoenix Police Sergeant Jerry Barker oversees the Arizona ICAC and has met with 19 tribes to educate members about what resources are available. He is bringing equipment, training, funding and additional manpower to help the tribes become part of the solution.

“The cases are the same on the reservation as you would see in an expensive neighborhood,” said Barker. “When we find child pornography suspects, they are in every community. The only difference is the location.”

Former Montana Law Enforcement Officer and AATTAP Consultant Derek VanLuchene urged tribal representatives to come together and make a plan, form a Child Abduction Response Team (CART), become affiliated with ICAC and assign a main contact for AMBER Alerts.

“Have conversations with the community about the overall protection of children,” he said. “Identify what you have and what you need. Knowledge is power.”

Trafficking survivor Jeri Jimenez summarized the mission ahead with a quote from former Cherokee Tribal Chief Wilma Mankiller, “We must trust our own thinking. Trust where we’re going. And get the job done.”

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New DNA tests can help identify missing Native Americans and solve crimes

Ottawa begins work on ‘Red Dress Alert’ for missing Indigenous women and girls

Two Iowa sisters become a voice for missing and murdered Indigenous people

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OJJDP releases statistics on missing youth

Official: More inclusive alert criteria needed

California introduces new Feather Alert

Native American Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan cites ‘urgent and critical need’ for MMIP solutions

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Ashlynne Mike’s legacy: A law to help Tribal children—and law enforcement

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Yurok Tribe joins U.S. Marshals in MMIP initiative

Lawmakers to FCC: Expand languages in alerts

Colorado adopts Missing Indigenous People Alert

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California considers ‘Feather Alert’ for indigenous missing

Canadian indigenous organization issues first alert for missing woman and son

Canada public safety minister addresses AMBER Alerts for tribal members

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New Washington State alert addresses high rate of missing indigenous people

U.S. and Canada tribes spotlight Missing Indigenous Women Awareness Day

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Washington launches the first Indigenous Alert system in the U.S.

Cherokee Police in North Carolina receive AMBER Alert Technology Toolkit

White Earth Nation receives $1.2 million donation for Boys & Girls Clubs

Indigenous New Mexico women address Congress about the murder of Native females

Navajo Nation holds awareness walk for missing and murdered relatives

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GROWTH SECTOR: Technology for Emergency Response to Missing Persons Evolves Across the Navajo Nation

Yes WEA Can

With the Navajo Nation’s COVID-19 emergency response in high gear, tech leader Christopher Becenti is closing ‘the digital divide’ to make life safer in his community

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In the Face of Tragedy: Fierce Hope, Radical Change

Resources for Indian Country

Tribal Breakout

Final Thoughts and A Call to Action

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Walking in Remembrance of Ashlynne Mike

South Dakota creates office for missing Indigenous person cases

Oklahoma considering law to help missing and murdered Indigenous people

Wyoming issues report on missing and murdered Native Americans

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“Thankfully, we were prepared.”

SOUND ADVICE

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Utah task force begins report for murdered and missing Indigenous women and girls

Canadian Indigenous organization asks for changes in AMBER Alert policies

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Indian Country involved in 1,000th AMBER Alert successful recovery

Wisconsin starts task force for missing and murdered Indigenous women

Portland hosts Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women Awareness Week panel

Annual tribal youth conference held online in 2020

Operation Lady Justice consultations begin to address missing and murdered American Indians

AMBER Alert information to be shared at Oklahoma Red Earth Festival

New tool available for Native American survivors of crime and abuse

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For more on Amber's case, read about continued hard work and hope on the 25th anniversary of her abduction.

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Inter-Tribal Council of Nevada Quarterly Meeting

Wyoming Passes Law to Help Find Missing and Murdered Indigenous People

Wind River Inter-Tribal Council AMBER Alert Implementation Meeting

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AMBER Alert Website Gets Update with More Resources for Indian Country

Wyoming Legislators Work to Increase Safety for Native Americans

Navajo Nation Holds Forum for Missing and Murdered Victims

Ashlynne Mike’s legacy:
A law to help Tribal children—and law enforcement