Image of Native American Indigenous female reviewing electronic data

Tribal courts could soon have easier access to electronic evidence such as emails and social media messages in criminal cases—a move that would be beneficial, among other things, in Internet crimes against children investigations. U.S. Senators Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada and Mike Rounds of South Dakota introduced the bipartisan Tribal Access to Electronic Evidence Act as a way to give Tribal courts equitable access and better equip them to deliver justice for victims. “We know that criminals are using online tools to traffic drugs and commit other crimes in Indian Country,” Cortez Masto said. “What we also know is that Tribal courts struggle to get electronic evidence because tech companies won’t honor those Tribal warrants.” Rounds added that it’s important that Tribal law enforcement is able to do its job “without the federal government getting in the way.”

South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem signed a bill establishing an office for missing and murdered Indigenous persons. The law establishes an investigator to analyze data involving Native American cases and create a program to prevent future abductions. The bill has strong support from Tribal leaders.

A South Dakota family is promoting a Serenity Alert for missing and endangered children whose cases do not meet AMBER Alert criteria. The alert would be named for Serenity Dennard, who at the time of this writing, remains missing after running away in February 2019 from a children’s home in Rockerville, South Dakota. The family wants the legislature to create a system so the public would receive a text message about a missing child.