After centuries of federal disenfranchisement of Native Americans, and years of advocacy by tribal leaders who've pointed out the alarmingly disproportionate crime rates affecting Indigenous communities, the Department of Justice has established a program to address systemic criminal justice issues.
The deputy U.S. Attorney General issued a directive to U.S. attorneys in July 2022 to make meaningful change toward gaining the trust of Indigenous communities and increasing Native American public safety. Nearly a year later, the Missing or Murdered Indigenous People (MMIP) regional outreach program was created.
The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Washington, headed by Vanessa Waldref, was one of the locations selected to benefit from this new program. In May, Bree Black Horse, a member of the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma, was hired as an assistant U.S. attorney to prosecute cases for the MMIP program.
Black Horse will work primarily out of the Eastern District's Yakima office and cover the Northwest region, including Washington, Oregon, Montana, Idaho, and California.
Black Horse grew up in the Seattle area, and with her husband, an enrolled member of the Nez Perce Tribe, has lived in Central Washington and previously worked for the Yakama Nation.
Growing up, Black Horse says she attended powwows and Indigenous art shows that reinforced her cultural heritage. As a young person, she paid attention to her elders' discussions of the complex legal landscape affecting Indigenous communities, hearing about things such as the Boldt Decision (1975), which restored tribal fishing rights, or the Indian Removal Act (1830) and General Allotment Act (1887), which negatively impacted Native land rights by breaking up reservation land.
"I'd often hear our tribal leaders and our tribal elders talk about the impact the law has had on tribal nations and tribal people throughout the history of this country," Black Horse says.
She positioned herself for a future fighting for those rights that were taken or challenged by laws, attending Seattle University School of Law and going on to work on issues including tribal sovereignty and treaty rights.
She says encouragement from family and community members has given her strength and enabled her to take on tough cases and advocate for her community.
With over a decade in law working on Indigenous issues, Black Horse will now be a beacon for many others in her new role as assistant U.S. attorney to the Northwest, which began on May 2.
Waldref says she felt Black Horse was the perfect candidate for the new position focusing on Missing or Murdered Indigenous People cases due to her authentic voice and experience. Waldref says Black Horse provides a critical perspective in the Department of Justice, and will be able to help build trust with the community she is serving.
JURISDICTION
According to Margo Hill, an Eastern Washington University professor and member of and former attorney for the Spokane Tribe, jurisdictional issues have plagued the prosecution and resolution of crimes against Indigenous communities across the nation.Hill says the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Oliphant v. Suquamish Indian Tribe (1978) that tribes do not have authority to prosecute non-Indigenous individuals. That ruling has empowered individuals who feel they won't face prosecution for crimes against Native Americans, she says.
"The complex jurisdictional issues in Indian country make it so criminals think they get a pass," Hill says.
Determining who has jurisdiction over a case is complicated by the various types of tribal land, some of which is held in trust by the U.S. government for the use of the tribe as a whole or by allotment to individuals. Court rulings have prevented tribal governments from prosecuting crimes such as drug trafficking and crimes involving non-Natives, and major crimes are expected to be handled by federal agencies.
The Eastern District U.S. Attorney's Office has jurisdiction to prosecute crimes involving federally recognized tribes in our area, including the Yakama, Colville, Kalispel and Spokane, Waldref says.
When Waldref found out about the Department of Justice starting the MMIP program, she says she knew, "We need to have one of these prosecutors based here."
Waldref fought to have a position in Eastern Washington because she knew tribal leaders cared about the challenges in the region and wanted to address those concerns.
"We've really focused on building strong relationships with our tribal partners to invest our prosecutors in understanding how we can bring these cases effectively and build trust with individuals who are victims of crimes on tribal lands so that we can have effective prosecutions," Waldref says.
RISK FACTORS
There are multiple risk factors that correlate with unresolved Missing or Murdered Indigenous People cases. Black Horse says domestic or intimate partner violence is often a precursor to missing person and homicide cases.More than 84% of American Indian/Alaska Native women have experienced violence in their lifetime, according to a 2016 study by the National Institute of Justice.
Hill says that better data collection has led to more transparency and accountability in Washington state. Washington has the second highest number of missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls cases, according to a 2018 research publication by the Urban Indian Health Institute.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that Indigenous women experienced the second-highest rate of homicide in 2020, and the 2016-17 "Report on Sexual Violence" found that two in five non-Hispanic American Indian/Alaska Native women had been raped in their lifetime.
Prosecuting those types of "precursor" cases can potentially prevent a missing person or murder, Black Horse says.
"In addition to the domestic violence cases — that will be a focus in terms of the precursor — human trafficking is another one, as well as crimes involving the physical and sexual abuse of children, and particularly here in the Northwest, narcotics trafficking has been shown to have a direct correlation to MMIP," Black Horse says.
A 2023 report from the Washington State Health Care Authority found that drug overdose deaths are disproportionately affecting Native Americans, at a rate nearly four times higher than among white Washingtonians.
Hill says the fentanyl crisis is a scourge on Indigenous communities, but people like Black Horse, who understand federal Indian law, can work with state and federal authorities to grapple with these alarming issues.
The Department of Justice's MMIP program hired 10 attorneys to help prevent and respond to Missing or Murdered Indigenous People cases in five designated regions. The program will collaborate with tribal liaisons and coordinate with stakeholders to identify cases to prosecute.
Black Horse says she is working to address disparities in the justice system with a focus on collaborative, victim-centered work.
"Generations of Indigenous people have experienced disproportionate violence. Generations of Indigenous people have mourned and continue to mourn a missing or murdered loved one," Black Horse says. "But I really believe that our future generations don't have to experience the same disparities, the same trauma, the same heartache." ♦
