[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 74 (Thursday, May 14, 2009)]
[House]
[Pages H5636-H5637]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              H.R. 1924, TRIBAL LAW AND ORDER ACT OF 2009

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentlewoman from South Dakota (Ms. Herseth Sandlin) is recognized for 5 
minutes.
  Ms. HERSETH SANDLIN. Madam Speaker, I rise today to discuss H.R. 
1924, the Tribal Law and Order Act of 2009. I was proud to reintroduce 
this legislation designed to address the serious deficiencies and 
systemic flaws within the Federal agencies charged with providing law 
enforcement and justice programs in Indian country.
  As the at-large Member of Congress for South Dakota, I am proud to 
represent nine sovereign Native nations. The Federal Government has a 
unique relationship with the 562 federally recognized tribes. This 
government-to-government relationship is established in the U.S. 
Constitution, recognized through hundreds of treaties, and reaffirmed 
through executive orders, judicial decisions and congressional action.
  Law enforcement is one of the Federal Government's responsibilities 
to federally recognized tribes. Yet on many counts, we are failing to 
meet that obligation. In April, Oglala Sioux Tribe president, Theresa 
Two Bulls, testified at the House Appropriations Subcommittee on 
Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies' oversight hearing on law 
enforcement issues in Indian country. President Two Bulls discussed the 
law enforcement crisis on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in 
southwestern South Dakota. She explained how large, land-based 
reservations struggle to maintain the level of officers needed to 
protect tribal members.

[[Page H5637]]

  President Two Bulls illustrated the seriousness of the public safety 
crisis by telling the committee of one case. A young woman living on 
the reservation received a restraining order against an ex-boyfriend 
who battered her. One night she was home alone and woke up as he 
attempted the break into her home with a crowbar. She immediately 
called the police, but due to the lack of land lines for telephones and 
the spotty cell phone coverage, the call was cut off three times before 
she reported her situation to the dispatcher. However, the nearest 
officer was 40 miles away. Even though the young police officer who 
took the call started driving to her home at 80 miles per hour, by the 
time he arrived, the woman was severely bloodied and beaten. The 
perpetrator was nowhere in sight.
  All Americans should be outraged by this grossly inadequate law 
enforcement infrastructure which is clearly ill-equipped to deter, 
prevent or prosecute crimes and criminals. For families who take a 
basic sense of safety and security for granted, these stories should 
serve as a wake-up call.
  And it is not an isolated incident. As I meet with tribal leaders 
throughout South Dakota and Indian country, I know that these tragic 
stories are not unique to the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. Amnesty 
International has reported that violence against Native women is 
particularly widespread. American Indian and Alaska Native women are 
more than 2\1/2\ times more likely to be raped or sexually assaulted 
than women in the United States in general. Yet the majority of these 
crimes go unpunished.
  While addressing the lawless conditions in Indian country will 
require significant changes in the way that the Federal Government 
works with tribes, as well as a meaningful influx of resources into 
reservations in most need, H.R. 1924, the Tribal Law and Order Act, is 
an important step to addressing the complex and broken system of law 
and order in Indian country. This bill would establish accountability 
measures for the Department of the Interior and the Department of 
Justice with regard to tribal law enforcement. This bill also seeks to 
increase local control to tribal law enforcement agencies and to 
authorize additional resources for tribes to address the safety and 
security needs of their communities.
  Specifically, this bill would clarify the responsibilities of 
Federal, State, tribal and local governments with respect to crimes 
committed in tribal communities. It would increase coordination and 
communication among Federal, State, tribal and local law enforcement 
agencies. It would empower tribal governments with the authority, 
resources and information necessary to effectively provide for the 
public safety in tribal communities. It would reduce the prevalence of 
violent crime in tribal communities and combat violence against Indian 
and Alaska Native women. It would address and prevent drug trafficking 
and reduce rates of alcohol and drug addiction in Indian country and 
increase and standardize the collection of criminal data and sharing of 
criminal history information among Federal, State, and tribal officials 
responsible for responding to and investigating crimes in tribal 
communities.
  Native American families, like all families, deserve a basic sense of 
safety and security in their communities. The Tribal Law and Order Act 
is an important step toward meeting the Federal Government's 
responsibility to Native communities. And I urge my colleagues to join 
me in moving this important legislation forward.

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