Tulsa World Op-Ed: Trent Shores: Native American justice is a personal and professional mission

This Editorial appeared in Tulsa World on October 5, 2020

A recent U.S. Supreme Court decision concluded that Congress never disestablished the Muscogee (Creek) Nation reservation, thereby placing large swaths of Oklahoma — including much of Tulsa — within tribal jurisdiction. This decision triggered important questions about how public safety will be assured in non-native and Native American communities within the redrawn jurisdictional map. State district and appellate courts are now considering whether this decision might include the Cherokee, Choctaw, Chickasaw and Seminole reservations as well.

I view these questions through my personal heritage and my chosen career, seeking to fulfill my role as the chief federal law enforcement officer in northern Oklahoma while also championing respect for tribal identity and sovereignty.

As a proud citizen of the Choctaw Nation, I am conscious of the contentious and often tragic relationship between immigrants to the New World and indigenous peoples, and between the federal government and Native American tribes. Broken promises and overbearing treaties abound in this history, some of which impacted my own tribe.

But as U.S. Attorney, I know that not all recent history with Native Americans is blighted by bad faith and bad acts. I have seen firsthand the exemplary dedication by federal law enforcement officers, victim advocates and prosecutors seeking to give voice to Indian victims of crime, especially women and children who experienced traumatic domestic or sexual assaults. In doing so, I believe these servants of justice honor treaties and uphold the United States’ trust responsibility to federally recognized tribes.

Moreover, since the recent shift of jurisdictional responsibilities, my staff has worked around the clock to hold criminals accountable in a court of law and ensure victims experience a full measure of justice. It has been humbling to see these passionate civil servants in action and doing their sworn duties. They do so in partnership with tribal, state and local law enforcement authorities as part of our collective justice mission to ensure the seamless provision of public safety services to all citizens of northeastern Oklahoma.

This past week, the Cherokee Nation hosted U.S. Attorney General William Barr, who reiterated his commitment to prioritizing public safety in Indian Country. This pledge by Barr is yet another reminder that we need not look far for examples of good faith and good acts by the United States, and, in particular, the Justice Department, upholding the federal trust responsibility to tribes, a duty rooted in generations of treaties and laws.

Demonstrating that commitment, last year Barr unveiled an ambitious new initiative to address the disproportionate rates of missing and murdered persons, especially women and girls, from American Indian and Alaska Native communities. As part of that initiative, he deployed coordinators to U.S. Attorney’s offices in 11 states to work closely with tribal communities and law enforcement to develop community action plans to respond to the crisis. This initiative promotes the utilization of the best available investigative resources, including some of the FBI’s most advanced technology. In Oklahoma, our coordinator is Patti Buhl, a Cherokee citizen with robust experience in tribal and state law enforcement agencies who is already advancing our understanding of the scope of the problem in our state. These efforts are bolstered by President Donald Trump’s Operation Lady Justice, a multiagency task force designed to enhance the operation of the criminal justice system and develop model protocols and procedures to apply to new and unsolved cases of missing or murdered indigenous persons.

Since a bipartisan coalition passed the Tribal Law and Order Act in 2010, enhancing sentencing authority for tribal courts, the Justice Department has continued to increase training in support of criminal justice programs, foster cross-deputization agreements among federal, state and tribal law enforcement, and appoint special assistant U.S. attorneys to work in tribal and federal courts to ensure that cases do not fall through the cracks. These are all critical resources supporting more comprehensive public safety for Indian Country.

Additionally, through the Tribal Access Program, the Justice Department has enabled tribes to communicate directly with federal criminal databases. This has proven especially helpful in missing persons investigations. We’ve deployed this program more than 70 tribes nationwide and continue to expand its presence among tribal law enforcement agencies including several in Oklahoma.

I am proud to stand with tribal and state leaders to declare that we will work together because our duty as public servants should and does transcend political subdivisions. Nowhere is that more true than in the justice arena and our commitment to rule of law. That is our mission, and we will relentlessly pursue it.