DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE AND DEPARTMENT OF INTERIOR TEAM UP FOR MAJOR EXPANSION OF TRIBAL ACCESS TO NATIONAL CRIME INFORMATION DATABASES

SIOUX FALLS - U.S. Attorney Ron Parsons joined the Department of Justice and the Department of the Interior in announcing a dramatic expansion of the federal government’s key program that provides tribes with access to national crime information databases, the Justice Department’s Tribal Access Program for National Crime Information (TAP).  The expansion includes the Rosebud Sioux Tribe and the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe in South Dakota.

In praising the action, U.S. Attorney Parsons said: “I applaud the Rosebud Sioux Tribe and the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe for prioritizing public safety and supporting the tremendous work being done by their law enforcement officers through participation in the Tribal Access Program. Everyone benefits from greater cooperation and sharing of information between governments and all levels of law enforcement. This is a win for all involved.”

Rosebud Sioux Tribe President Rodney M. Bordeaux stated: "The Tribal Access to National Crime Information Database will strengthen Tribal sovereignty by providing the Rosebud Sioux Tribe with more tools to protect the general public, allow background checks for all Tribal programs whose employees have regular contact with children, allow social services agencies to investigate allegations of abuse and neglect, dissemination of protection orders and restraining order for enforcement by all law enforcement agencies, and permits the Tribe to enter Tribal sex offender convictions into the national data base. The Rosebud Sioux Tribe looks forward to working with Department of Justice to increase Tribal access to national criminal and civil data information, collection and entry."

By the end of 2019, the Justice Department will expand the number of TAP participating tribes by more than 50 percent—from 47 tribes to 72.  Further, by 2020, the Interior Department’s Bureau of Indian Affairs Office of Justice Services (BIA-OJS) will expand TAP to all 28 tribes where it delivers direct law enforcement services.  The BIA Division of Human Services will also add three tribal social service locations in New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Montana in 2019.

TAP provides federally recognized tribes the ability to access and exchange data with national crime information databases for both civil and criminal purpose.  This allows tribes to more effectively serve and protect their communities by ensuring the exchange of critical data.  TAP is currently deployed to 47 tribes nationwide with over 220 tribal criminal justice and civil agencies participating.  The program provides integrated workstations and/or software as well as enhanced training and assistance to enable tribes to access and contribute to national crime information databases.

“Access to information is vital to effective law enforcement,” said Trent Shores, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Oklahoma and the Chairman of the Attorney General’s Advisory Subcommittee on Native American Issues.  “The Tribal Access Program will enhance and improve the ability of tribal law enforcement officers to serve their communities. The Native American Issues Subcommittee is proud to support the continued expansion of this tool throughout Indian Country.”

The Native American Issues Subcommittee (NAIS) is comprised of United States Attorneys with Indian Country in their federal districts. They advise the Attorney General regarding the development and implementation of policies pertaining to justice in Indian Country.

U.S. Attorney Parsons chairs the law enforcement resources working group of the NAIS, which identified ‘increased law enforcement resources’ as one of four priority areas to improve justice services in Indian Country. Support for and increased dissemination of the TAP was unanimously supported by the US Attorneys at a recent NAIS meeting in Indian country in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Beginning in 2019, the Department of the Interior will for the first time participate in TAP by placing kiosks at three of their direct service social services locations—Northern Pueblos at Ohkay Owingeh, New Mexico, Anadarko, Oklahoma, and Lame Deer, Montana.  This will give BIA and the tribes the ability to conduct federally-required fingerprint based background checks in child abuse cases and vetting of foster parents.

Also beginning in 2019, BIA-OJS will begin deploying kiosks to all 28 of their direct service law enforcement tribes.  BIA OJS expects to complete this large-scale deployment by 2020.

TAP enhances tribal efforts to register sex offenders pursuant to the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA); have orders of protection enforced nationwide; protect children; keep firearms away from persons who are disqualified from receiving them; improve the safety of public housing, and allow tribes to enter their arrests and convictions into national databases.

TAP supports tribes in analyzing their needs for national crime information and includes appropriate solutions, including a-state-of-the-art biometric/biographic kiosk workstation with capabilities to process finger and palm prints, take mugshots and submit records to national databases.  This includes the ability to access several national databases through the FBI’s Criminal Justice Information Systems (CJIS) network, including the National Crime Information Center (NCIC), Next Generation Identification (NGI), National Data Exchange (N-DEx), National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), Law Enforcement Enterprise Portal (LEEP) as well as other national systems such as the International Justice and Public Safety Network (Nlets)

For more information on TAP, visit: www.justice.gov/tribal/tribal-access-program-tap

For more information about the Justice Department’s work on tribal justice and public safety issues, visit: www.justice.gov/tribal