U.S. Attorney Dunavant meets with Choctaw Indian Tribal Chief and the Native American Issues Subcommittee to Reduce Crime in Indian Country

Memphis, TN – Fighting violent crime and combating the drug epidemic are two of Attorney General Jeff Sessions’s top priorities. The Department is actively addressing violence against women and children in Indian country through partnerships with federal, tribal, state, and local law enforcement, investigating and prosecuting crimes, grant programs, training and technical assistance, and information sharing with tribes. Approximately 85 percent of the Department’s pending Indian country investigations relate to violate crime. The Department’s Office on Violence Against Women (OVW) has funded Tribal Special Assistant U.S. Attorneys (SAUSAs) to enhance prosecution of Indian country cases and strengthen relations and cooperation between federal and tribal law enforcement.

In April of 2018, U.S. Attorney Dunavant was selected to serve on three subcommittees of the Attorney General’s Advisory Committee (AGAC), including the Native American Issues Subcommittee. The AGAC was created in 1973 to serve as the voice of the U.S. Attorneys and to advise the Attorney General on policy, management and operational issues impacting the offices of the U.S. Attorneys.

The Native American Issues Subcommittee (NAIS) is the oldest subcommittee of the Attorney General’s Advisory Committee and is vital to the Department’s mission in Indian Country to build and sustain safe and secure communities for future generations. The NAIS is made up of U.S. Attorneys from across the United States whose districts contain Indian country or one or more federally recognized tribes. The NAIS focuses exclusively on Indian country issues, both criminal and civil, and is responsible for making policy recommendations to the Attorney General regarding public safety and legal issues that affect tribal communities. In the Western District of Tennessee, the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians maintains a tribal reservation and population in Lauderdale County, just outside of Henning, Tennessee.

"On July 5, 2018, I was honored to meet with U.S. Attorney Mike Hurst, Southern District of Mississippi, and the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians Tribal Chief Phyliss Anderson. I look forward to working with Chief Anderson to promote public safety in our Choctaw tribal community in West Tennessee. I also look forward to meeting with my U.S. Attorney colleagues from across the country in Tulsa, Oklahoma next week to discuss crime reduction strategies in Indian Country."