Indian Law and Order Commission releases public safety report

Wednesday, November 6, 2013  

The Indian Law and Order Commission will hold a press conference next week to release an important report.

The commission was created by the Tribal Law and Order Act in 2010. Its members spent the last three years examining public safety and justice issues in Indian Country.

“American Indian and Alaska Native communities and lands are often more dangerous than the rest of our country, and outmoded federal laws and policies are largely to blame,” said Troy Eid, a former U.S. Attorney who serves as chairman of the commission.

“The commission’s recommendations seek to eliminate the public safety gap that threatens so much of Native America," Eid said.

Specifically, the commission will recommend ways to:

· Strengthen tribes’ ability to fight violent crime through expanded tribal criminal laws and institutions that apply equally to all persons.
· Protect defendants’ Constitutional rights, Indian and non-Indian alike, in tribal courts through enhanced Federal judicial review – including a new U.S. Court of Indian Appeals.
· Reform outdated federal juvenile justice laws that systematically discriminate against Native American youth.
· Harness the power of tribal sovereignty and self-government to improve public safety in Alaska Native nations.
· Cut bureaucratic red tape and eliminate waste in federal criminal justice grant-making and other programs.

The press conference will take place next Tuesday, November 12, from 12:30pm to 1:30pm at the Washington Plaza Hotel in Washington, D.C.