Tohono O'odham Police Collaborate to Fight Border Problems

The long and seemingly deserted southern border of the Tohono O'Odham Nation attracts drug smugglers and other illicit activities, creating a policing nightmare for the tribal police force. In the years leading up to 2007, the crime statistics were astounding:

• an average of 10,000 arrests per month 
• 1500 wrecked or abandoned vehicles towed every year
• At least 100 tribal members involved in narcotics related activity
• About 350 bodies a year found on the reservation
• Critical cultural and natural areas damaged or destroyed

Tribal police turned to state, federal and other tribal partners for help addressing border security and smuggling. Out of this work, law enforcement agencies in Arizona have developed a model collaborative approach that is transforming tribal policing.

According to Edward Reina, Jr., Director of Public Safety for the Tohono O'odham Nation,  Arizona has become "a model of how states should work with Indian Country." In testimony before the Senate this year, he points to a statutory revision that allows trained and qualified tribal police officers to become state Peace Officers that allows them to arrest all offenders; better training for state officers that has reduced misunderstandings regarding extraditions from tribal lands; better data collection and sharing; continuing cooperation with federal agencies, including the FBI, the US Attorney's office, ICE, DEA, ATF, Border Patrol and BIA Law Enforcement. Stakeholders at the tribal, state and federal level meet monthly to share information, discuss needs, develop programs, seek funding and eliminate duplication of effort.

The result? Tribal police led multi-agency efforts to break up large methamphetamine and cocaine rings on the reservation, placed School Resource Officers in each of the tribe's five schools, built a Fusion Center to collect and store offender data, built a Sex Offender registry, and has developed positive working relationships with dozens of agencies and organizations who share a common interest in solving the problems brought by drug smuggling.

To learn more about how a collaborative approach can help you solve your tribe's law enforcement problems, sign up today for our free webinar on Creating Collaboration Through Community Policing. Alternately, join us for our final Tribal Prescription Drugs and Drug Endangered Children training session in Phoenix, AZ (it's also free!) and talk with Arizona tribal professionals about what's working and what still needs to be better.

Heroin and Crime: How Can We Stop It?

Over the past couple of years, we've been charting the rise of heroin use on our tribal lands. Reservations near big cities have been the first to be affected, but even rural areas are suffering from this blight. Tribal police have seen an associated uptick in crime, too. As the White Earth Public Safety Director and Chief of Police, Randy Goodwin, said, "And along with the drug issue, guess what comes with it. Some of the gangs." One California tribe has seen gangland style killings over heroin deals. A big bust by St. Regis tribal officers resulted in three people being charged with multiple gun and drug felonies. The heroin problem for Minnesota tribes has been especially serious, as demonstrated by recent cases in Spirit Lake and Mille Lacs.

To learn more about why heroin is on the rise, what prescription drugs have to do with the problem, and the next steps for addressing the painkiller to heroin link, join us for a tuition-free webinar, Prescription Drugs to Heroin, Part II on June 26, at 10 am. The last session was full, so be sure to reserve your space now! This webinar will focus on developing community-based partnerships.  By assessing areas of strength and opportunity, members of our tribal communities can work together to protect our greatest resource- our children. Tools and resource links will be provided that can be used across programs to support mutual values.

Strength Based Collaboration in Action

A strength based approach—building on what's right instead of tearing down what's wrong—has proven to be a successful model for turning around negative behavior in children and their families, especially in Indian Country. Programs like the Navajo Nation's Project K'e, the Passamaquoddy tribes' Kmihqitahasultipon (We Remember) Project and the Chippewa's Mno Bmaadzid Endaad (Be in good health at his house) all encourage participants to draw from their strengths as Natives, especially their cultural resilience in the face of oppression.

For example, the Sacred Child Project, which serves four northern Plains tribes, draws from their shared tribal philosophy of "Walking in Beauty on the Red Road." Participants in this intensive outpatient treatment program, which includes children and their families, focus on cultural issues as much as on substance abuse issues, and help participants identify their strengths as individuals and as part of a proud Native culture. Each participant is encouraged to view their entire community as part of a holistic world view and to draw on community strengths as part of the healing process. Commonly identified community strengths include tribal rituals and celebrations, the support of one's extended family, opportunities to help others, natural beauty, and educational opportunities.

This successful approach to engaging families in the recovery process can also be effective as a tool to identify and report drug endangered children. Learn more with Nadja Jones of NICWA, in our free webinar, coming up July 10, 2013. Register now to save your place!

Finding Our Own Paths To Well-Being

For years, behavioral health and social workers have used a strength-based approach in helping children and families heal from substance abuse, violence, delinquency and similar issues. With Native families, the approach looks a little different. In the Native world view, it's critical to find balance among the different elements of your life. When our lives go off the rails, we can heal ourselves by discovering what elements are out of balance and finding ways to restore that harmony. When the National Indian Child Welfare Association (NICWA) asked Native families where their strengths lay, the respondents gave the answers above.

While this approach is perfect for families, it also works for organizations. Join us for a free webinar on a strength-based approach to collaboration in protecting drug endangered children- July 10 at 10 am. Register online here. NICWA instructor Nadja Jones will explore how organizations can work together to improve identification, reporting and intervention for drug endangered children. Feel free to download and share the infographic as a jpg or as a PDF.