Two senators want a federal law enforcement agency to help address the crisis of missing and murdered Native Americans in Indian Country.
New legislation, introduced on Thursday by Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada and Republican Sen. Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma, would allow the U.S. Marshals Service to help tribal law enforcement find missing children. In tribal law enforcement’s stead, the service would also be able to search for and arrest suspects with warrants. Under current law, the U.S. Marshals Service can assist local law enforcement but not tribal. The Tribal Warrant Fairness Act would amend that.
“Tribal communities need more tools to combat violent crime,” Cortez Masto, who represents a state with 28 federally recognized tribes, said in a news release. “It is both ridiculous and cruel that Tribal law enforcement can’t use the U.S. Marshals Service like any other comparable law enforcement agency would to keep their communities safe.”
