Concerned about a spike of crime on reservations in their region, United States Sens. John Thune, Mike Rounds and Dusty Johnson (all R-SD) wrote to Interior Secretary Deb Haaland this week requesting additional Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) support for tribal law enforcement agencies.
They sought coordination between the federal agency and South Dakota’s tribal leadership on the matter, with the potential for increased funding and manpower to improve law enforcement services among South Dakota’s reservations. According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), that state’s reservations have some of the highest violent crime rates in the country, and the senators were quick to blame a shortage of law enforcement and detention officers as contributing factors.
The results, they noted, were high numbers of calls and too few personnel to respond, leaving response times lagging and tribal leaders asking for streamlined law enforcement hiring processes or emergency supplemental funding.
“While a significant number of tribal communities in South Dakota are dealing with an increase in serious crime, it is important to note the situation on each respective reservation is unique and requires individual attention,” the senators wrote. “Therefore, we request the BIA closely evaluate tribal crime statistics and work directly with individual tribal leaders to address these threats to public safety.”
Without immediate assistance, though, the federal lawmakers warned that the safety of affected communities would continue to deteriorate.