White House Holds News Conference on Violence Against Native Women Legislation

Levi Rickert, editor-in-chief in Native Challenges. Discussion »


WASHINGTON - On the heels of the US Senate Committee on Indian Affairs' hearing a week ago called, "Native Women: Protecting, Shielding, and Safeguarding Our Sisters, Mothers and Daughters," the White House announced this afternoon the Obama administration is sending to Congress proposed legislation that will increase the punishment for violent crimes committed against American Indian and Alaska Native women.

Kimberly Teehee, Cherokee, White House Senior Policy Advisor for Native American AffairsKimberly Teehee-Cherokee

Kimberly Teehee, Cherokee, White House Senior Policy Advisor for Native American Affairs; US Department of Justice's Associate Attorney General Tom Perrelli; and Lynn Rosenthal, White House Advisor on Violence Against Women unveiled the legislative proposal.

"Currently, Indian tribes lack criminal jurisdiction over non-Indians, absent express Congressional authorization. More than fifty percent of all Native American married women have non-Indian husbands. This complex jurisdictional framework has left a gap in the ability of tribes to prosecute domestic violence perpetrators," stated Teehee.

"Tribal governments - their police, prosecutors, and courts - should be essential parts of the response to domestic violence crimes. But as I mentioned under current law, they lack the authority to address many of these crimes. Under the Tribal Law and Order Act, tribal courts can now sentence Indian offenders for up to three years per offense, provided defendants are given proper procedural protections, including legal counsel. But tribal courts still have no authority to prosecute a non-Indian, even if he lives on the reservation and is married to a tribal member," Teehee continued.

The legislation proposed by the Obama administration seeks to rectify these adverse situations for Native women.

US Department of Justice's Associate Attorney General Tom Perrelli outlined the proposed legislation:

"Today, we are proposing legislation that would address three legal gaps that require immediate attention.

  • (1)     Because the patchwork the patchwork of criminal jurisdiction in Indian Country has made it difficult for law enforcement and prosecutors to adequately address domestic violence - particularly misdemeanor domestic violence, this legislation would recognize certain tribes' power to exercise concurrent criminal jurisdiction over domestic-violence cases, regardless of whether the defendant is Indian or non-Indian. In line with the spirit of TLOA, this development would endow tribal nations with sufficient resources and authority to better address violence in their own communities.
  • (2)     Second, our legislation would clarify that tribal courts have full civil jurisdiction to issue and enforce protection orders involving any persons, Indian or non-Indian.
  • (3)     Third, our proposal would provide more robust Federal sentences for certain acts of domestic violence in Indian Country. We are proposing a one-year offense for assaulting a person by striking, beating, or wounding; a five-year offense for assaulting a spouse, intimate partner, or dating partner, resulting in substantial bodily injury; and a ten-year offense for assaulting a spouse, intimate partner, or dating partner by strangling, suffocating, or attempting to strangle or suffocate."

Lynn Rosenthal, the White House Advisor on Violence Against Women, offered:

"We are here today because American Indian women suffer among the highest rates of violence. Research tells us that:

  • Three out of five American Indian women have been assaulted by husbands or boyfriends.
  • One-third of all American Indian women will be raped in their lifetimes.
  • One analysis of homicide data found that Native American women are murdered at a rate of 10 times the national average.

This data only tells part of the story - women themselves will tell you that the rates are actually higher among the women in their communities. Advocates working in tribal communities have long identified the need for better tools to hold offenders accountable. We know that the Violence Against Women Act approach of focusing on both victim safety and offender accountability works to reduce violence. This proposal is the next step in addressing that accountability.

posted July 21, 2011 7:25 pm edt

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