09/29/2023 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 09/29/2023 16:33
Continues ongoing work to improve health, welfare and public safety of California tribal communities through DOJ's Office of Native American Affairs
RIVERSIDE COUNTY - California Attorney General Rob Bonta today issued an alert to Californians to promote awareness of the Missing and Murdered Indigenous People (MMIP) crisis in California through an event sponsored by the California Department of Justice's (DOJ) Office of Native American Affairs (ONAA), in partnership with tribal communities and law enforcement, called Missing in California Indian Country. This event will occur on the Soboba Band of Luiseno Indian Reservation in the Southern California region, on Saturday, September 29, 2023 from 9:00 am to 6:00 pm at the Soboba Casino Resort in San Jacinto, California. The event is free and open to the public to bring awareness and provide the opportunity for tribal families to come together and uplift ongoing efforts to confront this crisis. The event is cosponsored by the Soboba Band of Luiseno Indians, the Riverside County Sheriff's Office, the California Consortium of Urban Indian Health-Red Women Rising, the Cahuilla Consortium, the Intertribal Court of Southern California, Indigenous Justice, Strong Hearted Native Women's Coalition and Tribal Alliance of Sovereign Indian Nations (TASIN).
"Supporting tribal communities and protecting their safety is a priority for my office," said Attorney General Bonta. "When we reduce barriers and work together, we're better able to build back trust and foster relationships that improve public safety on and off tribal lands in California. The unfortunate reality is that many of our tribal communities feel under threat - worried that their loved ones, their mothers, their daughters - will go missing, will be lost to violence and murder. This is unacceptable - and as the state's chief law enforcement officer, I will do everything in my power to help end this crisis. But we must also repair relationships and build trust. The California Department of Justice is committed to listening and learning. We will continue to follow the lead of tribal communities to partner in justice and create change we need to see."
Missing in California Indian Country are first-of-their-kind events that are happening throughout the four regions of the state all on tribal lands, and in partnership with tribal governments and local law enforcement. They, in part, serve as critical public safety events for tribal communities and aim to elevate the state's response to the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons crisis (MMIP). These events will allow for loved ones to report an individual missing, receive an update on an active missing person's case, and/or provide a DNA sample for inclusion in DOJ's Unidentified Persons Database. These regional events are developed and planned in collaboration with the tribal governments, within the respected regions, to be most responsive to the region's tribal community's needs. Local, state, tribal and federal justice partners will come together for these events to share critical information, resource availability, and partnership in addressing the MMIP crisis in California.
In addition, the following events will occur at Saturday's event:
The first event was held in the Northern Region at the Blue Lake Rancheria, on Saturday, April 22, 2023, and was held in in partnership with the Humboldt County Sheriff's Office, the Yurok Tribal Police Department and the Hoopa Valley Tribal Police Department.
Missing in California Indian Country events are ongoing efforts of ONAA, an office established in DOJ in 2000 to support the rights of tribal citizens and governments and help protect the public safety of tribal communities. ONAA provides three main functions within DOJ: