"There’s a violent crime problem on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation that Operation Dakota Peacekeeper is designed to address.

The Bureau of Indian Affairs project will supplement local and tribal police forces on Standing Rock with an increased law enforcement presence. Other BIA law enforcement agents from around the United States will be used to stabilize the public safety situation on the reservation.

The incidence of violent crime on that reservation is six times the national average, according to Sen. John Thune’s office. A rash of drug- and gang-related crime in places like McLaughlin has community members fearing for their safety today and for the future of their children tomorrow. Last year, 400 juvenile crimes on the reservation were not prosecuted because of the lack of law enforcement personnel.

Operation Dakota Peacekeeper is part of the Interior Department’s Safe Indian Communities program. The agency received $23.7 million for the nationwide program in 2008 and is requesting another $26.6 million for next year. In addition to putting more police on the highways and in the towns on the 2.3 million-acre reservation, Operation Dakota Peacekeeper improves community policing practices to give tribal members a stake in their own safety and it will make victims assistance services more available."

Get the Story:
Editorial: The community of Standing Rock takes on violent crime (The Rapid City Journal 6/13)

Relevant Documents:
Operation Dakota Peacekeeper (BIA)

Related Stories:
Editorial: Standing Rock crime deserves attention (6/10)
BIA tackles crime on Standing Rock Reservation (6/5)