The
Hopi Tribe of Arizona is one of the few in Indian Country to take advantage of expanded criminal sentencing under the
Tribal Law and Order
Act.
The tribe updated its criminal code to allow sentences of up to three years for a single crime or up to nine years for multiple offenses. Previously, punishment was limited to one year under the
Indian Civil Rights Act of 1968.
"The main thing is it will improve our law and order on the reservation, so we have a better way of protecting any victims," Chairman Le Roy Shingoitewa told the Associated Press.
Elsewhere, the
Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation in Oregon also has implemented stricter sentencing.
"It's been working great so far," attorney Brent Leonhard told the AP.
A recent
Government Accountability Office
report showed that tribes cited inadequate funding as a major roadblock expanding their sentencing authority.
Get the Story:
Ariz. tribe boosts jail time for reservation crime
(AP 9/5)
GAO Report:
None of the Surveyed
Tribes Reported Exercising the New Sentencing Authority, and the Department of
Justice Could Clarify Tribal Eligibility for Certain Grant Funds
(GAO-12-658R, May 30, 2012)
Surveys of Grant
Recipients, Select Tribes, and Indigent Defense Providers (GAO-12-661SP, May
30, 2012)
Related Stories
No tribes are taking advantage of expanded criminal sentencing (5/31)
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