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58–266 PDF 2010

S. HRG. 111–596 

EXAMINING BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS AND 

TRIBAL POLICE RECRUITMENT, TRAINING, 

HIRING, AND RETENTION 

HEARING 

BEFORE THE

COMMITTEE ON INDIAN AFFAIRS 

UNITED STATES SENATE 

ONE HUNDRED ELEVENTH CONGRESS 

SECOND SESSION 

MARCH 18, 2010 

Printed for the use of the Committee on Indian Affairs 

( 

(II) 

COMMITTEE ON INDIAN AFFAIRS 

BYRON L. DORGAN, North Dakota, Chairman 

JOHN BARRASSO, Wyoming, Vice Chairman 

DANIEL K. INOUYE, Hawaii 

KENT CONRAD, North Dakota 

DANIEL K. AKAKA, Hawaii 

TIM JOHNSON, South Dakota 

MARIA CANTWELL, Washington 

JON TESTER, Montana 

TOM UDALL, New Mexico 

AL FRANKEN, Minnesota 

JOHN MCCAIN, Arizona 

LISA MURKOWSKI, Alaska 

TOM COBURN, M.D., Oklahoma 

MIKE CRAPO, Idaho 

MIKE JOHANNS, Nebraska 

ALLISON C. BINNEY, Majority Staff Director and Chief Counsel 

DAVID A. MULLON JR., Minority Staff Director and Chief Counsel 

(III) 

C O N T E N T S 

Page 

Hearing held on March 18, 2010 ............................................................................ 1 

Statement of Senator Barrasso ............................................................................... 14 

Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 15 

Statement of Senator Franken ............................................................................... 3 

Statement of Senator Johnson ................................................................................ 1 

Statement of Senator Tester ................................................................................... 2 

WITNESSES

Gaikowski, Gary, Chief of Police, Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate Law Enforcement 40 

Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 41 

Garriott, Wizipan, Policy Advisor to the Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs, Bureau of Indian Affairs, U.S. Department of the Interior; accompanied by Jason Thompson, Acting Deputy Bureau Director, Bureau of 

Indian Affairs, Office of Justice Services ........................................................... 4 

Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 5 

Pearson, Hon. Myra, Chairwoman, Spirit Lake Nation; accompanied by David 

Gipp, President, United Tribes Technical College ............................................. 25 

Prepared statement with attachment ............................................................. 29 

Posey, Hon. Ivan D., Chairman, Eastern Shoshone Tribe ................................... 36 

Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 37 

Wright, Joseph W., Assistant Director, Federal Law Enforcement Training 

Center, Office of Artesia Operations, U.S. Department of Homeland Security ......................................................................................................................... 12 

Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 13 

APPENDIX

Finley, Hon. Michael O., Chairman, Colville Confederate Tribes, prepared 

statement .............................................................................................................. 47 

Response to written questions submitted to Joseph W. Wright by: 

Hon. John Barrasso .......................................................................................... 49 

Hon. Byron L. Dorgan ...................................................................................... 48 

Hon. Tom Udall ................................................................................................ 49 

(1) 

EXAMINING BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS 

AND TRIBAL POLICE RECRUITMENT, 

TRAINING, HIRING, AND RETENTION 

THURSDAY, MARCH 18, 2010 

U.S. SENATE, 

COMMITTEE ON INDIAN AFFAIRS, 

Washington, DC. 

The Committee met, pursuant to notice, at 2:55 p.m. in room 

628, Dirksen Senate Office Building, Hon. Tim Johnson presiding. 

OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. TIM JOHNSON, 

U.S. SENATOR FROM SOUTH DAKOTA 

Senator JOHNSON. Welcome to the first panel, Wizipan Garriott, 

Policy Advisor to the Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs, Department of Interior; and Mr. Joseph Wright, Deputy Assistant Director, Federal Law Enforcement Training Center, Department of 

Homeland Security. 

The Committee meets today to examine the hiring and training 

practices for tribal and Bureau of Indian Affairs police officers. 

Over the past two years, this Committee’s oversight hearings have 

confirmed that many Indian reservations are suffering longstanding crises of violence. 

One of the primary reasons this violence continues is because of 

the lack of police officers to stop it. According to the BIA, less than 

3,000 officers patrol more than 56 million acres of Indian lands. According to the BIA, we need an additional 2,800 officers just to 

meet the average staffing levels of comparable non-Indian communities. 

In the Great Plains region, we have large Indian reservations 

with populations spread across vast areas of land. For instance in 

South Dakota, the Cheyenne River Indian Reservation is roughly 

the size of Connecticut. On the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation from 

the tribal casino on the west end to the community of Wanblee on 

the east end is 120 miles. These vast distances often take their toll 

on officers and equipment. 

This Committee has been dedicated to establishing a record of violence and a substantial need for more funding for police in Indian 

Country. As a result of our work over the past four years, Congress 

has appropriated $990 million to the Bureau of Indian Affairs for 

law enforcement services. However, these substantial funding increases have not translated into more police on the streets of Indian Country. 

2 

As we will hear today, there are a number of reasons for the difficulty in recruiting and retaining new officers. One primary reason 

for the difficulty is the limited number of training locations for new 

officers. Over the past two decades, the BIA has required every 

new police officer to receive training at the Indian Police Academy. 

Last month, the Bureau of Indian Affairs submitted a report titled Protecting Indian Country. The report makes a number of recommendations. I want to thank the Bureau, with support from the 

Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Law Enforcement 

Training Center, for preparing this report. And I will look forward 

to further explanation of the proposals. 

I am committed to working with my colleagues on this Committee and other Committees to reverse these trends that we are 

seeing in our Indian communities. 

I want to thank all of the witnesses for traveling here today. 

Chief Gaikowski from Sisseton Wahpeton in South Dakota is here 

today. He is very well respected by the law enforcement community 

in my home State and I am honored to have him here. 

Wizipan Garriott is also from South Dakota and he is here today 

representing the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Welcome, Wizipan. 

Please begin with your testimony. We ask that you summarize 

your testimony to keep it under five minutes. You can submit your 

full statement for the record. 

Senator Tester? 

STATEMENT OF HON. JON TESTER, 

U.S. SENATOR FROM MONTANA 

Senator TESTER. I want to thank you for holding the hearing. I 

want to thank the witnesses for being here. This is important. Public safety is very important. As we talk about unemployment and 

lack of economic improvement in Indian Country, safety has to be 

our first priority or it is never going to happen as far as, you know, 

addressing the 20 percent to 80 percent unemployment in Indian 

Country. 

We are hearing statistics. We are hearing stories. As the Chairman pointed out, we put $990 million out. I would like to know 

how many police that has resulted in over the last few years. If you 

can address that in your opening statements, I would appreciate it. 

Nine hundred ninety million dollars is a good sum of money. It 

should have made a difference. I don’t know that it has, and I don’t 

want to throw good money after bad. If it hasn’t worked up until 

now, then maybe we need to go a different direction. And I would 

look forward to that suggestion, too, as we move forward. 

You know, I mean, conditions are tough out there. We have had 

many, many hearings in this Committee about public safety and 

the crime rate and what is going on in Indian Country. All of it 

is very distressing. 

But I particularly want to hear from the Administration witnesses about your plan for making things better. Not what you 

have tried to do. Not what you would like to do. Not what you 

would do in a perfect world, but exactly what you are going to do 

to improve the situation. It is critically important. If you don’t have 

a clear vision and a clear plan, we are never going to be able to 

3 

address the situation. It is a difficult situation and it needs to be 

addressed. 

And like I said, if we are going to have quality of life improve 

in Indian Country, it has to be addressed. So I want to know exactly what you plan on doing so we can either support it or head 

it in a different direction, depending on what this Committee wants 

to do. 

I want to thank you for being here. I very much appreciate your 

expertise and I look forward to your testimony. 

Senator JOHNSON. Does Senator Franken have any statement? 

STATEMENT OF HON. AL FRANKEN, 

U.S. SENATOR FROM MINNESOTA 

Senator FRANKEN. Yes, I do. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

Thank you for holding this hearing on this important issue of recruitment and training and retention of law enforcement officers in 

Indian Country. 

I want to thank our witnesses. 

Crime on Indian reservations is an enormous problem in so many 

States, certainly in Minnesota. For example, on the Red Lake Reservation, which I recently visited, the crime rate is eight times 

higher than the national rate. 

There are so many different reasons for this, but one is the simple lack of police officers at Red Lake and in Indian Country. To 

obtain minimal officer safety standards as determined by the BIA, 

Red Lake would need a minimum of 32 officers. However, currently 

they have 15, less than half of what they need. And the BIA’s minimum standard is set by the standard you would put per person, 

but if you think about the crime rate being that much higher, you 

would actually want a much higher population of police. 

So they are incredibly understaffed. And there are multiple reasons for the shortage. The basic one is lack of funding to hire more 

officers, and the responsibility for providing that funding falls on 

the Federal Government. I would completely identify myself with 

Senator Tester’s remarks, which is we want to make sure that we 

have a plan, a clear vision on how to spend that money. So, but 

we are failing Red Lake and we are failing so many of the other 

tribes in Minnesota and across the Country. 

Lack of good crime data in Indian Country is really another huge 

challenge. It is something that we are just beginning to address in 

Minnesota with a program called I–CARE, which would have the 

reservation sharing data, which they haven’t been doing. And in 

many ways, it makes it harder to track down criminals who go 

from one reservation to another or go from the reservations to the 

Twin Cities or elsewhere. 

So, and this is getting the cooperation of the tribes in Minnesota 

and I think it is a great model. It is called I–CARE. I would love 

for you to look into it. 

Minnesota also has the unique challenge of being a Public Law 

280 State, which means that the Federal Government has delegated jurisdiction over tribal law enforcement to the State for most 

of the tribes. And this just creates a lot of challenges for police departments on reservations across the State. 

4 

Anyway, the bottom line is we have to figure out how to reduce 

crime in Indian Country, and this has to include more, more and 

more effective officers working in Indian Country, and providing 

them with good training and giving them incentives to stay, and 

an opportunity for advancement, and just a chance at upward mobility in order to keep them there. 

So I am looking forward to hearing your testimony and for us 

delving into these issues today. I have read your testimony and I 

want to thank you for it. 

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

Senator JOHNSON. Thank you. 

Mr. Garriott? 

STATEMENT OF WIZIPAN GARRIOTT, POLICY ADVISOR TO THE 

ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR INDIAN AFFAIRS, BUREAU OF 

INDIAN AFFAIRS, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR; 

ACCOMPANIED BY JASON THOMPSON, ACTING DEPUTY 

BUREAU DIRECTOR, BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS, OFFICE 

OF JUSTICE SERVICES 

Mr. GARRIOTT. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. It is always good to 

see a fellow South Dakotan. 

Members of the Committee, my name is Wizi Garriott. I am the 

Policy Advisor for the Assistant for Indian Affairs, and I am joined 

today by Mr. Jason Thompson, who is the current Acting Director 

for the Office of Justice Services at the BIA. 

I want to thank the Committee for making Indian law enforcement an priority. The Assistant Secretary and the Administration 

share the Committee’s commitment to making Indian Country 

safer. We have taken a number of significant steps forward to address the public safety crisis throughout Indian Country, specifically in the area of law enforcement personnel. 

President Obama and Secretary Salazar heard first-hand that 

public safety is a tribal priority at the 2009 Tribal Nations Listening Conference. The President stated his support for the Tribal 

Law and Order Act and I want to again express our strong support 

for passage of this critical legislation. 

Overall, Indian Affairs is taking a four-pronged approach to protecting Indian Country and we are focusing on prevention, improving policing operations, tribal courts, and detention. 

Our first and most urgent priority in this endeavor is increasing 

the number of officers on the ground. And I am pleased today to 

provide an update on those efforts. As of October 22, 2009, the BIA 

had 243 sworn law enforcement staff and 191 funded vacancies 

throughout Indian Country. 

BIA has recently implemented an aggressive recruitment initiative and we are working diligently to fill these positions, and we 

are pleased to report that since December 1st, OJS has received 

2,692 police officer applications, which far exceeds our initial expectations. I want to emphasize that by comparison, during the 

months of October and November, we only received 10 applications. 

We are also utilizing the best recruitment strategies. We are 

working to get the word out on the Web, working with colleges and 

universities and using all other available media. We are also workVerDate Nov 24 2008 08:20 Nov 16, 2010 Jkt 058266 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6633 S:\DOCS\58266.TXT JACK PsN: JACKF
5 

ing to establish a position within OJS for someone to focus solely 

on law enforcement recruitment. 

Our aggressive recruiting has translated into results. To date, we 

have made 65 police officer offers to 65 police officer applicants, 

and we are pleased to announce that 51 have accepted positions. 

These hard to fill locations with the greatest need will receive priority placement, and additional selections are in the pipeline. 

One obstacle in the hiring process is that the background process 

is too lengthy. By conducting preliminary investigations internally, 

we hope to address this problem and to speed up the process. 

Retention has been another issue. We found that we were losing 

some of our BIA police officers to other jurisdictions because we 

cannot compete salary wise, and we are instituting a review of all 

OJS salaried positions to ensure parity with other law enforcement 

agencies throughout the Federal Government. 

Additionally, we are planning to aggressively use recruitment incentives such as paying relocation costs, awarding recruitment bonuses, paying student loans. And we are also planning to utilize 

service agreements under which an employee agreeing to serve in 

a hard to fill position for a certain period of time receives priority 

placement into a position of his or her choice after the service 

agreement has expired. 

We are also working aggressively to improve our training. We 

are addressing the high attrition rates at the Academy through a 

number of initiatives. I would be happy to talk about those later. 

Finally, we are working to establish a Bridge Program at United 

Tribes Technical College. And we feel that this Bridge Program will 

greatly increase the number of law enforcement applicants from 

colleges and from State agencies. 

We are taking an honest assessment of our services in Indian 

Country and we are looking at what has worked in the past and 

what has not worked. Our Indian Country law enforcement personnel are talented and dedicated men and women, and we are 

committed to providing them the tools necessary to do their job. 

Mr. Chairman and the Committee, I would be happy to answer 

any questions you may have. 

[The prepared statement of Mr. Garriott follows:] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF WIZIPAN GARRIOTT, POLICY ADVISOR TO THE ASSISTANT

SECRETARY FOR INDIAN AFFAIRS, BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS, U.S. DEPARTMENT

OF THE INTERIOR

Good afternoon Chairman Dorgan, Vice Chairman Barrasso, and members of the 

Committee. Thank you for inviting the Department of the Interior (Department) to 

provide testimony before this Committee on the topic of Bureau of Indian Affairs 

(BIA) and recruitment, hiring, training and retention of law enforcement officers in 

Indian Country. My name is Wizipan Garriott, and I am an enrolled member of the 

Rosebud Sioux Tribe. I currently serve as the Policy Advisor to Assistant Secretary 

for Indian Affairs, Larry Echo Hawk, at the Department. 

President Obama has made addressing public safety in tribal communities a top 

priority for his Administration. This priority is shared by Secretary Ken Salazar, 

Assistant Secretary Larry Echo Hawk, tribal leaders and many members of this 

Committee. The Administration strongly supports the Tribal Law and Order Act, S. 

797 as amended. I want to acknowledge Chairman Dorgan’s leadership on this 

issue, and this Committee’s efforts to improve public safety in Indian Country. 

In addressing the need for additional public safety resources, the Department understands increasing the number of law enforcement officers in Indian Country will 

require enhancing our recruitment, hiring, training, and retention efforts. In addiVerDate Nov 24 2008 08:20 Nov 16, 2010 Jkt 058266 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6621 S:\DOCS\58266.TXT JACK PsN: JACKF
6 

tion to those efforts, it requires increased coordination with the Department of Justice. 

BIA recently made several recommendations in its February 3, 2010 report, ‘‘Protecting Indian Country’’ which identifies methods for improving our law enforcement 

and corrections operations. The Department also recognizes the need for continued 

consultation with tribal leaders on a government-to-government basis. At the White 

House Tribal Nations Conference held at the Department on November 5, 2009, 

many tribal leaders raised concerns about public safety and law enforcement issues 

in Indian Country. We are pleased to provide this Committee and its members an 

overview of our efforts at BIA to recruit, hire, train and retain law enforcement personnel in Indian Country. 

As discussed below, in the last eight months BIA has taken a number of significant steps toward addressing the public safety crisis throughout Indian country. 

These efforts include: 

• Developing a national recruitment strategy targeted towards staffing historically hard-to-fill duty locations for Law Enforcement and Corrections Officers 

for the Office of Justice Services. 

• Implementing an aggressive Nation-wide initiative increasing the number of applicants from 10 in the months of October and November 2009, to 1,454 from 

December 2009 to mid-January 2010. These increased numbers led to the employment of 51 new Law Enforcement Officers within the first 60 days, compared to the employment of only 2 new officers in the year prior to October 

2009. New hires are all from outside of the BIA. The BIA is streamlining the 

hiring process by implementing preliminary background investigations to reduce lag time between hiring and entry into the training pipeline. 

• Developing a Federal Law enforcement Bridge Training Program. The Bridge 

Program increases the recruitment pool by allowing State and Local certified 

Officers from 1 of the 22 states recognized by the Indian Police Academy to complete the Bridge Program and achieve Federal certification without attending a 

full Basic Police Officer Training Academy. 

• Piloting a Land Management Training Program into FLETC Artesia to increase 

the number of available Tribal and BIA Law Enforcement training cycles from 

3 to 14. This increase in training cycles aims to enhance cadet mentoring and 

reduce attrition by lowering class size from 48 to 24. 

Deployment of Federal Resources to Address Public Safety in Indian 

Country 

As Assistant Secretary Larry Echo Hawk stated in his testimony before this Committee last month, the President’s FY 2011 budget request proposes for BIA an additional $20 million in public safety funding over the FY 2010 enacted level. This 

additional funding will support the Department’s ‘‘Protecting Indian Country’’ initiative. Specifically, $19 million will be provided via reimbursement by BIA to DOJ to 

fund additional FBI agents. The FBI has primary jurisdiction over major crimes on 

more than 200 reservations with approximately 105 agents available to investigate 

crimes that occur in Indian Country. The reimbursable funding provided to the FBI 

will add 45 agents as well as other personnel, assuring that the resources will be 

spent in Indian Country and focused on high-priority areas like drug trafficking and 

related violence. The Budget also proposes an increase of $1 million for detention 

center operations and maintenance for new facilities built with DOJ grants. 

In addition, Associate Attorney General Tom Perrelli testified before this Committee last month that the President’s FY 2011 budget proposes for the Department 

of Justice a 7 percent set-aside—$42 million—from the COPS Hiring Program to 

support the hiring of tribal law enforcement personnel, an additional 7 percent setaside—$139.5 million—from DOJ’s Office of Justice Programs for Indian Country efforts, and statutory set-asides totaling $42.9 million for certain Office on Violence 

Against Women programs. These set-asides, combined with other DOJ programs designed exclusively for tribal communities provide $255.6 million for DOJ grant programs in Indian Country that will support the agencies’ joint effort to improve public safety in Indian Country. 

Bureau of Indian Affairs, Office of Justice Services Programs 

The Office of Justice Services (BIA–OJS) supports 191 law enforcement programs, 

including 40 BIA-operated and 151 tribally-operated programs. Seventy-nine percent 

of the total BIA–OJS programs are under contract to Tribes as authorized under 

Public Law 93–638, as amended, or compacted to Tribes as authorized under Title 

IV of the Indian Self Determination and Education Assistance Act, as amended. 

7 

Many Tribes supplement BIA funding with money from their treasuries, grants 

from DOJ, or other sources. 

As of October 22, 2009, BIA had 243 sworn law enforcement staff and 191 funded 

vacancies, for a total of 434 sworn law enforcement positions within the six law enforcement districts. As of November 10, 2009, tribal law enforcement programs employed 2,754 sworn law enforcement officers and had 80 funded vacancies, for a 

total of 2,834 sworn law enforcement positions. This brings the total number of currently funded sworn law enforcement positions for Indian Country to 3,268. 

Based upon FY 2010 funding allocations, the current BIA staffing levels for sworn 

personnel providing direct services within the six BIA Districts are estimated at approximately 1.08 officers per 1,000 residents. Utilizing the Tribes current sworn personnel staffing levels, tribal law enforcement are estimated at approximately 2.16 

officers per 1,000 residents. Combining the current funded BIA and Tribal forces, 

the total ratio for Indian Country law enforcement (BIA and Tribal) based upon 

their reported service population is approximately 1.91 officers per 1,000 residents. 

Thus, all of these staffing ratios are below the comparable national average of 3.5 

officers per 1,000 residents. 

Recruitment 

Historically, BIA–OJS has not advertised job vacancies outside of agency locations. The BIA–OJS recently implemented an aggressive recruitment initiative to fill 

funded vacant law enforcement positions. We have extended our recruitment efforts 

beyond local agencies and on USAJOBS, the Federal government’s official job list. 

This aggressive effort has produced some great results. Since December 1, 2009, 

BIA–OJS has received 1,454 police officer applications, exceeding initial recruiting 

expectations. The initiative will be an ongoing endeavor to attract the best qualified 

candidates for Indian Country law enforcement positions. This effort will utilize the 

Internet, police periodicals, billboards, recruiting fairs at high schools and colleges, 

National/Local Police Organization web sites, employment agencies, tribal newspapers, websites, and organizations, and other advertising and best recruitment 

strategies. BIA–OJS is working with our Human Resources Office to finalize a position within OJS that will focus solely on recruitment and related activities. 

One recruitment obstacle that cannot be overcome by advertising is that OJS cannot hire a law enforcement officer who is over the age of 37 without a waiver. Requests for waivers to this requirement are submitted on a case-by-case basis, which 

is time consuming and inefficient. To address this problem we are exploring options 

to receive blanket waiver authority and will pursue this process, so that we will 

have a larger applicant pool, particularly of experienced officers, to draw from. 

We have also begun developing partnerships with various military branches as a 

source for law enforcement recruits. For example, the U.S. Army Reserve Employer 

Partnership Initiative is an innovative human capital strategy under which the 

Army Reserve collaborates with business and government leaders to ensure reserve 

soldiers have civilian employment when not on reserve duty. This initiative is mutually advantageous: employers and the Army Reserve both employ a highly capable 

soldier-employee who is trained, knowledgeable, and experienced in the various facets of public safety and law enforcement. We believe this effort would provide BIA 

access to a 202,000 veteran recruitment pool. BIA is also seeking out other partnerships with other branches of the Military. 

Hiring 

BIA recently extended offers to 65 police officer applicants, of which 51 applicants 

have accepted. These new officers will be placed in high-priority areas. We are in 

the process of filling the remaining funded vacant positions. OJS will continue to 

work diligently to fill these positions. 

BIA OJS is taking steps to minimize the delay and disruption of the hiring process by conducting the Preliminary Background Investigation (PBI) internally to 

bring prospective permanent employees on board prior to waiting for the full background check by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM). This new system will 

allow BIA–OJS to bring employees on board to attend mandatory training prior to 

completion of the full background investigation by OPM. The employment would be 

conditional and subject to successful completion of an OPM background check. 

OJS has assigned a team of Criminal Investigators to the recruitment team to 

conduct the PBI on new police officer, criminal investigator and correctional officer 

selectees. The PBI will inform OJS management immediately of any disqualifying 

issues to mitigate loss of federal resources. Upon receiving a favorable recommendation from PBI, OJS will grant a Request for Waiver that allows the applicant to 

begin employment prior to the completion of the official OPM background investigation. While these employees would have some restrictions on their duties prior to 

8 

the completion of the full OPM background investigation, this new system allows 

new employees to begin training programs and perform important interim tasks. 

Retention 

BIA–OJS has recently implemented initiatives to enhance the retention of qualified law enforcement employees. We will review and re-evaluate the current grade 

structure of all OJS positions to ensure parity with other federal law enforcement 

agencies. OJS positions are consistently at a lower grade than those of other federal 

law enforcement agencies. This adversely affects OJS’ ability to recruit, retain, and 

develop leaders who can rise to the top of the organization. 

Historically, OJS has struggled to fill police officer and mid-level supervisory positions in the field. These positions are a vital link in day-to-day field operations and 

largely responsible for the safety of citizens within Indian Country. By increasing 

the grade levels of OJS positions, OJS will be better able to attract more applicants 

and allow employees the opportunity to bolster their experience and knowledge by 

competing for future upper management positions. 

BIA is considering expanding and institutionalizing the use of recruitment incentives to attract new police officers and retain them. BIA presently has the authority 

to pay relocation costs, award recruitment incentives, and repay student loans, for 

certain positions. Another retention tool is the use of Service Agreements under 

which an employee, for example, agrees to serve in a high-priority area for a certain 

period of time would receive a placement into a position of his or her choice after 

the term of the Service Agreement expired. 

Training 

BIA and tribal programs provide a wide range of public safety services to Indian 

Country. These services include uniformed police services, criminal investigations, 

detention management, telecommunications, and tribal court assistance. To effectively provide these services, staff must receive certification in basic training skills 

related to their employment field. Because many Indian Country law enforcement 

officers cover vast areas of both extremely rural and urban terrain which often comprising several thousand square miles, high quality and specialized training is vital 

for protecting both the public and our officers. 

Throughout the nation, many other federal and state agencies operate their own 

police academies, training officers in basic and advanced techniques to perform law 

enforcement services. Currently BIA–OJS operates the United States Indian Police 

Academy (USIPA) located at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center 

(FLETC) in Artesia, New Mexico. The USIPA provides training to federal, tribal and 

local law enforcement officers who work in or near Indian Country. 

U.S. Indian Police Academy History 

Prior to 1968, availability of police training for tribal officers was extremely limited. While a few state police training academies granted access to BIA and tribal 

officers, there was a long wait. At the federal level, candidates sometimes faced a 

delay of up to three years for admission to the FBI academy. Consequently, actual 

job experience, supplemented with limited formal in-service instruction, was the predominant form of Indian law enforcement training and education. These limitations 

precluded effective, professional law enforcement services from reaching Indian 

Country. 

The U.S. Indian Police Training and Research Center was originally designed to 

train of BIA and tribal law enforcement officers, qualified potential Indian police officers, and other law enforcement personnel working on or near Indian reservations. 

The basic program was soon expanded to provide specialized training on an as needed basis for police officers, supervisors and managers, juvenile officers, criminal investigators, and jail personnel. By 1971, the Academy was assisting and conducting 

field in-service training as necessary for specialized subjects through short duration 

training sessions. 

After several relocations spanning over 20 years, in January 1993, the Indian Police Academy relocated to the FLETC in Artesia, New Mexico, the present location 

of the USIPA. 

The USIPA at FLETC 

The mission of the USIPA is to develop and provide law enforcement training and 

technical assistance to federal and tribal law enforcement organizations and their 

personnel. All training programs are designed to meet Indian Country law enforcement, employee development, and organizational improvement standards. 

The USIPA offers basic training courses for police officers, telecommunications operators, and corrections officer candidates. USIPA also offers numerous advanced 

training courses on child abuse investigation procedures, community policing, use of 

9 

force, firearms usage, archeological resource protection, police management and supervision, crime scene processing, detention, and dispatcher training for both tribal 

and BIA law enforcement officers. 

Currently the USIPA conducts three (3) basic police officer training programs 

(BPOTP) each year. The BPOTP is 16.5 weeks long, consisting of 739 hours of instruction. The BPOTP is an integrated FLETC Basic Program. USIPA offers Indian 

Country specific training programs which include: 

• History of the Indian Criminal Justice System 

• Indian Civil Rights Act 

• Indian Country Juvenile Law 

• Indian Country Liquor Law 

• Indian Child Welfare Act 

• Indian Country Conservation Law 

• Indian Country Criminal Jurisdiction 

• Indian Country Community Orientated Policing 

• Domestic Violence 

• Crimes against Women 

• Specific Indian Country Patrol Procedures Laboratory Exercise 

• Specific Indian Country Patrol Skill Laboratory Exercise 

These training programs, laboratory and practical exercises address many unique 

aspects of Indian Country law enforcement. 

Every three years the USIPA conducts a Curriculum Review Conference to validate basic training programs. Participants from tribal and BIA law enforcement programs give insight and make recommendations to change or add specific courses. 

The final training program is submitted to the FLETC Evaluation and Analysis 

Branch (EAB) to validate the recommendations. Once EAB validates the recommendations, the new basic training program with changes is scheduled. 

Assistant Secretary Echo Hawk is deeply concerned about the attrition rates at 

the USIPA. Since 2007, the average attrition rate at USIPA for the basic police class 

is 56.6 and 38.4 percent for the basic corrections class. This is unacceptable. These 

high attrition rates hinder the Department’s ability to deploy trained officers in Indian Country. The high attrition rates may be attributed to the following areas: 

• Health Screening during initial assessment. 

• Medical. Cadets will be dismissed due to injury requiring extended medical 

treatment. Cadets can only miss 5 days of training. 

• Resignation. Cadets can resign for personal or family reasons with the consent 

of their employing agency. 

• Academics. Cadets who fail two academic tests are dismissed. The BPOTP is 

written at the 9th grade reading and comprehension level. Students can participate in individual study groups and test review sessions the night before each 

academic exam. 

• Other. This category is for those cadets who fail a practical evaluation or violate 

a USIPA rule or regulation. The violation is usually a negative contact with law 

enforcement or an alcohol related offense. 

Other factors that contribute to our attrition and graduation rates may include: 

• Many tribal and BIA law enforcement programs do not academically prepare cadets for the rigors and challenges of the BPOTP. 

• Many tribal and BIA law enforcement agencies do not medically screen cadets 

to attend the USIPA. 

• Many tribal and BIA law enforcement agencies do not conduct a thorough background investigation of cadets. 

BIA–OJS has, however, had great success with candidates who attend the Criminal Investigator Training Program (CITP) utilized by the BIA. The CITP provides 

fundamental training in criminal investigation techniques, concepts, and methodologies. 

The CITP is an 11.2 week integrated basic program designed for the Federal 1811 

series (Criminal Investigators) and tribal investigator who conduct criminal investigations into violations of federal crimes. Lecture, laboratories, practical exercises, 

and tests are used to ensure that each trainee acquires all of the critical knowledge, 

skills and abilities required of new criminal investigators. Throughout the program, 

each trainee must participate as a member of a small task force team in a continuing case investigation. The training equips students to interview witnesses, conduct surveillance and undercover operations, develop a case, write and execute 

10 

search and arrest warrants, write a criminal complaint, obtain an indictment, and 

testify in a courtroom hearing. 

The CITP is a FLETC based basic program held in Glynco, Georgia and instructed 

by FLETC training staff and partner organizations. Approximately one third of the 

88 FLETC Partner Organizations that utilize the Glynco, Georgia FLETC training 

site are represented by on site staff at Glynco, while BIA has none. Consequently, 

BIA and tribal investigators who attend the CITP do not receive the same level of 

mentoring and support received by students of agencies that maintain full-time staff 

at the FLETC. 

Of the 47 BIA and tribal students who attended the CITP program from FY 2008 

and 2009, only 3 failed to complete training. This equates to a 6.3 percent failure 

rate for Indian Country law enforcement officers, which illustrates a more successful 

rate as compared to the USIPA cadets. 

Initiatives 

DOI/DOJ Collaboration: Secretary Salazar and Attorney General Holder have 

created an interagency workgroup, to explore ways to improve coordination and 

communications and fill gaps in the federal law enforcement effort. The DOI/DOJ 

workgroup has met several times, forming subgroups to investigate specific topics, 

and has met with representatives from the Department of Health and Human Services. This workgroup accelerated its work following the November 5, 2009, White 

House Tribal Nations Conference. 

Pre-Training Notification: Currently, new hires reporting to the basic training 

program have minimal knowledge and understanding of the training requirements 

of the USIPA. To remedy this problem, BIA has launched an initiative to provide 

them with a pre-employment packet describing the expectations of the training program to better prepare them for life at USIPA. 

Basic Training Program Transition: Currently the USIPA is conducting a pilot 

training program by holding the BPOTP concurrently with the Land Management 

Police Training (LMPT). This pilot period will allow management to compare program training standards. The current 16.5 week program has operated under the 

same format for 20 years and is inconsistent with other Department law enforcement basic training programs which benefit from the LMPT program. In addition, 

while the USIPA currently offers four classes per year, it provides only three. Reduced course loads and high attrition rates impede new officer training and hinder 

the Department’s ability to put trained officers on the street. 

The USIPA currently subscribes to a para-military method of training. This method of training served its purpose initially, but is not as effective to the core group 

of cadets that are seeking entry into the USIPA today. The millennial generation 

is our primary target for recruitment. The LMPT program’s emphasis on group 

learning, team development, and strengthening peer bonds will create an environment where this next generation can succeed in an academic setting. 

The LMPT program focuses on rural law enforcement which accommodates BIA 

and tribal officers who often work in rural and remote locations. The Department 

uses LMPT for its other law enforcement programs. USIPA can conduct LMPT 14 

times per year with 8 classes in Glynco, GA and 6 in Artesia, NM; however, FLETC 

can reallocate its existing training resources to expand the actual number of classes 

to meet the demand of Indian Country. Having two training locations and offering 

more training opportunities is cost effective for tribes who send cadets to USIPA. 

By reducing class sizes from 48 to 24 we expect to reduce attrition. The LMPT is 

an 18-week training program and currently has a 7 percent attrition rate. 

Reduce the Basic Corrections Officer Training Program (BCOTP) Class Size: Currently, we require 48 recruits to be enrolled in the BCOTP before we conduct the 

course, which is scheduled 4 times per year. Consequently, at least one course each 

year is cancelled. Recruits enrolled in cancelled classes must wait for the next class 

to occur. By reducing the mandatory class size from 48 to 24 and increasing the 

number of classes to 8 per year, USIPA can provide more frequent basic training 

opportunities and reduce the number of cancelled classes. The BCOTP is a BIA specific program with a FLETC approved syllabus. 

Recruit Mentoring Program: BIA–OJS plans to develop a formal mentoring program for students going through Basic Training. This mentoring program will identify at-risk students and provide remedial and after hours assistance with academic 

and practical exercise requirements for the basic training program. This mentoring 

program will reduce the current attrition rate and enhance successful completion of 

the basic training program. 

Bridge Training Program: BIA–OJS developed a Bridge Training Program to 

allow new hires who are already certified by a state or collegiate academy to meet 

the mandatory minimum training requirement for federal law enforcement service. 

11 

It was previous policy to require state certified officers, regardless of experience, to 

complete the 16-week basic training course in Artesia, NM. The Bridge Training 

Program will bridge the gap between the state and collegiate training which will 

allow new hires to become federally-certified and to meet specific Indian Country 

law enforcement course requirements in areas such as: Indian Country Law, Criminal Jurisdiction in Indian Country, and the FLETC Practical Pistol Course. This 

program would allow new hires already certified by a state academy to quickly meet 

the minimum mandatory training requirement of federal law enforcement service in 

two weeks as opposed to 16 weeks. 

Establish a Northern Plains Advance Training Academy at the United Tribes 

Technical College: OJS is working with the United Tribes Technical College in 

Bismark, ND to provide the proposed Bridge Programs at the College, and will consider partnering with other potential satellite locations to increase basic certification 

options for BIA and tribal police officers. 

Collegiate Law Enforcement Option: BIA–OJS plans to develop a collegiate law enforcement option to address the practical and field exercise training not offered by 

many collegiate certification programs. These collegiate programs generally do not 

provide instruction in practical field exercises such as firearms and driving required 

for federal certification. Working with FLETC, we identified a solution to this issue 

by developing another option for the Bridge program. The BIA submitted a training 

syllabus to FLETC Training Management Division on October 30, 2009 for review 

and approval. FLETC indicates that once it approves the training syllabus, the four 

(4) week follow-on-basic program will be taught in Artesia, New Mexico. It will include courses such as: Indian Country law, firearms, and divers training. 

Rotational Training Cadre: BIA–OJS proposes to begin a 3 year rotation of correction and police officers to provide training at the USIPA and its satellite academies. 

This will ensure our USIPA instructors bring the most current training tactics and 

methodologies to the field and to the training environment. 

Advanced, Specialty and Outreach Training: USIPA is in the process of addressing training needs through advanced, specialty and outreach training. In 2008, 

USIPA identified ‘‘anchor points’’ of training to allow training to be conducted closer 

to the tribal and BIA law enforcement locations. 

Through the efforts of FLETC, Office of State and Local and the Rural Policing 

Institute, additional training programs will be exported to the established anchor 

points. These programs focus on management, technical and specific training programs including courses such as: Supervisory Leadership. Executive Management, 

Active Shooter, Highway Interdiction, Back Country Tactics, Use of Force, Domestic 

Violence training the trainer, and First Officer Response. 

Working with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Indian Country and Special 

Crimes Unit, advanced training course offerings will be conducted. These courses include: 

• Critical Incident Stress Management 

• Introduction to Indian Country 

• Forensic Child Interviewing 

• Crime Scene Investigation 

• Financial Crimes Investigation 

The USIPA has a rich history of service to Indian Country and training of law 

enforcement officers. However, to meet the ever changing needs in Indian Country 

for qualified well trained officers, the BIA–OJS proposes to build on our relationship 

with the FLETC by implementing these initiatives and others to improve training 

for law enforcement officers. 

Mr. Chairman, thank you for the opportunity to address a matter of such an importance for Indian Country. The Department will continue to work closely with you 

and your staff, tribal leaders, and our Federal partners to strengthen the recruitment, hiring, training and retention of law enforcement officers in Indian Country, 

and we appreciate your continued commitment to Indian country law enforcement. 

I will be happy to answer any questions you may have. 

Senator JOHNSON. Thank you, Mr. Garriott. 

Mr. Wright? 

12 

STATEMENT OF JOSEPH W. WRIGHT, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR, 

FEDERAL LAW ENFORCEMENT TRAINING CENTER, OFFICE 

OF ARTESIA OPERATIONS, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND 

SECURITY 

Mr. WRIGHT. Mr. Chairman, Vice Chairman Barrasso, and Members of the Committee, on behalf of Secretary Napolitano and the 

Director Connie Patrick of the Federal Law Enforcement Training 

Center, I am honored to testify before this Committee today. 

My name is Joseph Wright. I serve as the Assistant Director for 

the Office of Artesia Operations in Artesia, New Mexico for the 

Federal Law Enforcement Training Center, which oversees the Indian Police Academy and all other law enforcement training in 

Artesia. 

As the Committee is aware, the FLETC is responsible for providing basic law enforcement training to over 88 Federal agencies 

with law enforcement authority and provides advanced and specialized training to Federal, State, local, tribal, campus and military 

law enforcement organizations. 

Since its conception in 1975, the Center has developed training 

that brings consistent and up to date technology and information 

to the law enforcement community. 

The history of the Bureau of Indian Affairs consolidated training 

concept with FLETC spans more than 25 years. On October 15, 

1984, the BIA moved the United States Indian Police Academy, 

which was located a Brigham City, Utah, to the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center in Marana, Arizona in order to comply 

with the Congressional mandate that consolidated training for all 

Federal law enforcement the Congress had placed on us. 

Upon the relocation of the IPA to FLETC, a curricular review 

was conducted and program designed specifically for Indian Country was created to manage and oversee their training programs. In 

1991, under the direction of BIA Director of Law Enforcement 

Services at that time, a partnership with FLETC was created to 

manage and oversee the IPA. In 1993, the FLETC relocated all of 

its training from Marana, Arizona, which was a leased facility, to 

its own facility in Artesia, New Mexico, where IPA continues to operate today. 

The President’s fiscal year 2011 budget proposes $807,000 for 

BIA training for law enforcement personnel, of which $540,000 is 

attributable to the basic training program. FLETC strives to ensure that its training programs are developed with the highest 

standards of today’s adult learning environment. The entire instructional staff at FLETC is comprised of career law enforcement 

personnel who are highly trained in the methodologies of training 

in a law enforcement environment. 

Indian Country law enforcement personnel face unique and complex challenges today in Indian Country, as you all are all aware. 

We have developed training to meet those challenges. For example, 

some of the training programs specific to Indian Country include 

courses in the Indian Child Welfare Act, Indian Country jurisdictional issues, and the challenge of working alone without assistance of backup for an extended period of time due to the ruralness 

of where they work. 

13 

The Land Management Police Training Program that they are 

currently utilizing provides the core law enforcement training offered to all of Department of Interior agencies. The specific Indian 

Country issues are taught as a follow-on to the basic program. 

Mr. Chairman, I have read the report provided by the BIA to 

Senator Dorgan, Protecting Indian Country, February, 2010. 

FLETC, working with BIA, has already implemented several of the 

changes in this report. For example, FLETC is offering the LMPT 

Program, Land Management Training Program, versus the basic 

police officer training program prior to this. 

I am pleased to report that we began the first class under the 

LMPT early last month and to date we have not lost a single student due to academics, personal resignation or injury. Twenty-three 

of the 24 students remain in the program, and the one student who 

is not there today was removed by his agency, terminated for employment, and called home. It had nothing to do with the training 

itself. 

By utilizing the LMPT, PBIA has the option to fill an entire class 

of Indian Country trainees or these trainees may join classes of 

other participating agencies who may need agents or officers 

trained in smaller numbers. Through this consolidation training 

approach, FLETC and the IPA are able to meet the training needs 

of all law enforcement agencies, both large and small, as their 

training needs arise. 

Additionally, a consolidated training approach allows BIA tribal 

officers to train with other DOI law enforcement personnel. We 

must continue to meet the Federal Law Enforcement Training Accreditation Board standards and provide consolidated training to 

our agents and officers so that they gain the benefit and knowledge 

of all the Federal, State, local, tribal and military law enforcement 

personnel they will work with throughout the years. 

Consolidated training not only provides the best learning experience for our agents and officers, it provides the greatest cost benefit to the American people. 

I respectfully submit these remarks and am prepared to take any 

questions from the Committee, sir. 

[The prepared statement of Mr. Wright follows:] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF JOSEPH W. WRIGHT, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR, FEDERAL LAW

ENFORCEMENT TRAINING CENTER, OFFICE OF ARTESIA OPERATIONS, U.S. 

DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

Mr. Chairman, Ranking Member Barrasso, and Members of the Committee: 

On behalf of Secretary Napolitano and the Director of the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC), Connie Patrick, I am honored to testify before the 

United States Senate Committee on Indian Affairs to provide insight on the training 

of law enforcement personnel for Indian Country. My name is Joseph Wright and 

I serve as the Assistant Director of the Office of Artesia Operations and have program management responsibility for the law enforcement programs conducted at the 

FLETC Artesia. As this Committee is aware, the FLETC is responsible for providing 

basic law enforcement training to over 88 federal agencies with law enforcement authority and provides advanced and specialized training to federal, state, local, tribal, 

campus and military law enforcement organizations. Since its conception in 1975, 

the Center has developed training that brings consistent and up-to-date technology 

and information to the law enforcement community. 

The history of the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) consolidated training concept 

with the FLETC spans more than 25 years. On Oct. 15, 1984, the BIA moved the 

United States Indian Police Academy (IPA) from Brigham City, Utah to the FLETC 

14 

in Marana, Arizona in order to comply with a congressional mandate to consolidate 

training for all federal law enforcement personnel. Upon the relocation of the IPA 

to FLETC, a curriculum review was conducted and a program designed specifically 

for Indian Country law enforcement personnel was developed and implemented. In 

1991, under the direction of the BIA Director of Law Enforcement Services, a partnership with the FLETC was created to manage and oversee the IPA. In 1993, the 

FLETC relocated all of its training from Marana, Arizona to the FLETC Artesia, 

New Mexico, where the IPA continues to operate today. 

The President’s FY 2011 budget proposes $807,000 for BIA training, of which 

$540,000 is attributable to the LMPT. 

FLETC strives to ensure that its training programs are developed with the highest standards in today’s adult learning environment. The entire instructional staff 

at the FLETC is comprised of career law enforcement personnel who are highly 

trained in the methodologies of training in the law enforcement environment. Indian 

Country law enforcement personnel face unique and complex challenges, and we 

have developed training to meet those challenges. For example, some of our training 

programs specific to Indian Country include courses on the Indian Child Welfare 

Act, Indian Country jurisdictional issues, and the challenges of working alone, without assistance or backup, for an extended period of time. The Land Management 

Police Training (LMPT) program provides the core law enforcement training offered 

to all Department of Interior (DOI) Law Enforcement Agencies. The specific Indian 

Country issues are taught as a follow-on to the basic program. 

Mr. Chairman, I have read the report provided by the BIA to Senator Dorgan 

(Protecting Indian Country Report, February 3, 2010). 

FLETC, working with the BIA, has already implemented several of the changes 

this report recommends. For example, FLETC is offering the LMPT versus the Basic 

Police Officer Training Program to BIA officers. I am pleased to report that we 

began the first class under the LMPT program early last month, and to date we 

have not lost a single student due to injury, academics or personal resignations, 23 

of the 24 students remain in the program.. One individual was removed by his agency due to termination of employment. By utilizing the LMPT, BIA has the option 

to fill an entire class of Indian Country trainees or, these trainees may join classes 

of other participating agencies who may need agents/officers trained in smaller 

numbers. Through this consolidated training approach, FLETC and the IPA are able 

to meet the training needs of all law enforcement agencies, both large and small, 

as their training needs arise. Additionally, a consolidated training approach allows 

the BIA and tribal officers to train with other DOI law enforcement personnel. 

We must continue to meet Federal Law Enforcement Training Accreditation 

Board standards, and provide consolidated training to our agents and officers so 

that they gain the benefit and knowledge of all of the federal, state, local, tribal and 

military law enforcement personnel they will work with throughout their careers. 

Consolidated training not only provides the best learning experience for our agents 

and officers, it provides the greatest cost benefit to the American people. 

I respectfully submit these remarks and I am prepared to answer any questions 

the Committee may have. Thank you. 

Senator JOHNSON. Very good. 

Senator Barrasso, do you have an opening statement? 

STATEMENT OF HON. JOHN BARRASSO, 

U.S. SENATOR FROM WYOMING 

Senator BARRASSO. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. I do, 

and first I would like to thank you for holding this hearing to examine what I believe is a real problem in Indian Country: recruiting, training and retaining officers to serve on BIA and tribal police 

forces. 

I really want to tell you how much I appreciate and welcome my 

friend, Chairman Ivan Posey of the Eastern Shoshone Tribe, who 

has come from Wyoming to testify about these challenges. 

Today, I have a lengthy statement. I would like to just make it 

part of the record, Mr. Chairman, so as not to delay the hearing. 

[The prepared statement of Senator Barrasso follows:] 

15 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF HON. JOHN BARRASSO, U.S. SENATOR FROM WYOMING

Good afternoon, and thank you Mr. Chairman for holding this hearing to examine 

what I believe is a real problem in Indian Country: Recruiting, training, and retaining officers to serve on BIA and tribal police forces. 

I appreciate and welcome Chairman Posey of the Eastern Shoshone tribe who 

traveled from Wyoming to testify about these challenges. 

BIA recently released its report ‘‘protecting Indian Country’’ outlining the challenges and current status of hiring, recruiting, and retaining adequate law enforcement. I am particularly interested in how the recommendations in the BIA’s report 

will complement its efforts to implement the High Priority Performance Pilot Project 

for Crime Reduction. I understand that this pilot is now underway on the Wind 

River Indian reservation. 

Based on Committee hearings and information provided by tribal leaders, we 

know that in some Indian communities, public safety is much more than just an 

issue—it’s a crisis. In recognition of this crisis, the Committee has had 2 hearings 

on law enforcement issues during this Congress, one on reservation gang activities 

and another on your bill, Mr. Chairman, the Tribal Law and Order Act. 

The question of public safety has been raised during other hearings in the past 

year as well. The Chairman and I both raised law enforcement issues and tribal police staffing levels with Secretary Salazar at our hearing in February of 2009. A few 

months later, we raised law enforcement issues with Larry Echo Hawk during his 

nomination hearing in May of 2009. On both occasions, I cited the police force on 

Wind River Indian Reservation as an example of dangerously low police staffing levels. 

Unfortunately, I think the situation on the Wind River Reservation is an example 

of conditions on other reservations. Tribal leaders on the Wind River Indian Reservation speak to me about law enforcement issues and BIA police staffing shortages almost every time we meet back in Wyoming. 

According to the BIA’s 2008 Crime Report, the crime rate on the Wind River Indian Reservation is about 31⁄2 times the national average. Right now, we have a 

grand total of 6 BIA officers patrolling this 2.2 million acre reservation. That’s 6 

police officers working an area almost the size of the State of Connecticut, which 

translates—at most—to 2 or 3 officers on any given shift. That’s a frightening prospect for the reservation, communities, and that’s why I keep raising this staffing 

issue. 

It is my understanding that the Department of the Interior is attempting to enlarge the BIA patrol force on the Wind River Reservation through increased hiring 

and temporary details. We’ve been told that there are 2 officers who will be deployed as soon as their training and background checks are complete—a minimum 

of 4 months from now. They have recruited an additional 8 officers who have not 

yet started training but hopefully will begin training soon. And finally, the BIA 

plans to extend offers to 2 more patrol officers. 

So if everything works out, we should have a total of 18 permanent patrol officers 

on the Wind River police force, which is the maximum number of offices funded for 

the reservation. And yet, Mr. Chairman, according to the 2008 BIA Crime Report, 

the level of need on the reservation is 29 officers. Which means that even in the 

best case scenario, our patrol officer staffing will eventually be at 62 percent of the 

level of need. That’s much better than the current 20 percent of need, and I do appreciate the Department’s efforts, but no community in the United States should 

have a police force that is almost 40 percent understaffed and yet many Indian communities across this nation face that reality. 

We simply must overcome the staffing problem to provide safety and security to 

reservation communities. The Department of the Interior must put successful methods in place nationwide, and tribal communities must do their part as well to promote that success and they should have the tools they need to do that. 

I think the Tribal Law and Order bill includes many ideas that will help the Department and the tribes do their jobs. But one change that would have an immediate effect on public safety would be getting more police officers on the ground. 

Plain and simple, we need more manpower patrolling our Indian communities. 

Mr. Chairman, I appreciate that you are examining this matter. It is one of the 

most important issues before the Committee. And I also thank the witnesses for 

coming these long distances to testify today. 

Senator JOHNSON. Thank you. 

16 

Mr. Garriott, currently, how many vacancies currently exist in 

South Dakota, including police officers, criminal investigators, and 

corrections officers? 

Mr. GARRIOTT. Mr. Chairman, currently the number of vacancies 

existing in South Dakota, I don’t have that particular information. 

Mr. Thompson, do you have that? 

We would be happy to provide that to you at a later time. 

Senator JOHNSON. Yes. Is there any means of reciprocity between 

the BIA officers and State and local officers to fill the gaps? In 

South Dakota, as you know, we have many checkerboarded jurisdictions. And it gets complicated assuring that law enforcement 

and law and order are able to arrest people who murder. And are 

there any incentives for that? 

Mr. GARRIOTT. Mr. Chairman, there are two mechanisms by 

which we can move forward with, as you said, some kind of a reciprocity. First, through cross-deputation agreements, we can work 

with local State law enforcement personnel to authorize and to enforce tribal law on the reservations. 

However, this is something that has to be driven by the tribe. It 

is really up to the tribe to make that determination on whether 

they want to move forward with a cross-deputation agreement. 

We also have the authority to enter into service agreements 

where necessary with local law enforcement personnel, and that 

can be done at both the tribal level or at the BIA level. 

Senator JOHNSON. Do you know which BIA law enforcement region has the highest rate of crime? 

Mr. GARRIOTT. It is my understanding that it is actually the Navajo Nation region that has the highest rate of crime. 

Senator JOHNSON. Standing Rock Sioux Tribe recently received a 

surge of officers in response to an outbreak of crime at that reservation. Do you anticipate this tactic may be used in the future? 

Mr. GARRIOTT. We absolutely do. Operation Dakota Peacekeeper 

was, in our view, a big success. And right now, we are moving forward with a series of high priority performance goals that the Department is pursuing, and our goal is to see 5 percent reduction of 

crime on four Indian reservations. Those reservations are Standing 

Rock, Rocky Boy in Montana, Wind River, and Mescalero Apache 

in New Mexico. 

Our first and foremost priority in that effort is to increase police 

officers on the ground and to institute a community policing initiative, and this strategy is based on the successes that we saw in Dakota Peacekeeper. So we are looking at ways in which to institutionalize those tactics that led to success. 

Senator JOHNSON. Mr. Wright, do you know how many candidates that enter the Academy and fail to complete the training 

are from South Dakota and the Great Plains region? And what is 

the most common cause for that incompletion? 

Mr. WRIGHT. Sir, I do not know the exact number of students 

that came from South Dakota that have failed the program. I can 

tell you that the primary cause for attrition within the basic police 

training program are twofold: usually, personal resignations which 

take place within the first two or three weeks of the training program; and then usually the legal block of instruction that entails 

constitutional law, 18 USC, 21 USC. 

17 

Senator JOHNSON. Do you believe that if there were an alternate 

facility located closer to the Great Plains that we would see more 

completion rates from those applicants? 

Mr. WRIGHT. Sir, I don’t believe so. Statistically speaking, all of 

the Native American tribes, as well as all the Bureau of Indian Affairs, their criminal investigators attend our Glynco facility. The 

attrition rate for those individuals attending C.I. training is 6 percent, which is the norm across for all the agencies that attend. 

The Land Management Training Program that we just started, 

which we are running simultaneously with one of the old basic programs, is basically what we are seeing is and we are five weeks 

into the program, we have not had one personal resignation out of 

that program to date, which is highly unusual. 

So I think the changing of the mind set of how we do basic training for law enforcement for Indian Country has more to do with the 

attrition and what we do versus where they are actually being located at. 

Senator JOHNSON. Senator Barrasso? 

Senator BARRASSO. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. 

I would like to follow along your line of questioning. I think the 

situation on the Wind River Reservation is unfortunately an example of conditions on other reservations. The tribal leaders on our 

Wind River Reservation speak to me about law enforcement issues 

and BIA police staffing shortages just about every time that we 

meet back in Wyoming. 

According to the BIA’s 2008 Crime Report, the reservation crime 

rate was about three and a half times the national average. Ivan, 

just interrupt me if this isn’t consistent with what you are seeing. 

Right now, we have a grand total of six BIA officers patrolling 

the 2.2 million acre reservation. That is six police officers working 

an area almost the size of the State of Connecticut, which translates at most to two to three officers on a given shift. That is a 

frightening prospect for the communities and it is why I keep raising this issue. 

So Mr. Garriott, based on BIA’s own reports, Wind River staffing 

is far below the funded level of 17 officers and the level of need 

which is 29 officers. So we have six, funded at 17, level of need at 

29. 

Does the Department intend to raise the levels of law enforcement staffing to meet the level of need of 29 officers for the Wind 

River Reservation? How do we get to that? 

Mr. GARRIOTT. We do intend to put more police officers on the 

ground at Wind River. The exact staffing ratio for each reservation 

is something that is unique based on the size, population, rates of 

crime, et cetera. But our first and foremost priority is to start 

spending money that we do have. And as you mentioned, we have 

unfilled positions there and we are working aggressively to fill 

those positions. 

I stated earlier in my opening statement that we have made over 

50 offers to police applicants, and we are assigning those new officers based on priority, and Wind River is one of our top priorities. 

So we have I believe made eight or nine offers and those police officers will be staffed there. 

18 

In the meantime, while these new officers go through training, 

we are working with the Bureau of Land Management and the National Park Service to backfill those positions with law enforcement 

personnel from those agencies. We are also working with several 

tribes on a service agreement to get some of their law enforcement 

out to these reservations. 

Senator BARRASSO. Well, I do appreciate that the Department is 

working on that so-called high priority performance goal, the pilot 

program on the Wind River Reservation. 

Anything else you can tell me in terms of the status of implementing that plan of action for the pilot program? 

Mr. GARRIOTT. We have had a series of meetings with the leadership from those tribes. The law enforcement personnel have been 

conducting a series of studies, working, going out and going door 

to door in the communities to assess the community’s views of law 

enforcement. 

And we plan on holding a stakeholders meeting with the leadership from those organizations and bringing ourselves to the table 

to meet with them and to find other innovative ways in which we 

can work to institute this community policing initiative. 

And it is not necessarily just focused on law enforcement, but we 

will bring other departments within Interior such as BIA Social 

Services. 

Senator BARRASSO. Of course, you know, Chairman Posey is here 

today, so I would ask: What do you need from the tribes? With the 

Chairman here, what do you need from tribes to facilitate the implementation of your pilot program? Is there more that we can do 

today or that we could have a discussion on terms of trying to bring 

people together? 

Mr. GARRIOTT. I think first and foremost has been buy-in. And 

you know, in our initial conversations with the tribal Chairmen 

from those tribes, it has been nothing but positive and they have 

been very excited. I would mention that the program at Rocky Boy. 

Rocky Boy is a 638 law enforcement program, so it is a little bit 

different because it is not necessarily a direct service as in the 

other three locations. 

Mr. Thompson, from an operational standpoint, do you have anything to add? 

Mr. THOMPSON. Yes, thank you. 

And thank you, Mr. Vice Chairman, for the opportunity to speak. 

You asked about the implementation phase of the high priority 

performance goal. And I think it is important to mention, Senator 

Franken mentioned it a while ago, the absence of accurate crime 

data. 

One of the first steps in the implementation of this high priority 

performance goal was to actually go out and hand pull police reports to try and identify what those base crime rates were for all 

four of these locations. Utilizing those numbers to develop those 

crime trends so that we can start proactively addressing criminal 

acts within the reservations has been a key part of the implementation phase. 

We met with Chairman Posey this morning. We have met with 

him a few times throughout this process, and we are very excited 

about moving into the development of the specific strategy for each 

19 

of these locations so that we can begin to address the reduction in 

crime. 

Thank you. 

Senator BARRASSO. Thank you. 

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

Senator JOHNSON. Senator Tester? 

Senator TESTER. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

We will start out with Mr. Garriott. In your testimony, you 

talked about, well, to boil it right down, only two new officers prior 

to October, 2009. You talked about employing 51 in the previous 

eight months, and correct me if I am wrong on that. 

I have a couple of questions. Number one, is that 51 net gain 

over the last eight months? Or is that just offsetting what was lost? 

Or what kind of increases are we talking about? Because what everybody has talked about up here and what we all know in Indian 

Country is they need more feet on the ground. So did that 51 result 

in more police officers, net? 

Mr. GARRIOTT. Yes, previously over the last year, we had a net 

gain of two police officers. Since December 1st of 2009, we have 

seen over 2,600 applicants, nearly 2,700 applicants and we have extended over 50 offers. So that translates into a net gain of 50-plus 

police officers. 

In the meantime, we may have had a few retirees or people moving on to new jobs, but overall, it is a very big gain and a big gain 

within a period of several months compared to the last year. 

Senator TESTER. Okay. And the Chairman may have asked this 

question. I thought I heard it, and I will ask it again if that is the 

case. How many vacancies do you have right now that need to be 

filled? 

Mr. GARRIOTT. We have 191 funded vacancies. 

Senator TESTER. So if you get 191 people, does that mean you 

will meet the needs in Indian Country. 

Mr. GARRIOTT. We will not meet the full needs in Indian Country. However, we will be spending our money effectively and making the best use of it. We also can look at ways in which to allocate 

those staffing needs. 

Senator TESTER. Okay. So you have 191 vacancies. Why can’t you 

fill them? They are funded. 

Mr. GARRIOTT. Why can’t we fill the current funded? Well, in the 

past, we have had problems recruiting and retaining police officers. 

We have had problems. 

Senator TESTER. Why is that? 

Mr. GARRIOTT. We have had a high attrition rate because, for a 

number of factors: high stress, housing, long hours, as mentioned 

earlier that sometimes the pay is not comparable to other law enforcement agencies. 

Senator TESTER. Could you give me any idea on how deficient the 

pay is on these 191 funded positions? 

Mr. GARRIOTT. I actually don’t have that figure. 

Senator TESTER. I mean, it would be good. I can tell you that 

when I was in the State legislature, we dealt with a lot of law enforcement issues in the local ground. And I can tell you that just 

about every police officer I talked to talked about irregular hours, 

long hours. It is a tough job. 

20 

And what makes your job tougher is the question, and why. And 

if it is housing, that is fine. I mean, that is an issue we can also 

deal with on this Committee as we move forward. 

I want to jump to Mr. Wright. In your testimony, and it directly 

dovetails with the answers that Mr. Garriott gave me. In your testimony, and you actually read this, it said, ‘‘Through this consolidated training approach, FLETC and the IPA are able to meet the 

training needs of all law enforcement agencies both large and small 

as their training needs arise.’’ 

Are you talking about instructors? Or are you talking about police on the ground? 

Mr. WRIGHT. I am talking about police on the ground, sir. 

Senator TESTER. Okay. So I am hearing those guys’ needs aren’t 

met. 

Mr. WRIGHT. Sir, normally throughout the year, there are four 

basic police programs that have normally been scheduled for training of BIA and tribal police officers. Normally, three of those classes are filled. The fourth class is canceled due to a lack of applications to fill a full class of 50 people, so that cycle of 200 people. 

But the attrition rate in the Academy has been right at above 50 

percent. And it deals with some of the way that we actually are 

doing paramilitary-type training and changing the program. The 

BIA was in a very unique program that was specific to Indian 

Country. They trained by themselves in a group of 48 students per 

class. 

We have moved from that model into what we call now the Land 

Management Training Program. That program consists of 24 students per class. We have added six classes on the books at Artesia, 

eight of those in Glynco. And those programs now are run with all 

of Interior. As, sir, the testimony just a minute ago, they are actually touching Bureau of Land Management and Fish and Wildlife 

to help support them until they can get their hiring done. So that 

is the same training program for all of them. 

Senator TESTER. Is the FLETC and the IPA training programs 

applicable to the people that Mr. Garriott wants? 

Mr. WRIGHT. Yes. 

Senator TESTER. So how can you in your testimony, you can say 

that, I guess, you are able to meet the needs, but you are not meeting the needs. 

Mr. WRIGHT. Sir, I would tell you that every request for training 

that has been put forth to FLETC, every slot that they have requested has been filled and started. It is the attrition rate in itself 

within the training that has hurt as far as returning those individuals back to the fill. 

Senator TESTER. I guess, and my time has run out, Mr. Chairman, so that I am going to turn the mike over to my good friend 

from Minnesota. But I guess I don’t understand that statement, 

then. If you are able to meet the—there is a disconnect here. If you 

are able to meet the training needs of law enforcement agencies 

both large and small as the training arises, yet we have an incredible disparity in Indian Country. That tells me we are not meeting 

the needs. 

21 

Mr. WRIGHT. Well, sir, FLETC is required to train those individuals who have been hired. And as the testimony just was, they 

have put forth 51 offers within the last eight months. 

Senator TESTER. Right, but they are still 191 short. 

Mr. WRIGHT. Yes, but those people have not come to FLETC to 

be trained yet, sir. If they had 191 people ready to be trained tomorrow—— 

Senator TESTER. You could do it. 

Mr. WRIGHT.—through our programs and the way we are scheduled, we can actually probably train that entire 191 within the next 

five-month period. 

Senator TESTER. Okay. Thank you. 

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

Senator JOHNSON. Senator Franken? 

Senator FRANKEN. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

Let me just follow up on that. So what you are saying is if there 

are more officers recruited that you could train them. 

Mr. WRIGHT. That is correct, sir. 

Senator FRANKEN. Okay. 

Mr. Garriott, the Chairman couldn’t be here today and he asked 

me to ask the question. Congress has appropriated $990 million for 

law enforcement services at the BIA over the past four years. On 

October 30, 2009, the President signed the Interior appropriations 

bill which provided $303 million in funding for BIA law enforcement services. And I understand these funds have not gone out to 

the tribes that have self-determination contracts who can’t pay 

their officers. 

Can you please tell the Committee the reason for this delay and 

when the funding will go out to the tribes? The Chairman tells me 

the tribes have called this Committee because they have not received the money from the BIA. 

Mr. GARRIOTT. Are you referencing 2010 money? Or are you talking all increases? Just for clarification. 

Senator FRANKEN. I believe it is 2010 money. 

Mr. GARRIOTT. We have not allocated that money yet, but we 

plan to. We will be working aggressively to do so in an efficient 

manner. 

Senator FRANKEN. Okay. Well, I would urge you please to do that 

as soon as possible. Thank you. 

You know, I look at this and the reason for attrition, it just 

makes me—I just know that there is all kinds of reason for attrition—paying, housing. When you have, as Senator Barrasso said, 

six officers on a reservation the size of Wind River, it can’t be safe. 

These guys go out and patrol by themselves, right? Either of you. 

Mr. Wright? 

Mr. GARRIOTT. Oftentimes. 

Senator FRANKEN. So is it more dangerous being an officer in Indian Country than elsewhere? 

Mr. GARRIOTT. I would let Mr. Thompson answer that, but first 

I would, you know, just like to again emphasize that we are working very aggressively to get more officers on the ground. 

Mr. THOMPSON. Thank you, Mr. Garriott. 

Senator Franken, we talked about the high crime rates, about 

the three and a half times the national average. We have seen resVerDate Nov 24 2008 08:20 Nov 16, 2010 Jkt 058266 PO 00000 Frm 00025 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6601 S:\DOCS\58266.TXT JACK PsN: JACKF
22 

ervations that have reported 20 times the national average crime 

rates. The fewer resources that we have, the fewer officers that we 

have working in those types of rural environments with between 

three and a half and 20 times the national average crime rates, it 

is definitely more dangerous to work in those areas. 

Senator FRANKEN. So that can be a reason for attrition as well. 

Mr. THOMPSON. Absolutely. 

Senator FRANKEN. And for not being able to recruit people. 

Mr. THOMPSON. Absolutely. 

Senator FRANKEN. And so it can be more dangerous and it is 

more dangerous because you are underfunded and understaffed. 

Mr. THOMPSON. Right. 

Senator FRANKEN. And you know, I think these numbers that 

where the need is, you know, so many people per 1,000 people, so 

many, I mean, that is based on a normal crime rate. Right? So if 

you have three and a half times the crime rate, you would think 

you would need three and a half times as many as normal population. Right? Wouldn’t that follow? 

Mr. THOMPSON. That is correct, sir. 

Senator FRANKEN. So as it is, we have about like half the number that we need to meet the goals which are less than the normal 

goals you would have outside of Indian Country, and yet the need 

clearly is higher than that. That goal you are not even trying to 

get to. Is that right? Is that fair to say? 

Mr. GARRIOTT. First and foremost is filling the vacancies that we 

do have. 

Senator FRANKEN. I understand. 

Mr. GARRIOTT. And spending that money efficiently. 

Senator FRANKEN. Before the Chairman asked about having another Academy and maybe having one on the Plains, Northern 

Plains. The United Tribes Technical Colleges have talked about 

having an Academy there. Would that be helpful to you, Mr. 

Garriott? 

Mr. GARRIOTT. It would be very helpful in our recruitment efforts. It was past BIA policy that we required State-certified police 

officers to go through the basic 16-week training down in Artesia. 

This was regardless if they had 10 years law enforcement experience. 

We have since changed that policy so that they complete this 

two-week Bridge Program where they receive Federal firearms certification and courses in Indian law that they can then be a Federal police officer. So it will cut down the amount of training time 

and is a big incentive. 

Senator FRANKEN. Okay. I know you have a Bridge Program 

there, but I would suggest that maybe having a full program there 

might be helpful as well. 

My time is up. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

Senator JOHNSON. Thank you, members of this panel. You may 

be excused. 

Mr. GARRIOTT. Thank you. 

Mr. THOMPSON. Thank you. 

Mr. WRIGHT. Thank you, sir. 

Senator TESTER. I just have a couple questions. 

Senator JOHNSON. Hold on. I guess Senator Tester has questions. 

23 

Senator TESTER. My apologies. You guys are almost off the hook. 

I just had a couple of questions for Mr. Wright. You guys train 

a lot of folks every year. 

Mr. WRIGHT. Yes, sir. 

Senator TESTER. Overall, not just Native police officers. 

Mr. WRIGHT. United States Border Patrol, CBP, air marshals. 

Senator TESTER. How many people would you say you train? 

Mr. WRIGHT. Last year, there were over 60,000 students went 

through the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center sites. 

Senator TESTER. Just from your perspective, I mean, we are on 

the Indian Affairs Committee here. We have had many, many hearings about law enforcement in Indian Country and how deficient it 

is and how it takes away from quality of life, safety, all that stuff. 

In your assessment, if you can assess it, would Indian Country 

be one of the biggest needs out there? 

Mr. WRIGHT. I think the issue of retention and the number of officers that Indian Country lacks today is one of the biggest crises 

we face. Two years ago, through the past time, of course, our Border Patrol Initiative, as you are well aware of, just got through 

doing that. In 2002, the United States air marshals was the biggest 

need we had. 

Senator TESTER. Yes, but right now? 

Mr. WRIGHT. Right now, today, I would tell you that Indian 

Country has the largest need for law enforcement that I am aware 

of. 

Senator TESTER. I appreciate the assessment. Do you do special 

training for Native American law officers? 

Mr. WRIGHT. We do specialized and advanced training for all of 

our agencies, yes, sir. 

Senator TESTER. Yes, but Senator Franken just asked a question 

about safety in Indian Country. 

Mr. WRIGHT. Yes, sir. 

Senator TESTER. And he is spot on with that. So, I mean, are you 

giving those officers the tools to deal in areas where they can go 

in, I mean, it is, to be quite, quite frank, it is different in Rocky 

Boy, Montana than it is 35 miles away in Big Sandy, Montana. 

Mr. WRIGHT. Yes, it is, sir. 

Senator TESTER. So are you giving those folks those tools? And 

has the BIA asked you to give your students—— 

Mr. WRIGHT. Yes, sir. The training program that apparently the 

BIA has gone through with the LMPT is based on for rural law enforcement personnel. 

Senator TESTER. Okay. 

Mr. WRIGHT. Those individuals who will be in one man units 

may not have backup close to them. 

Senator TESTER. Right. 

Mr. WRIGHT. They could be hours away. They may never see it. 

They may also have to take that case from the very beginning, as 

no criminal investigator may show up where they would have to 

process that case and take it all the way to the U.S. Attorney’s office. And that is what the LMPT Program does for them. 

Senator TESTER. The reason I asked is why is there a Bridge Program then? 

24 

Mr. WRIGHT. The Bridge Program, sir, is based upon—what they 

are talking about is when there are 22 State academies that have 

been recognized over the years through BIA. If you attend a State 

Police Academy, the one problem that you are not going to get is 

you are not going to get Indian Country jurisdiction. 

Senator TESTER. Okay. 

Mr. WRIGHT. You are not going to get the Indian Child Welfare 

Act. 

Senator TESTER. So what you are saying is your graduates don’t 

have to go to the Bridge Program. They are ready to go. 

Mr. WRIGHT. That is correct, sir. They already get all that in 

their basic. 

Senator TESTER. Is that correct? 

Mr. WRIGHT. That is correct. 

Senator TESTER. Okay. Do you have the ability to move money 

around in your budget? 

Mr. WRIGHT. No, sir. 

Senator TESTER. You don’t? 

Mr. WRIGHT. I don’t. No, not at my level, sir, no. 

[Laughter.] 

Senator TESTER. Okay. Well, here is a question for you and you 

might now take it to the person who is at that level. 

There is about $280 million is your budget that gets appropriated 

to your agency for training. About $800,000 is spent on training for 

Native Americans. That is the figure that I got from people who 

know. 

The question I have is, you were very honest about the needs in 

America, about where the most needs were. In a $280 million budget, $800,000 is less than 102/80th of that budget. 

Mr. WRIGHT. If I could, sir? 

Senator TESTER. You bet. 

Mr. WRIGHT. That number is appropriated by the Congress to us 

based upon the projections that are given to us by the Bureau of 

Indian Affairs. That number that you are seeing entails those basic 

police officers that go through basic training, those who attend the 

Criminal Investigators Training Program for C.I.’s, and any advanced training they may have requested that is in that—— 

Senator TESTER. So what you are saying is—— 

Mr. WRIGHT. That $800,000 that you see, sir, is what they requested that we spend towards them to make sure that their training—— 

Senator TESTER. So if they requested more because they thought 

you could get more officers out, you would put more money in that 

line item? 

Mr. WRIGHT. That line item would be increased, sir, based upon 

the numbers that they are asking for, but that is for all of our—— 

Senator TESTER. That is cool. We like that. Do you guys want to 

keep that in mind? 

[Laughter.] 

Senator TESTER. Well, I think it is actually, you know, we poke 

fun at it. The truth is that if you are living in an area where you 

are not safe, it is the pits. And we need to figure out how to get 

this doggone thing fixed. We honestly have to get it figured out. We 

25 

can spend all the money we want and it ain’t going to happen for 

Indian Country until we get some safety stuff going on. 

And I am not sure the $990 million that the Chairman talked 

about in his opening statement has been spent to the best ability 

to get police on the ground. And I will just be quite frank on that. 

$990 million is a lot of dough, and we should have a lot more than 

50 additional officers or 52 additional officers on the ground over 

the last four years, in my opinion, and I would argue that for a 

while. 

Last question and I will let you go, and I thank you for your patience. Is there additional cost to the tribes to run them through 

the UTTC Program, the Bridge Program? And if there is, why 

aren’t you requiring the folks to do the training before to take care 

of it? Because these guys just said, if you request them the extra 

money, they will do it. 

Mr. GARRIOTT. The problem isn’t necessarily, you know, the 

money to train the police officers. It is recruiting and hiring. And 

so actually we have had to cancel classes at the IPA Program because we just weren’t able to hire enough individuals. 

Senator TESTER. Okay. Well, I don’t know what is happening. 

You have 20 percent to 80 percent unemployment in Indian Country and if they are trained right, they could make a good living at 

it. I am not saying it is for everybody, but maybe the recruitment 

needs to be stepped up then, if that is the case. Just a thought. 

Mr. GARRIOTT. Absolutely, and we are taking those steps, and as 

evidenced by the numbers that we have seen in the last couple 

months and the work of the Office of Justice Services, we are moving in that direction. 

Senator TESTER. Thank you very much, and I appreciate your patience. Thank you, guys. I appreciate what you do, too. Thank you. 

Senator JOHNSON. Does Senator Franken have anything else? 

This panel may be excused finally. 

Mr. GARRIOTT. Thank you. 

Senator JOHNSON. The second panel is comprised of the Honorable Myra Pearson, Chairwoman, Spirit Lake Sioux Tribe, Fort 

Totten, North Dakota, accompanied by Dr. David Gipp, President, 

UTTC; the Honorable Ivan Posey, Chairman, Eastern Shoshone 

Tribe, Fort Washakie, Wyoming; and Mr. Gary Gaikowski, Chief of 

Police, Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate, Agency Village, South Dakota. 

I have a note here that says remind the second panel of the fiveminute rule. I will turn to Myra Pearson and David Gipp who have 

a 5:30 flight, and I understand that. 

So Myra and David Gipp, proceed. 

STATEMENT OF HON. MYRA PEARSON, CHAIRWOMAN, SPIRIT 

LAKE NATION; ACCOMPANIED BY DAVID GIPP, PRESIDENT, 

UNITED TRIBES TECHNICAL COLLEGE 

Ms. PEARSON. Thank you, Mr. Chairman and Vice Chairman and 

Committee Members. Thank you for this opportunity this afternoon 

to provide testimony here. 

I have listened to the first panel and a lot of the stuff, you know, 

I have heard, I have said before. I have been here to Washington 

to testify for these very things. And I guess today I am going to 

26 

respectfully ask that I am able to leave this testimony, that I would 

like to summarize and leave it to, that it be a part of the record. 

And I would like to summarize some of this stuff. First and foremost, I am the Chairwoman for the Spirit Lake Tribe in North Dakota. And secondly, I am also the Chairwoman for the Board of Directors at the United Tribes Technical College located in Bismarck, 

North Dakota. 

Accompanying me this afternoon is Dr. David Gipp, who is the 

President of United Tribes. 

As I said, you know, in 2007, our tribe a community-wide assessment and strategic plan to identify and prioritize issues facing our 

communities and to strategize the best practices to enable us to address those issues. During that effort, the improvement of law enforcement services on the Spirit Lake Reservation were identified 

as a priority for development and enhancement. 

While the tribe has continued a dialogue with the Bureau of Indian Affairs for decades, the blatant inefficiencies with respect to 

law enforcement and tribal justice as a whole remain unresolved 

and in many respects the issues have compounded over the years. 

The issues I see with the current law enforcement services provided by the Bureau of Indian Affairs include, and this is where 

I will summarize, we have officer shortages. We have lack of training and inadequate facilities. I have on several occasions made recommendations to assist in resolving some of the above-stated 

issues. However, it seems that the BIA is not interested in resolutions, but rather is attempting to close what limited facilities and 

services they are providing in tribal communities. 

In my opinion, the approach that the BIA has taken in addressing justice issues in tribal communities has demonstrated that the 

agency is completely out of touch with Indian Country, and that 

there are far too many people climbing the ranks and leaving the 

field offices ill-equipped to meet the needs of the communities they 

are supposed to be serving. 

I think it is time for the United States Congress to take a hard 

look at the upper level administration within the Bureau of Indian 

Affairs and assess what needs to improve within the leadership of 

the Bureau of Indian Affairs. 

In my mind, there are several potential avenues that may be 

pursued that would support the improvement of BIA law enforcement services with respect to recruitment, retention, training and 

hiring. Such avenues will include recruitment and retention. There 

are several tribal colleges across the Nation that would serve as an 

excellent pool for the recruitment of prospective law enforcement 

officers. The BIA has done little to focus on post-secondary educational institutions to actively recruit qualified candidates to enter 

BIA law enforcement services. 

At one point in time, the Spirit Lake Tribe had upwards of 13 

open but unfilled officer positions. When inquiry was made as to 

why such vacancies existed, the Aberdeen area office representatives explained that people who wrote the entrance exam were unable to pass, despite the fact that it was deemed to be a ninth 

grade level examination. 

This statement speaks to the fact that the BIA is focusing their 

recruitment in the wrong place with the wrong people and using 

27 

the wrong means. Hanging posters around the community does not 

qualify as active recruitment, in my mind. I believe that the local 

agency should be engaging our youth and people who are demonstrating an interest in pursuing careers in criminal justice. 

A simple biannual visit to area community college should be a 

part of the responsibilities for active duty law enforcement officers. 

Additionally, the placement of officers plays a big role in retention. 

And if efforts are made to ensure placement closer to an individual’s home community, that would be a significant factor in recruitment and retention, not to mention that this promotes communityoriented policing and investment in our tribal communities. 

Hiring. There is little or no information made available to the 

tribe on hiring process for BIA law enforcement officers. We were 

previously informed that once positions are posted, the prospective 

candidates must submit an application, and upon passing an initial 

screening, must also pass a written examination and the basic 

training academy, which is located in Artesia, New Mexico. 

Currently, the training facility in Artesia is the only BIA training facility in the Nation. The fact that recruits are expected to relocate for an extended period of four months is often a barrier to 

employment as most qualified individuals have dependent children 

and family members. 

Training is also regional. Academies are an essential part of providing relevant training for recruits and active duty law enforcement officers. It has been clearly stated by tribes for many years 

that the needs for tribes and the demographic of tribes vary greatly. The development of regional academies would foster environments in which general law enforcement training could be provided. But it also provides a tremendous opportunity for specific 

training that is relevant to the tribes in a region. 

The Training Academy should focus on basic training for new offices and should also include continuing education for existing officers. Continuing education would be available regardless of an officer’s desire to change their rank or position within the BIA. 

At this time, Mr. Chairman, I would like to turn what is remaining of my time over to Dr. David Gipp, who is the President of 

United Tribes and is another reason why we are here today to promote United Tribes as one of the training sites. 

Senator JOHNSON. Please be brief, Mr. Gipp. 

Mr. GIPP. I will be very brief, Mr. Chairman. Thank you very 

much. 

I would just point out that United Tribes, which is located in Bismarck, North Dakota, has been actually doing criminal justice 

training for close to 40 years. And a lot of our graduates go into 

existing State positions. Some of them go back through the Academy at Artesia. And so we have had that kind of relationship. 

Our training program is recognized by the Attorney General and 

the Post Board of North Dakota, which is key to have the certification at the State level in terms of our graduation. 

We do a certificate and we do a two-year degree program. And 

we are located in a good location for the Northern Plains. We work 

very close with our respective law enforcement agencies, the city, 

county and States, and have good relationships with those kinds of 

agencies. 

28 

We also have mechanisms for our students to receive other kinds 

of funding as a community college, obviously. I would just observe 

that unfortunately we think that the training at Artesia, while it 

is good in quality, simply hasn’t been able to produce the number 

of graduates that are necessary for the if you want to call it the 

2,800 vacancies that exist throughout Indian Country. 

Even at their capacity of 150, they are probably only producing 

maybe 50 percent in terms of the graduates that make it through 

that Academy. And while we are not being critical of that, we just 

simply say, and I have been listening to tribes for close to 30 years 

complain about the lack of basic law enforcement in the communities, we need other alternatives. We need to create a new and 

better model for Indian Country if we are going to alleviate the 

issues of public safety and endangerment in our various homes. 

I am from Standing Rock, and quite frankly, there are communities that that if you are a policeman, I would hesitate to go into 

some of those areas, not because the people are dangerous, but because crime has become rampant. 

And it is important for us to then begin to provide better public 

safety, because all of our tribal citizens want, you know, good, 

peace and harmony in their respective communities. We think we 

can do, or at least lend toward that effort on the Northern Tier, 

at least in a five-State region, perhaps beyond that. 

I am in the midst of an expansion of our campus right now. We 

have rededicated a number of areas that would go towards criminal 

justice. But we also think that the Indian tribes need good support 

to develop their own infrastructure, both locally and regionally in 

terms of that training, and also begin to have the support necessary for them to develop their own standards and accreditation, 

very similar to what the States have been able to do. 

And that is where we need to have that kind of support necessary for them to be able to truly exercise their independence, if 

you will, and again for the safety and harmony of that population. 

I am going to stop my remarks here. There is much more that 

I do have to say, and we will work very cooperatively on the development of this rich program, for example, with the Bureau of Indian Affairs. But we believe very strongly that basic law enforcement training needs to begin to happen in our region. 

Senator JOHNSON. Thank you, Dr. Gipp. 

[The prepared statement of Ms. Pearson follows:] 

29 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF HON. MYRA PEARSON, CHAIRWOMAN, SPIRIT LAKE NATION; 

ACCOMPANIED BY DAVID GIPP, PRESIDENT, UNITED TRIBES TECHNICAL COLLEGE


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Senator JOHNSON. Mr. Posey? 

STATEMENT OF HON. IVAN D. POSEY, CHAIRMAN, EASTERN 

SHOSHONE TRIBE 

Mr. POSEY. Good afternoon, Mr. Chairman and Members of the 

Senate Indian Affairs Committee. 

My name is Ivan Posey. I currently serve as Chairman of the 

Eastern Shoshone Tribe in Wyoming. And there are a few things 

here that I want to touch on this afternoon. I will ask that my written testimony be incorporated into the record for this meeting. 

First is hiring, recruitment and retention. My meeting this morning with Bureau of Indian Affairs, Department of Interior, was regarding the hiring process. Although there are efforts to put more 


318a7.eps
37 

law enforcement officers on the ground, we really feel that that 

process may be cumbersome. If a person was hired today, had to 

go to the Law Enforcement Academy, we might not have an officer 

on the ground for nine months to one year. 

Right now, I had to correct the Senator when us guys were talking in the hallway there, that we have actually seven officers, and 

that includes the Chief of Police. We are including him as one of 

those law enforcement officers. 

Right now, the retention, I think, is a problem with the Bureau 

of Indian Affairs because right now we are slated to have five more 

officers come in to help with the Wind River. Two will be coming 

from Poarch Creek, Alabama and two will be coming from Seminole, Florida. It is snowing in Wind River, and I am not too sure 

how well-trained they will be to address those kind of conditions 

as in Minnesota or whatever. 

And I think by that process of robbing Peter to pay Paul just 

really doesn’t work in Indian Country. By them supplanting some 

officers at our reservation that meet our needs, they are also taking 

officers away from their own duty station. 

In my testimony today, in my written testimony, I mention I felt 

it not necessary to mention those officers that are detailed there, 

which would bring us up to 12 currently, because seven are the 

ones that are actually are going to be on duty there. 

Housing continues to be an issue in Indian Country. I talked to 

the Wizi and the rest of the gentlemen this morning about there 

may be a disconnect between the regular Bureau of Indian Affairs 

and the stovepipe organization of law enforcement. I think that relates to the hiring process, to the facilities management, and there 

needs to be better coordination there. 

Education, as Dr. Gipp mentioned earlier, is something that we 

all need to do in terms of getting our younger people involved with 

criminal justice degrees or law enforcement in general. 

We also need to develop some type of training program where, 

I heard it mentioned earlier about the dangers of Indian Country 

and incorporating some of that knowledge into our new officers. 

I think my time is up. 

[The prepared statement of Mr. Posey follows:] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF HON. IVAN D. POSEY, CHAIRMAN, EASTERN SHOSHONE

TRIBE

Good afternoon. My name is Ivan D. Posey and I currently serve as Chairman 

for the Eastern Shoshone Tribe on the Wind River Indian reservation in west central Wyoming. 

It is an honor to be able to provide testimony on a matter that is so important 

to the residents of the Wind River Reservation... public safety. I am also honored to provide this testimony to this prestigious committee on Indian issues which 

includes our own Senator, John Barrasso. 

The law enforcement of the Wind River Basin is comprised of a very distinctive 

law enforcement dynamic. This dynamic is first illustrated in the land base, with 

the Wind River Reservation consisting of 2.2 million acres or roughly 3,472 square 

miles with 506 miles of paved roadways that encompasses all of Fremont County 

and a part of Hot Springs County. Aside from the land base the area has six different law enforcement agencies that have specific jurisdictions within this area. 

The first is the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Wind River Agency Law Enforcement; 

whose jurisdiction is primarily within the exterior boundaries of the reservation and 

specific to enrolled members of a federally recognized tribe. The Wyoming Highway 

Patrol jurisdiction is specific to 367 miles of state and county roadways and specific 

38 

to non-Indians within the exterior boundaries of the reservation. The Sheriffs of the 

counties of Hot Springs and Fremont have jurisdictions within their respective counties and also is specific to non-natives within the exterior boundaries of the reservation. Finally, the police departments of Lander and Riverton have jurisdictions that 

encompass their respective city limits. 

The primary law enforcement agency of the Wind River Reservation is a force created and funded by the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA). The Shoshone and Arapaho 

tribes have a Law and Order Code that stipulates that the BIA Police force shall 

carry out the orders of the Shoshone and Arapaho tribal courts and in the community enforce the letter and spirit of the code in an impartial manner (S&A Code 

Title 1–1–4). Some of the regular duties the BIA Police manage is the prompt serving of all notices which the court requests such as arrest warrants, and warrants 

for search and seizures. The BIA Police currently has 10 active officers which includes a criminal investigator and Chief of Police. The current BIA Law Enforcement model with the Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho Tribes stipulates 

seventeen officers, two criminal investigators, and one chief of police for the Wind 

River Reservation. However, due to the hiring process (background and training) 

and retention issues, the BIA police force has operated with an average patrolling 

force of seven officers in the 2004–2009 time spans and currently has seven officers 

on patrol. The seven officers work shifts that include two officers on duty in the day 

(6 a.m. to 6 p.m.) and four officers on duty in the night (6 p.m.–6 a.m.) to service 

the 2.2 million acres of the Wind River Reservation. Due to the low number of officers on duty at any given time, their work consists primarily of reactive patrolling 

as opposed to proactive patrolling. Thus, response to calls are prioritized to the most 

emergent situation, leaving community members waiting for hours, or no response 

at all, if their call is not deemed an emergency. Another issue that has become prevalent is the availability of officers for court appearances should an individual plead 

not guilty and the matter goes to trial. Due to daily work demands and scheduling 

there has been an increase in the number of dismissed cases due to an officer not 

appearing for court. Most predominant is the 256 driving under the influence arrests made in 2008 with only 68 resulting in convictions. 

As you can see Wind River has operated the past five years with half the amount 

of officers that have been allocated to the area due to the dynamics in hiring, training, and retention. Including an eighteen month period in which the department did 

not have a chief of police. In examining the hiring process, the obvious starting position is the recruitment process. At Wind River there is not a local recruitment program available for individuals interested in a law enforcement career. Coupled with 

the computer software used for the applications, the process becomes tedious and 

unusable due to a lack of technological resources that most local residents do not 

possess. Once an applicant has placed an application for an open position a lengthy 

process begins starting with the selection process. BIA Human Resources is charged 

with making the selection dependant on qualifications. However, the H.R. for law 

enforcement for Wind River is also charged with making the selections for not only 

District V but two other districts as well. Due to the high volume of applicants in 

each of these districts, selections can take nine months to a year. Depending on 

whether the applicants accepts or declines the position, the next step is a full background investigation through the Office of Personal Management which depending 

on the applicant could take several weeks. This does not include if the individual 

will be required to attend the federal law academy. 

Training has typically been an ominous proposition in hiring individuals as law 

enforcement officers on Wind River. In large part due to the length of time training 

consists of and in the number of opportunities the training was offered. Up until 

recently the 17 week Basic Police Officer Training Program offered through the Indian Police Academy was only held three times a year. This limit amount of training 

opportunities severely hampered getting individuals hired on patrol and created a 

bottle neck in the process. It was encouraging to hear that the BIA has recently increased the amount of training program opportunities from three times per year to 

fourteen in effort to streamline the process. However, some individuals serving in 

other law enforcement fields are often deterred from applying with the BIA due to 

their certifications not being recognized particularly the state law enforcement academies. Even though twenty-two state academies are recognized through the BIA it 

limits those individuals who have certifications from states that are not recognized. 

Finally, retention is greatly affected by the lengthy hiring and training process 

with open positions not being filled in a timely manner it puts a strain on the law 

enforcement officers that are already on patrol. As mentioned above the long work 

shifts with little or no time off wears on the officers to the point of burn out which 

affects their ability to perform in a consistent and effective manner. Thus, weakening the departments’ ability to serve and protect the communities that they are 

39 

assigned. This situation eventually leads to transfer requests or worse yet, resignations which in turn creates a perpetual cycle of hiring and training. In addition to 

burnout, retention is thwarted by the limited amount of housing or the lack of maintenance/upkeep of the available housing by Facilities Management. The housing 

issue often leads officers to pay extra for housing that is supposed to be provided 

as part of their duty assignment. This is particularly problematic in small rural 

communities such as Wind River, where housing is limited due to the availability 

and/or lack of development. One of the least discussed areas affecting retention is 

bred out of the nature of the work itself. It is not uncommon for the average law 

enforcement officer to experience the very worst of a communities’ social ills. This 

includes but is not limited to handling situations spawned from substance use and 

abuse or handling of situations in which accidents occur that result in death. Experiencing a trauma directly or indirectly adversely affects an officers psyche which 

may have longer lasting affects in his/her professional or personal life. Currently the 

BIA does not have any stress management counseling to offer its officers to assist 

in managing situations that they may experience in the line of duty. 

The BIA has taken steps over the course of several years to address the areas 

of concern that have mentioned above however the process needs to be continually 

addressed and streamlined. The common practice of detailing officers from other 

BIA or Tribal departments to those departments deficient in the number of officers 

on patrol has been an effective means of addressing the problem in the short term. 

However, the temporary fix in of itself does present some logistical issues. Most 

prevalent is invoking the ‘‘take from Peter to pay Paul’’ principle in which the shifting officers from one department to another only weakens the department in which 

the officers are based. A detail assignment typically only lasts thirty to forty-five 

days in duration, with half that time being used for the ‘‘foreign’’ officer adjusting 

to the laws and policy of the local area. An inevitable situation that is commonplace 

is the detailed officer making an arrest and the perpetrator pleads not guilty and 

is scheduled to trial. The situation may call for the detailed officer to testify well 

after the officer has completed his/her detail and has returned to their base department. The cost to return to the area for testimony is not covered by the department 

or is absorbed by the local prosecutor’s office with the latter unable to incur that 

cost. This adds to the cases that are dismissed and affects convictions rates much 

like what was discussed earlier with the low number of convictions for DUI in 2008 

for Wind River. 

Hiring, training, and retention of law enforcement officers are areas in which the 

tribes of Wind River have identified as ongoing areas of concern. The Joint Business 

Council of the Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho have taken the initiative 

to address these issues by first waving the Indian Preference criteria for BIA Law 

Enforcement Officers serving in Wind River on September 2009. This was made in 

an effort to broaden the selection process and increase the amount of applicants for 

the open positions. In addition the Joint Business Council created a Wind River Law 

Enforcement Commission that is charged with making all decisions concerning employment and discharge of tribally funded law enforcement officers. The hiring process that was instituted allowed for the hiring of two law enforcement officers to be 

on patrol within a three month span. Even though this process included the hiring 

of two individuals that were already certified the individuals received full background investigations and given clearance for duty. Thus laying the foundation for 

a hiring process that is expeditiously efficient in comparison to the current BIA 

process. 

The Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho Tribes are working cooperatively 

with surrounding law enforcement agencies to assist in creating a tribally driven 

law enforcement model for the reservation. This may include districting the reservation and have law enforcement officers stationed in areas that need consistent coverage. Currently the jail facilities are located in Fort Washakie where a officer may 

need to travel 30 miles to respond to a call. The law enforcement agencies have been 

very supportive and continue to participate in this important process. 

In closing, there are several issues that can be addressed to make the system 

more effective. The first is having the hiring process done at the local level to alleviate the cumbersome process that currently exists. Second, re-establish Special Response Teams (SRT) to address shortfalls and high priority issues on reservations. 

This would help address officers being pulled from their duty stations and detailed 

elsewhere. Third, assist tribes to establish educational training for new officers to 

learn about the area they will serve. Lastly there needs to be access to counseling 

options for tribal and BIA officers that experience traumatic experiences. For our 

officers to be able to provide public safety to our citizens they need to be able to 

care for their needs foremost. 

40 

Thank you for your time and attention to this important issue and with the prayers of our Elders and community our homelands can overcome these concerns that 

have plagued our tribal communities for too long. 

Senator JOHNSON. Thank you. 

Mr. Gaikowski? Welcome. 

STATEMENT OF GARY GAIKOWSKI, CHIEF OF POLICE, 

SISSETON WAHPETON OYATE LAW ENFORCEMENT 

Mr. GAIKOWSKI. Thank you. It is good to see you, Senator Johnson. 

I would like to also read my statement that I have to submit. 

Honorable Senator Tim Johnson and Members of the U.S. Senate 

Committee on Indian Affairs, on behalf of the Sisseton Wahpeton 

Law Enforcement of the Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate of the Lake Traverse Reservation at Agency Village, South Dakota in northeastern 

South Dakota and southeastern North Dakota, we thank the 

United States Senate Committee on Indian Affairs for providing 

the opportunity to present testimony with regards to the subject of 

the Bureau of Indian Affairs tribal police recruitment, hiring, training and retention. 

These are critical areas of concern for our Sisseton Wahpeton 

Law Enforcement Agency, and we are prepared to provide testimony at this time. The Sisseton Wahpeton Law Enforcement on 

Lake Traverse Reservation exercises policing and detention responsibility for the resident tribal population of 6,800 tribal members 

who reside throughout a five-county rural area in northeastern 

South Dakota and two rural counties in southeastern North Dakota. 

Our responsibilities include the protection of 14 tribal member 

communities throughout this million acre area in two States. 

Our agency operates and is partially funded by P.L 93–638 selfdetermination contract to the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and has the 

unique distinction of being funded by non-Federal funds from our 

own tribal government, which provides fully 50 percent of the 

funds from tribal revenues so as to assure minimum operational 

costs in needs in law enforcement for our reservation. 

Our Tribal Law Enforcement Agency views the subject of recruitment of police and detention officers as being an extremely critical 

need for our overall community. Our experiences indicates that recruitment of tribal members from our communities to serve as police and detention officers is an essential ingredient in assuring effective law enforcement for the benefit of our residents. 

Funds currently are needed to put in place an effective police and 

detention officer recruitment program, particularly for younger 

tribal members who are enrolled in elementary, secondary schools 

and at our local college. We assert this need based upon the fact 

that fully 40 percent of our resident tribal member population is 

less than 16 years of age. Hence, it would be an advantage to target this significant portion of the resident population for recruitment as tribal police and detention officers. 

We stand prepared to network and coordinate recruitment efforts 

with our tribally-owned and operated schools and college, provided 

that Federal funding initiatives are made available for these initiatives. 

41 

Secondly, the hiring and training of police and detention officers 

for our Law Enforcement Agency is also a critical area of concern 

and priority. The majority of applicants for police and detention positions in our agency do not have prior or previous experience in 

law enforcement or detention. Our Agency, therefore, is compelled 

to utilize limited Federal BIA and tribal funds to send our newly 

hired police officers to training at the BIA Indian Police Academy 

on an annual basis, since our Agency is required to employ personnel who are BIA-certified as police officers. 

The provision of training also is direly needed to maintain our 

certification of officers on a full-time basis. Due to this situation, 

we therefore urge that Federal funds be appropriated for more 

training opportunities for our police and detention officer applicants on an annual basis. 

Such an initiative would empower our Agency to link recruitment 

with the hiring and training of eligible applicants to become employed as police and detention officers in our Law Enforcement 

Agency. 

Thirdly, the retention of police and detention officers in our Law 

Enforcement Agency also is a matter of great concern. Currently, 

due to limited Federal funding, it has been a challenge to provide 

a level of salaries for our police and detention offices at a comparable level of pay, as is the case for their counterparts employed 

by the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Without the full support and endorsement of our tribal government, which provides non-Federal 

funds for our Agency, we would not be able to provide an adequate 

salary for our police and detention officers. 

In order for our Agency to retain good and effective police and 

detention officers, we therefore urge more Federal dollars for salaries of our officers, which would enhance and ensure retention of 

our officers. Our Agency currently requires 16 police officers on a 

full-time basis. We now have 12 officers employed, which places 

much stress on our officers. 

Our detention staff require the services of seven detention officers, and we currently employ three detention officers on a fulltime basis, which again has served to overextend our detention officers. 

Any consideration that Congress can provide for our situation 

would be greatly appreciated in our time of need. 

In closing, we want to express our appreciation to the U.S. Senate Committee on Indian Affairs for providing us with the opportunity for preparing and submitting testimony today. 

[The prepared statement of Mr. Gaikowski follows:] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF GARY GAIKOWSKI, CHIEF OF POLICE, SISSETON WAHPETON

OYATE LAW ENFORCEMENT

Honorable Senator Byron L. Dorgan, and members of the U.S. Senate Committee 

on Indian Affairs: 

On behalf of the Sisseton Wahpeton Law Enforcement of the Sisseton Wahpeton 

Oyate of the Lake Traverse Reservation, at Agency Village, SD, in northeast South 

Dakota and southeast North Dakota, we thank the United States Senate Committee 

on Indian Affairs for providing the opportunity to present testimony with regard to 

the subject of Bureau of Indian Affairs and tribal police recruitment, hiring, training, and retention. These are critical areas of concern for our Sisseton Wahpeton 

Law Enforcement agency, and we are prepared to provide testimony at this time. 

42 

The Sisseton Wahpeton Law Enforcement on the Lake Traverse Reservation exercises policing and detention responsibilities for a resident tribal population of 6,800 

tribal members who reside throughout a 5 county rural area in northeast South Dakota and two rural counties in southeast North Dakota. Our responsibilities include 

the protection of 14 tribal member communities throughout this million acre area 

in two States. Our agency operates and is partially funded by a P.L. 93–638 Self 

Determination Contract from the Bureau of Indian Affairs and has the unique distinction of being funded by non-federal funds from our own tribal government, 

which provides fully 50 percent of funds from tribal revenues, so as to assure minimum operational costs and needs in law enforcement for our reservation. 

Our Tribal Law Enforcement Agency views the subject of recruitment of police 

and detention officers as being an extremely critical need for our overall community. 

Our experience indicates that recruitment of tribal members from our communities 

to serve as police and detention officers is an essential ingredient in assuring effective law enforcement for the benefit of our residents. Funds currently are needed 

to put in place an effective police and detention officer recruitment program, particularly for younger tribal members who are enrolled in elementary, secondary 

school, and at our local college. We assert this need based upon the fact that fully 

40 percent of our resident tribal member population is less than 16 years of age, 

hence it would be an advantage to target this significant portion of the resident population for recruitment as tribal police and detention officers. We stand prepared 

to network and coordinate recruitment efforts with our tribally owned and operated 

schools and college, provided that federal funding initiatives are made available for 

these initiatives. 

Second, the hiring and training of police and detention officers for our Law Enforcement Agency also are critical areas of concern and priority. The majority of applicants for police and detention positions in our Agency do not have prior or previous experience in law enforcement or detention. Our Agency therefore is compelled 

to utilize limited federal-BIA and tribal funds to send our newly hired police officers 

to training at the BIA Police Academy on an annual basis, since our Agency is required to employ personnel who are BIA certified as police officers. The provision 

of training also is direly needed to maintain our certification of officers on a full 

time basis. Due to this situation, we therefore urge that federal funds be appropriated for more training opportunities for our police and detention officer applicants on an annual basis. Such an initiative would empower our Agency to link recruitment with the hiring and training of eligible applicants to become employed as 

police and detention officers in our Law Enforcement Agency. 

Third, the retention of police and detention officers in our Law Enforcement Agency also is a matter of great concern. Currently, due to limited federal funding, it 

has been a challenge to provide a level of salaries for our police and detention officers at a comparable level of pay as is the case for their counter parts employed 

by the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Without the full support and endorsement of our 

Tribal government, which provides non-federal funds for our Agency, we would not 

be able to provide adequate salaries for our police and detention officers. In order 

for our Agency to retain good and effective police and detention officers, we therefore urge more federal dollars for salaries of our officers, which would enhance and 

assure retention of our officers. 

Our Agency currently requires 16 police officers on a full time basis, and we now 

have 12 officers employed, which places much stress on our officers. Our detention 

center requires the services of 7 detention officers, and we currently employ 3 detention officers on a full time basis, which again has served to over extend our detention officers. Any consideration that Congress can provide for our situation would 

be greatly appreciated in our time of need. 

In closing, we want to express our appreciation to the U.S. Senate Committee on 

Indian Affairs for providing us with the opportunity of preparing and submitting 

testimony today. 

Senator JOHNSON. Thank you, Mr. Gaikowski. 

Mr. Posey, do you know how many of your officers are from your 

own reservation? 

Mr. POSEY. I would say, Senator, four are from our own reservation. 

Senator JOHNSON. Those coming in sound like they are from 

down south. 

Mr. POSEY. Yes. Right now, the four that are there and the ones 

that are going to be hired bring that number up to 12, but in terms 

43 

of retention, we have lost three tribal police officers over the last 

year and a half due to burnout. I mean, I mentioned in my written 

testimony that they are working 12-hour shifts and they continually get to the burnout stage. So we have lost three tribal members that were police officers that actually just resigned. 

Senator JOHNSON. Yes. Do you think a regional training center 

would alleviate some of the law enforcement shortage? 

Mr. POSEY. I do, Senator. I know in the past there has been a 

bottleneck in Artesia in terms of getting people through the Academy. Now, that bottleneck has been fixed, I believe. But I think if 

it was a little bit closer, I know a couple of people from the reservation who are tribal members went down and didn’t make it through 

the Academy in the last couple of years. I don’t know whether that 

is the academic or the physical aspect of the training, but they did 

not complete the Academy. 

Senator JOHNSON. Do you think there would be lots of shortage 

of law enforcement if the tribe ran the police force under a 638 contract? 

Mr. POSEY. You know, I am not too sure, Senator. I think the 

hiring process, the recruitment process really needs to have some 

aspect of being tribal-driven. I think, for example, we got a grant, 

a COPS grant where we hired two highway safety officers this last 

fall. It took us about two to three months to have those actual officers on the ground and doing highway safety, their duties in highway safety, although they do help respond to other emergency calls. 

But like I mentioned earlier, the process through the Bureau 

may take nine months to a year to get an officer on the ground, 

where we could have done it two to three months. And of course, 

maybe the stars lined up in that instance, but it is a lot quicker 

system. 

Senator JOHNSON. Mr. Gaikowski, Gary, how many of your officers are enrolled tribal members of the Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate? 

Mr. GAIKOWSKI. They all are, all 12. 

Senator JOHNSON. That is unusual. 

Mr. GAIKOWSKI. Yes. 

Senator JOHNSON. Yes. Do you think a regional training center 

would help with the problems on the Lake Traverse Reservation? 

Mr. GAIKOWSKI. Well, I graduated in 1994 at the IPA. And I 

think, speaking with other Chiefs and other people in law enforcement, both tribal and Bureau, they would like to see the IPA still 

in charge of the Academy. I think this change in the Academy, they 

didn’t like. I think it was a good Academy. It was tough and, you 

know, you want to be in law enforcement, you will get yourself 

through the Academy. 

Senator JOHNSON. What are the advantages or disadvantages of 

being a 638 tribal contract? 

Mr. GAIKOWSKI. I think we hold to a better standard of working 

with the tribal programs and with the community. We know each 

other in the community. That is our families, our relatives, our 

friends. If you are from another reservation, it is a whole other, not 

all tribes are the same. 

We are all different. And you know, you are coming from another 

reservation and going, like you said, from going from Florida to 

Wyoming, that is a change. And you know, you are going to be 

44 

probably treated a little bit different as an officer, and you are 

treated different as an officer even when you know the people. That 

is a given. 

Senator JOHNSON. Do you officers cover the entire area within 

the traditional boundaries of your reservation? 

Mr. GAIKOWSKI. We are a checkerboard reservation. We only 

cover the fee lands and tribal lands. 

Senator JOHNSON. Do you cooperate with the county of Roberts 

County? 

Mr. GAIKOWSKI. We have a very good working relationship with 

the local law enforcement there, county, State. We help each other 

out a lot. They are short-staffed, too. We are, you know, we are 

short-staffed. We have actually, three of ours are in the new class 

right now at IPA. 

Senator JOHNSON. Do you see the opportunities for reciprocity as 

a good one or is given to misunderstandings? 

Mr. GAIKOWSKI. I, for South Dakota, of course, we have those 

tensions there. I think South Dakota is going to have to recognize 

our Academy. I think we have a good Academy. I have seen the 

State Academy. I have sent officers to the State Academy. I think 

we have a better Academy down there in Artesia. 

I think that is what it is going to take is the State of South Dakota recognize our Indian Police Academy. 

Senator JOHNSON. Why do so many Academy candidates drop 

out? You were there. 

Mr. GAIKOWSKI. Yes. We did lose about half of our class also 

when I was down there. Since I have been in charge for 10 years, 

I have probably lost I would say 50 percent of my staff when we 

sent them down to the IPA. I think it is the stress of the job. I lost 

an officer this summer, a very good officer, and it was job-related. 

I mean, it was just too many calls. He responded to infant deaths, 

and it affected him. 

I have lost two officers this past summer also to recruitment to 

the BIA. They can recruit right under our feet, our offices. Out of 

that increase we got for fiscal year 2010 here, I took my $125,000. 

I put it to salaries for my existing staff. 

Senator JOHNSON. Thank you. 

Senator Franken, I have a note, two roll call votes at 4:15 just 

started. 

Senator FRANKEN. Okay, I will try to get through my questions 

fast. 

Mr. Posey, you did mention that it took nine months for you to 

get an officer through the BIA, but two months when you did it 

yourself. Is that right? 

Mr. POSEY. Yes, in a sense, Senator. 

Senator FRANKEN. Okay. Do you share Ms. Pearson’s skepticism 

about the BIA, about their effectiveness? 

Mr. POSEY. I do share some of that skepticism that she mentioned in terms of the system needing to be addressed and needing 

to be fixed. I think we are at a certain time in our history here 

where a lot of tribes, including the tribes at Wind River, are trying 

to develop our own law enforcement model that is tribally driven. 

We just need the BIA to be on the bus when we are driving it. 

45 

Senator FRANKEN. Would you say, outside of law enforcement, 

would you say this is a problem just in general? 

Mr. POSEY. I think it is just in general for the BIA to some respect. I think in our community on the Wind River, the law enforcement agencies work pretty well together. Of course, our reservation is one of the unique reservations. It has about 80 percent 

tribal trust land. So the majority of our land on our reservation is 

not checkerboard, although we are surrounded by a couple of 

towns. And of course, the county overlaps that. 

Senator FRANKEN. I am just talking about on education, on 

health care, how you assess the BIA’s performance. 

Mr. POSEY. I think it has not been adequate for Indian Country. 

Senator FRANKEN. Okay. Why is it so hard, with unemployment 

so high in Indian Country, why is it so hard to recruit from your 

own people? 

Mr. POSEY. I think everything is all interconnected, Senator. I 

think we have to get more adequate funding and more effective 

models to address substance abuse, drug abuse. I think have strong 

preventive and reactive programs. Our proactive programs, we are 

always on our heels in Indian Country in terms of law enforcement. 

Drug abuse, substance abuse, sometimes that lays claim to getting 

something done proactively. 

Senator FRANKEN. Are you saying that drug abuse and alcohol 

abuse lowers the recruitment pool? Or you are saying it makes it 

hard to recruit people because they have to deal with those problems? Or is it both? 

Mr. POSEY. A little of both. I think that some may have problems. I mean, we, as one tribe, I know many tribes do have drug 

testing policies and stuff. And the numbers do show that those are 

serious issues in our area. But I think people feel safer, people 

have better access to programs. Whether they may have a problem 

is going to only enhance their ability to want to do better for themselves and our tribal communities. 

Senator FRANKEN. Okay. I have just got a note that I have to 

vote as soon as possible, so I thank you. 

Mr. Gaikowski, I wanted to ask you about recruiting from your 

people because it was unusual that you have so many officers from 

your reservation, but I got this note that I have to go. 

I want to thank you both for your testimony and for your service. 

Thank you. 

Senator JOHNSON. Thank you for your public service and you 

may be excused. 

[Whereupon, at 4:20 p.m., the Committee was adjourned.] 

(47) 

A P P E N D I X 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF HON. MICHAEL O. FINLEY, CHAIRMAN, COLVILLE

CONFEDERATE TRIBES


318b1.eps
48 

RESPONSE TO WRITTEN QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY HON. BYRON L. DORGAN TO

JOSEPH W. WRIGHT

Question 1. The Federal Law Enforcement Training Center training budget is $259 million in FY 2010. The President’s request would cut training by approximately $50 million. The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) training budget is $4 million. 

Has the Department of Homeland Security spoke with the Department of the Interior about consolidating the BIA police training function? Will you consider that 

possibility in the future? Answer. The 2011 President’s Budget requests $5.1 million for the Indian Police 

Academy at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC), with the budget for the Department of the Interior (DOI). This is equal to the 2010 enacted level, 

and a $1.0 million increase over the 2009 budget. 

DOI has already consolidated all of its Basic Law Enforcement Training at the 

FLETC. The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) has participated as a Partner Organization with the FLETC since 1989 when they closed their stand alone academy in 

Brigham City, Utah, and moved their operations to the FLETC Marana, Arizona 

site. In 1993 the FLETC Marana site was closed and the BIA relocated to the 

FLETC Artesia, New Mexico site. The BIA is currently participating fully in the 

same basic law enforcement program used by the other law enforcement agencies 

within DOI. 

Question 2. Congress has substantially increased funding to hire additional BIA 

and tribal police officers, but the BIA vacancy rate remains at 44 percent. 

Have you seen vacancy rates for other Federal law enforcement agencies that are 

that high or have comparable problems? 

Answer. The BIA historically has had a vacancy rate that far exceeds most Federal law enforcement agencies. 

Question 2a. Do you have an opinion as to why the BIA’s rate is so high? 

Answer. There are several factors that may contribute to the high vacancy rate 

within the BIA. One deals with the recruitment of personnel to serve as law enforcement officers within Indian Country. Although the BIA receives ample applications 


318b2.eps
49 

for vacant positions, filling them has been problematic. Moreover, once officers are 

recruited and trained, retention is more difficult than in other agencies. This stems 

from several factors, including the fact that BIA law enforcement ranks are two 

grades lower than most of their Federal counterparts. Additionally, the employment 

conditions that these officers face contributes to the high vacancy rate within the 

BIA. Crime rates within Indian Country far exceed the average within the United 

States. Staffing levels are low and officers are required to respond to most calls as 

one person units without assistance being available. 

Question 3. In the Protecting Indian Country Report, the BIA has decided to do 

away with its long time paramilitary basic police training and instead use the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center’s Land Management Police Training. On the 

FLETC website it describes the LMPT is ‘‘basic training for officers primarily 

charged with enforcing natural resource laws and regulations and violations.’’ However, DOJ officials and tribal leaders have testified about the horrific crimes committed in Indian Country. Organized gangs and drug cartels are growing, and the 

crimes include murder, rape, child sex abuse, drug trafficking and other serious 

crimes. 

Will the LMPT natural resources training prepare BIA and tribal police officers 

for the serious dangers that we know exist in Indian Country? 

Answer. The LMPT program is a comprehensive law enforcement training program designed to address the full spectrum of challenges that BIA officers will face 

during their initial assignments. They receive training focused on gangs and drugs, 

and the connection between the two, and in-depth training in the investigation of 

criminal offenses to include: interviewing, crime scene preservation, report writing, 

constitutional law, evidence collection/preservation, officer safety and survival, defensive tactics, use of force and law enforcement driving skills. The LMPT also allows BIA officers to train with other Federal agencies with which they will interact 

on a regular basis and therefore is the first step in building coalitions and outside 

support systems they will need to accomplish their mission of protecting Indian 

Country. 

RESPONSE TO WRITTEN QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY HON. JOHN BARRASSO TO

JOSEPH W. WRIGHT

Question 1. The Committee has received testimony that candidates for the Indian 

Police Academy basic training must wait for several weeks, even months, before 

they can enter training due to the scheduling and class sizes at the Indian Police 

Academy. Your written testimony noted that through the new consolidated training 

approach of the Land Management Police Training program, the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center and the Indian Police Academy are able to meet the 

training needs of all law enforcement agencies, both large and small, as their training needs arise. 

Can you explain how this new training regime has reduced the wait time for candidates to enter the Indian Police Academy and expedited their ability to report for 

duty on Indian reservations? 

Answer. The LMPT program has 14 starts a year with 24 persons per class and 

programs conducted at both our Artesia and Glynco sites. This allows the Indian 

Police Academy (IPA) to request a class of 24 students, or place as few as one or 

two students into a program as they are hired. The positive consequence is instead 

of waiting several months to get into a program they can enter usually within weeks 

from being hired. 

RESPONSE TO WRITTEN QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY HON. TOM UDALL TO

JOSEPH W. WRIGHT

Question 1. It is my understanding that the Indian Police Academy (IPA) in 

Artesia, New Mexico, has an attrition rate of 56 percent. 

Is 56 percent an accurate estimate of the attrition rate at the IPA? 

Answer. Under the ‘‘old’’ training program, BPOTP, the attrition rate for the last 

three years was 56 percent. However, under the current program, LMPT, we anticipate a reduced attrition rate. 

Question 1a. Why do you believe the attrition rate is so high? 

Answer. The attrition rate was high due to two major contributing factors; the 

first deals with hiring and recruitment of personnel. In order to graduate from the 

law enforcement training programs conducted by the FLETC, academic and physical 

standards have been established and must be met prior to graduation. These standVerDate Nov 24 2008 08:20 Nov 16, 2010 Jkt 058266 PO 00000 Frm 00053 Fmt 6601 Sfmt 6621 S:\DOCS\58266.TXT JACK PsN: JACKF
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ards enable the FLETC to maintain Federal Accreditation from the FLETA. Secondly, the former training program (BPOTP) was very para-military driven while 

the new LMPT program is more law enforcement-centric. We believe this change in 

approach to training will be a key factor in the reduction of the attrition rate. 

Question 1b. How does IPA’s attrition rate compare to that in other federal law 

enforcement training centers? 

Answer. The attrition rate experienced during use of the BPOTP program over its 

last three years was significantly higher than for other federal law enforcement 

training programs. 

Question 2. We are all aware that there is a suicide epidemic in Indian Country. 

When a family or acquaintance of an individual calls emergency services in these 

situations, everyone involved are in a physically and mentally vulnerable state. 

Are BIA police officers trained to be first responders to attempted/completed suicide situations? 

Answer. BIA police officers are trained to respond to calls that involve possible 

suicide/homicide. Should it come to that, they also receive training in crime scene 

preservation and communications skills to help them deal with not only the investigation but to provide resources to family members, officers and others who may 

be impacted by an event. 

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