Prosecutors to pursue charges against delegates

WINDOW ROCK, April 10, 2008

The Navajo Nation prosecutor's office has filed a complaint against Council Delegate Willie Tracey (Ganado/Kinlichee) for driving under the influence.

Tracey was arrested March 5 by Navajo police after he failed three field sobriety tests and charges were filed March 28.

Tracey, who pleaded not guilty, is scheduled for a pre-trial hearing on May 6.

Chief Prosecutor Roger Shirley said another delegate named in a story in the March 27 Navajo Times ("Top officials not charged") would face criminal charges involving a domestic abuse incident.

He declined to identify the delegate until a complaint is filed. As of press time Wednesday, no complaint had been filed.

Shirley explained that after prosecutors made a second review of the evidence and testimony against the delegate, they decided that there was enough to press charges despite the victim's unwillingness to testify.

He said prosecutors would handle the victim as a "hostile witness" after she recanted her original story to police.

"The prosecutor's office is not perfect, but at least we're trying," said Gwendolyn S. Williams, program and projects specialist for the office, in response to the Times' story, which detailed the tribe's failure to press charges against high-ranking officials arrested for DWI or domestic violence.

Grants to aid effort

Williams said the prosecutor's office went after - and got - two grants from the U.S. Department of Justice Office of Violence Against Women to help fight domestic violence in Navajo communities.

The grants were awarded in September and include a three-year, $500,000 grant to the Tribal Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Coalition, and a $498,000 grant to encourage arrest policies and enforcement of protection orders.

Williams said the grants helped pay for a workshop held March 24-28 in Albuquerque. Officials from domestic violence shelters serving the Navajo Reservation, the Division of Social Services, Navajo police, and the tribe's court system met to swap information.

She noted that the grants call for collaboration among the agencies working with domestic violence victims and perpetrators, which means the money can be used to pay for travel, lodging and meals so the officials can attend meetings and workshops.

In the past, it's been difficult for groups, like the shelters, which have limited financial resources, to meet with the other agencies, Williams explained.

She said that during the recent workshop, for instance, officials from shelters in Chinle, Crownpoint and Shiprock learned about procedures to address sexual assault.

This information sharing is what these grants are all about, Williams said, adding that the group is now a step ahead in its efforts to develop protocols for dealing with victims of sexual assault.

Shirley, who also attended the workshop, said participants talked about waiting for the tribe to take the lead to gather the agencies that work with domestic violence so they can combine resources and staff.

According to 2007 Navajo police statistics, there were 6,745 domestic violence offenses reported last year, compared to 4,859 in 2006.

Tracking perpetrators

Williams said the grants also would help the different entities compile statistics, track the movement of perpetrators, and process complaints.

Currently, she said, each agency has its own numbers, which often conflict. The lack of consistent data also affects police districts, she added.

For example, if a perpetrator from Kayenta moves to Crownpoint and enters a new relationship and begins abusing that partner, the police have no way of easily knowing there's a history of violence in Kayenta.

Williams said the creation of a computerized network to gather statistics and track perpetrators would assist police, prosecutors and the courts.

A police officer could e-mail reports to the prosecutor, who would then e-mail a complaint to the courts, she explained.

Shirley said that a computerized network would also help prosecutors identify whether a homicide victim had a history of domestic violence.

He explained that, using the grants, his office plans to establish a fatality review team to develop a process to identify such victims.

Williams said the grants would also address the rising incidence of domestic violence among teens.

"People need to understand that domestic violence is not just beating up a woman," she said. "It affects the whole family."

Williams said the grants could also help the all-volunteer Navajo Nation Advisory Council Against Domestic Violence to revive the ill-fated Violence Against Family Act of 2005, which was killed by opposition in some council committees.

The measure would make domestic violence, now a civil issue, a criminal offense. Some members of the Judiciary Committee objected to the bill's original language as being slanted against men, and revised it before recommending approval.

However, the bill never came before the full council for a vote. According to legislative staff, sponsor Katherine Benally (Dennehotso) withdrew it in favor of another bill. The staff did not have additional details on the second bill, which also has never come before the council for a vote.

At press time, neither Benally nor first lady Vikki Shirley, who had previously announced that she would lead efforts to push the Violence Against Family Act, had responded to telephone messages from the Navajo Times.

Lorena Halwood, director of Chinle's Ama Doo Alchini Bighan Inc. domestic violence shelter, said she hopes the advisory council can get tribal lawmakers to reconsider the legislation this year.

The Advisory Council Against Domestic Violence is scheduled to meet April 29 starting at 10 a.m. at the ADABI facility in Chinle.

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