APRIL 25, 2018 – DRUGS AND ADOLESCENT BRAIN:
Adolescents are infamous attention seekers and risk takers. Many adolescents engage in activities and behaviors that garner attention from others and could be potentially harmful or destructive (whether to the body or mind). These risky behaviors provide a rush or an experience of extreme emotion, which adolescents tend to crave because of their developing emotion center of the brain. One of the last parts of the brain to develop is the judgment and decision-making center, leading adolescents to engage in more impulsive behavior without thinking of future consequences. Substance use is both a typical and a dangerous adolescent activity. It provides the adolescent brain with the stimulation it craves, but can have dire long-term outcomes. This session will explore adolescent development and the impact that substance abuse can have on a young person’s life.
FACULTY:
Jessica Pearce, National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges
Judge Kami D. Hart, Gila River Indian Community
MODERATOR:
Ansley Sherman (Muscogee Creek), Program Attorney, National American Indian Court Judges Association
AUGUST 22, 2017 – TRIBAL JUSTICE WEBINAR – PLANNING A HEALING TO WELLNESS COURT: INSPIRATION AND VISION
Tribal Healing to Wellness Courts bring together community-healing resources with the tribal justice process, using a team approach to achieve the physical and spiritual healing of the participant and the well-being of the community. This webinar will walk participants through the visioning and foundation planning process to begin the development and implementation of a Healing to Wellness Court. Focus will be given to the key partners needed, as well as primary components that should eventually be reflected in your policies and procedures. You’ll hear firsthand from seasoned tribal judges who will share reflections, tips, and lessons learned about their experience with developing their own Healing to Wellness Court.
JULY 27, 2017 – TRIBAL JUSTICE WEBINAR – TRAUMA-INFORMED COURT SYSTEMS: A WEBINAR FOR TRIBAL COMMUNITIES
Research continues to clarify how traumatic experiences negatively impact the way traumatized people interact with the world. When an individual becomes court-involved it is highly likely that they have experienced some level of trauma. If the court system is not trauma-informed they can be re-traumatized, often triggering harmful reactions. Tribal communities have the challenge of addressing the traumatic experiences of individuals while at the same time dealing with the after effects of historical and intergenerational traumatic patterns that have affected entire communities. However, tribes also have strengths found in their traditional teachings that provide inspiration for strategies to address trauma in all its forms. This webinar will explain what is meant by the phrase trauma-informed courts, provide data about challenges facing tribes around the country, discuss how trauma looks in the court setting, and then provide practical ideas about how to incorporate both traditional values and research-based strategies to make tribal court systems not only trauma-informed but trauma-responsive.
The Tribal Key Components form the foundation of all tribal drug courts. The Adult Drug Court Standards represent the latest research-based best practices for what works within the drug court setting. Applicants for Wellness Court federal funding are now being asked to abide by both documents. This webinar overviews both the key components and the Standards, and discuss how they inter-relate. This webinar is designed for those less familiar with the Wellness Court model and those seeking to use these documents to apply for federal funding and/or integrate into their own Wellness Court.
Peacemaking is not alternative dispute resolution to Native communities – it is the original, traditional way our communities managed to work through disputes for centuries before tribal courts were created. Because of natural limitations inherent in tribal courts, there is increasing interest in the continuation and revitalization of those traditional ways.
This webinar explains how tribal traditions may hold a solution to some problems that have proven especially difficult in tribal court, provide some examples of how other tribes have had success, and explain how this movement is part of a bigger picture, even internationally, of how indigenous communities are using their own wisdom to solve their problems. Speakers include well known and seasoned Peacemakers including NARF Indigenous Peacemaking Initiative staff and advisory committee members.
2016 WEBINARS
2. Successfully Developing Tribal Justice Systems in a Public Law 280 State
3. EXPUNGEMENT AND INDIAN COUNTRY: The Need to Address Past Criminal Histories for a Better Future
4. Building a Collaborative Court with Other Jurisdictions to Treat Nonviolent Tribal Adult Offender
CTAS Purpose Area 3 Training and Technical Assistance
Indian Country has longstanding criminal justice issues associated with substance abuse, and most recently, tribal communities have been forced to confront a rapid and unprecedented rise in methamphetamine, heroin, and opiate trafficking and abuse that has led to a dramatic increase in reservation crime. The National American Indian Court Judges Association (NAICJA) is committed to customizing innovative, grassroots solutions by providing true peer-to-peer TTA that will address the unique interests of tribal sovereigns as defined by the community the justice system serves. The benefit of this approach is bringing together TTA providers who understand the insular nature of reservations and who are invested in the growth and wellbeing of tribal communities with current best practices and cultural competency.
NAICJA will provide TTA to Program Area 3 grantees in partnership with Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges, the Indigenous Peacemaking Initiative of the Native American Rights Fund, the Tribal Law and Policy Institute, Cheryl Fairbanks, LLC, the Hon. Lawrence Lujan, Columbia Law School, the National Center for State Courts, and the Tribal Judicial Institute. NAICJA’s goal is to provide Training and Technical Assistance that preserves each tribe’s own individual concepts of native law and support tribal self-determination by strengthening the justice system and the intervention programs designed to address alcohol and substance abuse.
Training objectives include:
1) Increasing the knowledge of criminal and tribal justice practitioners through in-person training, web based learning, distance learning including webinars and podcasts, and developing or revising training curricula;
2) Increasing all serviced tribal justice agency’s ability to solve problems and/or modify policies and practices; and,
3) Increase information provided to BJA and the criminal and tribal justice communities.
Services and Training and Technical Assistance will include:
- Publications, fact-sheets, and model codes,
- Code drafting assistance,
- Peer-to-peer consultations,
- Listserv communications,
- Onsite TTA,
- Distance Learning TTA via teleconference, videoconference, and email,
- Interactive online training modules,
- Webinars,
- In-person training and needs assessments via a National Training Conference. Training and pre-conference topics will be related to tribal justice systems, including traditional justice, alcohol and substance abuse as it relates to public safety and victims’ services, law enforcement, prosecution, defense services/legal aid, offender reentry, tribal-federal-state intergovernmental collaboration, and justice information sharing.
Tribal Civil and Criminal Legal Assistance Program
NAICJA is the Tribal Justice Training and Technical Assistance provider under the Bureau of Justice Assistance’s (BJA) Tribal Civil and Criminal Legal Assistance (TCCLA) Program, offering training and technical assistance to TCCLA Grantees and Sub-grantee Legal Aid organizations. TTA Resources are available to 1) enhance the operations of tribal justice systems and improve access to those systems, and 2) provide training and technical assistance for development and enhancement of tribal justice systems. Through a training and technical assistance request form NAICJA took requests for training from TCCLA grantees and Sub-grantee Leal Aid organizations.
UNDER THIS GRANT NAICJA DEVELOPED THE FOLLOWING DELIVERABLES:
Publications:
AN OVERVIEW OF THE BUREAU OF JUSTICE ASSISTANCE’S TRIBAL CIVIL AND CRIMINAL LEGAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAM AND RESOURCES (download)
This publication provides an overview of the Tribal Civil and Criminal Legal Assistance Program (TCCLA). It identifies resources and eligibility guidelines for tribes seeking to obtain or provide civil and criminal legal assistance for their communities, explores program sustainment strategies, and outlines several promising practices for the provision of indigent legal assistance in tribal communities.
REPORT ON THE TRADITIONAL AND HOLISTIC JUSTICE ROUNDTABLE (DOWNLOAD)
EMERGING PRACTICES IN TRIBAL CIVIL AND CRIMINAL LEGAL ASSISTANCE (DOWNLOAD)
COLLATERAL CONSEQUENCES INFOGRAPHIC (DOWNLOAD)
SEEKING ASSISTANCE FOR COLLATERAL CONSEQUENCES (DOWNLOAD)
HOLISTIC APPROACH TO CIVIL AND CRIMINAL LEGAL ASSISTANCE IN TRIBAL JUSTICE SYSTEMS PRESENTATION (DOWNLOAD)
TRADITIONAL PEACEMAKING: EXPLORING THE INTERSECTIONS BETWEEN TRIBAL COURTS AND PEACEMAKING, INCLUDING ALTERNATIVES TO DETENTION PRESENTATION (DOWNLOAD)
REQUEST TRAINING AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE
Tribal Court Access to Protection Order Registries Could Have Prevented Gun Tragedy
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 6, 2015
TRIBAL COURT ACCESS TO PROTECTION ORDER REGISTRIES COULD HAVE PREVENTED GUN TRAGEDY
Boulder, Colorado, April 6, 2015– Tribal Courts Call for Immediate Direct Access to Federal and State Protection Order Registries.
As Raymond Lee Fryberg, the father of 15-year-old Jaylen Fryberg awaits arraignment on federal charges relating to his son’s use of a gun Fryberg purchased illegally, tribal courts across the country are calling for immediate access to state and federal protection order registries to prevent further tragedy. Jaylen Fryberg killed four students and himself and injured one other student on October 24, 2014 at Marysville-Pilchuck High School in Marysville, Washington.
Fryberg was prohibited from possessing firearms as a result of a permanent protection order issued by the Tulalip Tribal Court in 2002. The Tulalip Tribes are an American Indian nation that neighbors Marysville, the small Washington town where the shooting tragedy occurred. A federal investigation revealed that Fryberg lied on forms when he purchased the gun stating that he was not subject to a protection order. The instant background check of state and national protection order registries did not reveal the existence of the Tulalip order. Currently, there is no national tribal registry for protection orders. Additionally, many, if not most, tribal protection orders are not entered into the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) Protection Order File (POF), a federal registry for protection orders. The Tulalip Tribes are a sovereign Indian nation and the Tribal Court exercises civil and criminal jurisdiction pursuant to the Tribes’ powers of self-government. It is because of this separate sovereignty that state protection order registries are closed to tribal courts. This results in the failure of state-wide registration of tribal court protection orders, including the 2002 order issued against Fryberg by the Tulalip Tribal Court.
In the State of Washington, the Washington State Police controls access to the protection order registry. In 2004, pursuant to a state audit, tribal police departments were restricted from accessing the system because the language of state law does not include tribes as approved agencies. Following the decision to bar tribes from entering tribal protection orders in the state database, some tribes in Washington developed a protocol with local county superior courts by which the county court clerk enters the tribal orders into the state system. This system is not flawless and can result in misses and delays in the registration of tribal protection orders. Elsewhere in the country, some tribes have entered into memoranda of understanding or other cooperative agreements with neighboring state jurisdictions so that the tribal protection orders are entered into the state and federal registries.
“This problem is not a local problem or unique to the Tulalip Tribes. The issue of lack of entry of tribal protection orders in state and federal databases is a national crisis,” said Judge Richard Blake, President of the Board of Directors of the National American Indian Court Judges Association (NAICJA). Tribal courts and tribal court judges have been working for decades to gain direct access to state and federal protection order registries in order to enter their orders. “We had hoped that with the passage of the Tribal Law and Order Act of 2010 which mandated the federal government to provide access to federal databases that this critical gap in public safety would be closed. But here we are five years later and the U.S. Department of Justice and the FBI are still in violation of the statutory requirement that tribes be given direct access to the NCIC system. Our hearts go out to the victims and their families of the Marysville Pilchuck High School shooting at this very difficult time. Our sincere hope is that immediate direct access is granted to tribal courts to enter protection orders to prevent further harm and loss of life,” said Blake.
NAICJA, established in 1969 and headquartered in Boulder, Colorado, is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization which provides a national voice for the more than 332 American Indian and Alaska Native tribal justice systems in the United States and supports those systems by providing resource materials, information, technical assistance, and training.
# # #
If you would like more information about this topic, please contact Judge Richard Blake, President, NAICJA Board of Directors at (530) 515-6245 or email at:
Judge Richard Blake, President
NAICJA Board of Directors
Telephone: (530) 515-6245
Email: president@naicja.org
Website: www.naicja.org
NAICJA Seeks Presentation Proposals for the 46th Annual National Tribal Judicial and Court Personnel Conference
The National American Indian Court Judges Association (NAICJA) invites presentation proposals for the 46th Annual National Tribal Judicial and Court Personnel Conference which will be held on October 6-9, 2015 at Seneca Niagara Resort Casino in stunning Niagara Falls, NY. NAICJA’s Annual Conference offers innovative and timely tribal justice information through high quality presentations by national experts. The theme of this year’s conference is, “Tribal Justice Systems: Pathways to Healing &Sovereignty.” NAICJA is featuring topics that highlight ways in which American Indian, Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian and First Nations justice systems are exercising tribal inherent sovereignty and envisioning their tribal justice systems to better effectuate healing and wholeness. We are especially interested in presentations that focus on promising Indian child welfare practices. We expected a conference attendance of approximately 300 persons from across the U.S.
This is your opportunity to share your expertise and display your creativity by developing an original program for presentation. Proposals specifically tailored to meet the needs of the NAICJA audience are strongly preferred. Proposals are due on or before
Important Dates:
March 25, 2015–proposals due
April 3, 2015—all applicants will be notified about the status of their proposals.
Notice Of 2015 Naicja Annual Meeting
In accordance with NAICJA Bylaws, Article V, Sec. 3, you are hereby notified that the Annual Meeting of the National American Indian Court Judges Association (“NAICJA”) will be held on Thursday, October 8, 2015 from 9:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. in the Multipurpose Room C & D at the Seneca Niagara Resort & Casino, 310 4th St., Niagara Falls, NY 14303. The Annual Meeting is being held in conjunction with NAICJA’s 46th Annual National Tribal Judicial and Court Personnel Conference, “Tribal Justice Systems: Pathways to Healing & Sovereignty,” which are being held from October 6-9, 2015. The NAICJA Conference will kick off on October 6 at 6:00 pm with a Welcome Reception at the same location. Please remember to pay your annual dues for 2015 and to register (and submit conference fee) for the conference if you plan to attend.
Annual Meeting Agenda
9:00 a.m.
Call to Order: Hon. Richard Blake, President, NAICJA Board of Directors
Roll Call: Hon. Amanda White Eagle, NAICJA Secretary
In Memoriam: Remembrances of NAICJA Members
Presented by: Hon. Kevin Briscoe, Vice-President NAICJA Board of Directors
“The State of NAICJA”: Hon. Richard Blake, President, NAICJA Board of Directors
Treasurer’s Report: Hon. Winona Tanner, NAICJA Treasurer
10:00 a.m.
Break
Regional Elections
Certification of Regional Election Results
Hon. Amanda White Eagle, NAICJA Secretary and
Hon. Kevin Briscoe, Vice-President NAICJA Board of Directors
Election of NAICJA officers and Executive Committee At-Large Member (By Board of Directors):
Hon. Susan Wells, NAICJA Board Member, Region 9
11:00 a.m.
Adjourn: Hon. Richard Blake, President, NAICJA Board of Directors
Renew Your 2016 NAICJA Membership Now!
2015 NAICJA Memberships expire on 12/31/15 but you can renew now!
Don’t miss out on great member benefits:
- Discounted Conference Registration.
- Access to a vast network of tribal court judges and other justice system personnel.
- A free subscription to NAICJA’s newsletter.
- Inclusion in our listserv that provides notice of tribal court funding opportunities, position openings, training events, legislative initiatives, and recent judicial decisions of relevance to tribal courts.
You may renew online at: www.naicja.org/membership.
Save the Date for the 2016 NAICJA National Tribal Judicial & Court Personnel Conference
REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN! Click on this link
https://www.regonline.com/naicja to read about more details and to register for the conference.
The 2016 National Tribal Judicial and Court Personnel Conference will take place at the Morongo Casino Resort & Spa in Palm Springs, California on October 18-21, 2016!
The conference theme is Tribal Justice Matters: Role of Tribal Courts in Upholding Indigenous Rights. The conference is open to the public with a fee discount available for all current NAICJA members.
Last year’s conference drew over 200 representatives from tribal justice systems and tribal governments in all ten NAICJA association regions as well as representatives from the non-profit, business, academic, and philanthropic sectors.
Join our mailing list to keep informed on the latest conference news.
Northwest Regional Peacemaking Training
Peacemaking is a traditional, community-based method that allows people to resolve disputes. The National American Indian Court Judges Association, the Native American Rights Fund, and Columbia Law School offer this training that reviews foundational principles of peacemaking, peace circles, and traditional dispute resolution. While justice practitioners have been focusing on how indigenous peacemaking can help state and federal courts, this training brings the focus back to indigenous and tribal principles of peacemaking and how tribes are using and can use these methods in their own communities. One full day will be devoted to experiential training with peacemakers and notable faculty from across Indian Country.
The Northeast Regional Peacemaking Training will take place at the beautiful Sheraton at the Falls in Niagara Falls, NY. NAICJA members receive a 10% discount!
For more information and to register, click here: Northeast Regional Peacemaking Training
RFP: 2016 National Tribal Judicial and Court Personnel Conference
Request for Presentation Proposals: 2016 National Tribal Judicial and Court Personnel Conference
“Tribal Justice Matters: Role of Tribal Courts in Upholding Indigenous Rights”
The National American Indian Court Judges Association (NAICJA) invites presentation proposals for the 47th Annual National Tribal Judicial and Court Personnel Conference which will be held October 18-21, 2016, at the magnificent Morongo Casino, Resort & Spa in Palm Springs, CA. NAICJA’s Annual Conference offers innovative and timely tribal justice information through high quality presentations by national experts. The theme of this year’s conference is, “Tribal Justice Matters: Role of Tribal Courts in Upholding Indigenous Rights.” NAICJA is featuring topics that highlight ways in which American Indian, Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian and First Nations justice systems are exercising and upholding tribal inherent rights. We are especially interested in presentations that focus on social justice and human rights, tribal sovereignty, international frameworks for understanding indigenous issues, promising Indian child welfare practices, court security and topics of interest to court clerks and court personnel.
This is your opportunity to share your expertise and display your creativity by developing an original program for presentation. Proposals specifically tailored to meet the needs of the 300-person NAICJA audience are strongly preferred.
Proposals are due on or before Friday, April 15, 2016 at 5:00 p.m. (MTN).