A Human Rights Crisis in Indian Country

Autor/in	Vigil, Chris
Titel	A Human Rights Crisis in Indian Country
Quelle	In: Tribal College Journal of American Indian Higher Education, 27 (2015) 2, (2 Seiten) PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	1052-5505
Schlagwörter	American Indians; American Indian Reservations; Court Litigation; Legal Aid; Legal Education (Professions); Legal Problems; Civil Rights; Disadvantaged; Social Justice + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? American Indian; Indianer; Indianerreservat; Rechtsstreit; Juristischer Beruf; Bürgerrechte; Grundrechte; Zivilrecht; Soziale Gerechtigkeit
Abstract	There is a human rights crisis in Indian Country. This crisis--one of many--is the result of an almost universal lack of legal representation of Native people when they appear as defendants in tribal courts. The lack of lay advocates and attorneys representing Native defendants creates tremendous problems for tribal members who find themselves in civil or criminal court. In many instances, tribal members who find themselves in tribal court are the only Natives who are party to the proceedings. It is common that the judge and both attorneys are non-Native. In a criminal proceeding, the prosecuting officer is very often non-Native. When the plaintiff is a predatory lender seeking a judgment against a Native defendant, they are virtually certain to be non-Native. When a Native parent who has fallen behind on child support is subject to collection and incarceration by the State, the enforcement attorney is reliably non-Native. When a tribal member is convicted of a crime, any jail time is typically served in a state or federal detention center housing mostly non-Natives and staffed by non-Natives. Loss in a civil suit can mean garnishment of small income that can push a Native family further into poverty. Conviction and incarceration devastates Native families, with the defendant suffering not just the penalty itself, but also loss of a job, likely default on any financial obligation, growing arrears of child support payments, and separation from loved ones. Native defendants must have affordable advocates, lay or attorney, when they face civil or criminal proceedings in tribal courts. Even better, the advocates should be Native. Tribal colleges can help with this by developing new, and strengthening existing, advocate training and pre-law programs. (ERIC).
Anmerkungen	Tribal College Journal of American Indian Higher Education. P.O. Box 720, Mancos, CO 81328. Tel: 888-899-6693; Fax: 970-533-9145; Web site: http://www.tribalcollegejournal.org
Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2020/1/01