NATE JENKINS / Lincoln Journal Star | Posted: Tuesday, August 30, 2005 7:00 pm
After years of discussion, more than words will now back a commitment to stem the flow of alcohol from Nebraska to the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota.
A landmark agreement that will allow state-certified tribal officers to enforce liquor and other laws in and near the Nebraska border town of Whiteclay was signed Tuesday by Gov. Dave Heineman and Attorney General Jon Bruning.
Three stores in the tiny town just outside the reservation sell about 11,000 cans of beer a day, mostly to members of the Oglala Sioux Tribe who live on the dry reservation.
The reservation, home to about 15,000 tribal members, has one of the highest alcoholism-related mortality rates in the country.
State and tribal leaders stressed the deal isn’t a complete remedy. But it is an important first step with benefits which will forge a better relationship between the state and tribe. The tribe signed the agreement earlier this year.
“I look at this as a first step to creating a long-term relationship,” said Cecilia Fire Thunder, the Oglala Sioux tribal president.
“If we stop the flow of alcohol, it will make a significant difference, no matter how you cut it,” she added later. Alcohol, she said, makes its way onto the dry reservation through backroads traveled by tribal members.
Tribal officers certified by the state could begin patrolling a 2-square-mile area in and around Whiteclay in weeks, said Bruning.
Tribal officers could also set up checkpoints on roads connecting Whiteclay with the reservation.
“This cooperative agreement holds the promise of significant enhancement of our law enforcement capabilities,” Heineman said.
Cross-jurisdictional issues and boundaries between the state and reservation have hampered law-enforcement efforts, Fire Thunder said.
The quick implementation was helped by the fact some tribal officers already meet state requirements, Bruning said. There is also a solid relationship between the State Patrol, tribal officers and the Sheridan County sheriff’s office, he said.
The state and county will continue patrolling Whiteclay. Natives and non-Natives arrested by tribal officers could be tried in state or federal court.
The agreement is the first of its kind in the state and comes on the heels of a similar but different deal reached between the state and the Winnebago and Omaha tribes in Thurston County earlier this month. That deal allows cross-deputized tribal officers to arrest non-Natives on the reservations that encompass most of the county.
Under the agreement signed Tuesday, the state will reimburse the Oglala Sioux for the cost of expanded law enforcement with $100,000 secured by Rep. Tom Osborne, R-3rd District. Osborne said in a press release he is working to ensure the funding continues.
“I have long been concerned about the situation in Whiteclay, and this agreement is an important step towards improving the lives of the people who live on or near the Pine Ridge reservation,” Osborne said in the press release.
During a press conference, several state senators, including DiAnna Schimek of Lincoln and Ray Janssen of Nickerson, lauded the cooperation that led to the agreement.
One Winnebago tribal and Democratic Party leader who for years has prodded state officials to address the Whiteclay issue was asked afterward why it took so long to reach an agreement.
“Most of us gathered here today were born in Nebraska and we will die in Nebraska,” said Frank LaMere. “Unfortunately, it’s taken all of us — Indians and non-Indians — a long time to acknowledge that. We are in this together and until today we have failed to understand and failed to compromise.”
Reach Nate Jenkins at 473-7223 or njenkins@journalstar.com.