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In Oklahoma, the Cherokee Nation Juvenile Healing to Wellness Court is designed to help keep young people out of the justice system.
In part one of the series, we took a look at how the program focuses on Cherokee culture and community.
In part two, members of the court team share how the program is a hands-on, more personal approach, which includes working with the Cherokee Nation Marshal Service.
Shannon Buhl is Cherokee Nation Marshal.
“Tribal issues and tribal governments, tribal communities, has historically been more holistic than our non-tribal counterparts. It is one of my goals that I gave the Justice Services Department that do whatever you need to do to make sure me and my marshals don’t have to deal with them as an adult. That means give good positive training, support, whatever we need early on, and hopefully we can change their trajectory and where they might be.”
The healing to wellness court team has the support of the Cherokee Nation’s top leader, Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr.
“Rather than put them through the often, heartless criminal justice system that we see in a lot of parts of this country do something that lifts them up, makes them feel like they’re the center of something that isn’t a condemnation. Certainly, they need to be responsible and there’s an element of being responsible but there’s I think more importantly a path that’s diverted out of the traditional law and punishment aspect of the criminal justice system and I think that’s why it’s been successful so far.”
As a sovereign tribal nation, having jurisdiction over Cherokee people within the Cherokee Nation is of great significance to the tribe.
And, with the 2020, U.S. Supreme Court McGirt ruling that its reservation had never been disestablished, the Cherokee Nation has had an opportunity to reimagine its justice system.
Cherokee Nation District Judge Nathan Barnard.
“The nation has control over our programs, hence the healing to wellness. That’s something that may not have been possible if they were prosecuted in the state court. You know, we have the ability to govern whenever our young person has a situation where they break the law that that it’s the nation that has the opportunity to decide what’s gonna happen to that young person.”
Additional team members helping guide young people are from the tribe’s attorney general’s office and behavioral health care.
Nikki Baker-Limore is Senior Assistant Attorney General.
“If a juvenile is just getting into experimenting with drugs and having some minor crimes that aren’t violent. It’s the perfect type of kiddo that we wanna work with and try to influence so that they can lead a successful life, clean of drugs, and crime free.”
John Robinson a behavioral health services supervisor says they want the young people to live their lives fully and be productive members of society.
“Some days these kiddos will hopefully be adults, they don’t need to be incarcerated, they don’t need to be still involved with the system. They may be the guy that’s driving my Uber, my cab, they may be my nurse, they may be the guy waiting my table or serving my food. So I definitely want them at their best.”
The voluntary phased program lasts a minimum of eight months.
This story is a collaboration with First Nations Experience Television (FNX) with support from the Public Welfare Foundation
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has announced the Commission will vote during its August Open Meeting whether to adopt a new event code that would deliver messages to the public over television and radio about missing and endangered persons.
According to the FCC, adding the event code to the nation’s Emergency Alert System would help law enforcement agencies get public attention to missing and endangered people of all ages who do not qualify for AMBER Alerts for children.
It’s also intended to help Tribal communities.
The Commission’s Open Meeting is scheduled for August 7.
A public draft of the proposal is online at FCC.gov.
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