MINUTES OF THE
MURDERED AND MISSING INDIGENOUS WOMEN AND GIRLS TASK FORCE
Saturday, November 20, 2021 • 9:00 a.m. • Bluff Community Center, 3rd East and Mulberry, Bluff Rd, Bluff, UT 84512


Members Present:
Sen. David P. Hinkins, Chair
Rep. Angela Romero, Chair
Yolanda Francisco-Nez
Kristina Groves
Dustin Jansen
Alisa Lee
Tami B. Slayton
Members Absent:
 Kaytlin Beckett
Tyler Kotter

Staff Present:
Kristina King, Policy Analyst
Amy L. West, Associate General Counsel
Amy Hawkes, Administrative Assistant

Note: A copy of related materials and an audio recording of the meeting can be found at www.le.utah.gov.
Chair Romero called the meeting to order at 9:04 a.m.
1.Welcome and Introduction
President Jonathan Nez, Navajo Nation, introduced his wife Phefelia Nez, thanked the task force for holding this meeting, and gave some background information on different groups that are working with issues related to missing and murdered indigenous women and girls.
Phefelia Nez, First Lady, Navajo Nation, shared her experience working with issues related to murdered and missing indigenous women and relatives.
Rep. Romero shared a Land Acknowledgement.
The task force members introduced themselves.
MOTION:Sen. Hinkins moved to approve the minutes of the June 14, 2021, meeting.The motion passed with a vote of 7-0-2.
Yeas - 7Nays- 0Abs- 2
Y. Francisco-Nez
K. Groves
Sen. D. Hinkins
D. Jansen
A. Lee
Rep. A. Romero
T. Slayton
 K. Beckett
T. Kotter
2.Presentations: Jurisdictional Issues and Investigating Cold Cases
Michael Henderson, Criminal Investigations Director, Navajo Nation Police Department, shared his experience with handling missing indigenous persons investigations and related issues that the department is working to solve.
2d PRESENTATION: Indian Law 101
Heather Tanana, JD, MPH, Assistant Professor and Wallace Stegner Center Fellow, S.J. Quinney College of Law, University of Utah, gave a presentation on the laws that govern jurisdiction on tribal land.
Thaddeus May, Assistant United States Attorney and Tribal Liaison, United States Attorney's Office, District of Utah, and MMIP Coordinator, Federal MMIP Coordination Efforts in Utah, shared his experience working with tribal communities and talked about what role the federal government can play in different situations. He also answered committee questions.
Nadine Brown, Supervisory Special Agent, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), introduced herself and shared the federal government's role in missing indigenous persons cases on tribal land.
Charlaine Tso, Council Delegate, Navajo Nation, asked a question about resources for family members of a missing indigenous person.
2c PRESENTATION: Utah Cold Case Database/Cold Case Review Board
Kathy Mackay, Cold Case Crime Analyst, Statewide Information Analysis Center, Utah Department of Public Safety, gave an overview of what Utah has done over the last several years to organize cold cases and increase public awareness of each case. She also shared information on the Cold Case Review Board and its role in cold case investigations.
2c PRESENTATION: Utah Cold Case Database/Cold Case Review Board
Brian Davis, Agent, Utah State Bureau of Investigations, Utah Department of Public Safety, summarized an active cold case he is working on and the process of identifying the victim.
Amber Kanazbah Crotty, Council Delegate, Navajo Nation, and Chair, Sexual Assault Prevention Subcommittee, requested that the presenters and task force members respect cultural sensitivity in regards to death.
2e PRESENTATION: Cultural Understanding of Jurisdiction
Moroni Benally, Policy Consultant, Restoring Ancestral Winds, gave a presentation on how understanding the culture of an indigenous community is important when considering jurisdictional issues on tribal land.
Mark Pooley, Executive Director, Native Search Solutions, shared his background and the work Native Search Solutions is doing to help find missing indigenous people.
3.Listening Session
Rueben Jim, community member, shared his thoughts on what could be done to improve jurisdictional issues in the area.
Chester Johnson, Aneth Chapter, shared his experience with, and his thoughts on, jurisdictional issues in the area.
Desiree Green, resident of Utah County, shared her experience.
Nathenuel Brown, Council Delegate, 24th Navajo Nation Council, and member of the Navajo Utah Commission, the Arizona Human Sex Trafficking Committee, and the Navajo Nation Sexual Assault Prevention Subcomittee, speaking on behalf of the Navajo people, shared his concerns with jurisdiction on tribal lands and with tribal members and shared his own experience working with family members of missing indigenous people. He also shared some statistics on human trafficking of Navajo people and gave some suggestions on how to solve several issues that the Navajo people face.
Charlaine Tso shared her experience.
Eirene Hamilton, resident of Bluff, shared her experience.
A resident shared her experience.
Harrison Johnson, resident, shared his thoughts on solutions for jurisdictional issues on the Navajo Nation land in Utah.
Seraphine Warren, resident of Tooele, shared her experience.
Wesley Jones, President, Aneth Chapter, shared his thoughts.
Alana Kindness, Independent Consultant, Violence Prevention and Response, Restoring Ancestral Winds, and Adjunct Faculty, Westminster College, shared her thoughts and her recommendations for the task force's future work.
Sandra Lee, concerned tribal member and resident of Salt Lake City, Utah and Sanders, Arizona, shared her experience her recommendations for the task force's future work.
Brenda Brown, Aneth Chapter, shared some things that the Chapter is working on to help with law enforcement issues in the area.
Alastair Bitsóí, Reporter, Salt Lake Tribune, asked a question of the task force.
The task force members shared their perspectives on the goals of the task force.
MOTION:Sen. Hinkins moved to adjourn.The motion passed with a vote of 5-0-4.
Yeas - 5Nays- 0Abs- 4
Y. Francisco-Nez
K. Groves
Sen. D. Hinkins
Rep. A. Romero
T. Slayton
 K. Beckett
D. Jansen
T. Kotter
A. Lee
Chair Romero adjourned the meeting at 2:34 p.m.