<DOC>
[109 Senate Hearings]
[From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access]
[DOCID: f:26930.wais]
S. Hrg. 109-499
THE PROBLEM OF METHAMPHETAMINE IN INDIAN COUNTRY
=======================================================================
HEARING
BEFORE THE
COMMITTEE ON INDIAN AFFAIRS
UNITED STATES SENATE
ONE HUNDRED NINTH CONGRESS
SECOND SESSION
ON
THE PROBLEM OF METHAMPHETAMINE IN INDIAN COUNTRY
__________
APRIL 5, 2006
WASHINGTON, DC
U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE
27-930 WASHINGTON : 2006
_____________________________________________________________________________
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COMMITTEE ON INDIAN AFFAIRS
JOHN McCAIN, Arizona, Chairman
BYRON L. DORGAN, North Dakota, Vice Chairman
PETE V. DOMENICI, New Mexico DANIEL K. INOUYE, Hawaii
CRAIG THOMAS, Wyoming KENT CONRAD, North Dakota
GORDON SMITH, Oregon DANIEL K. AKAKA, Hawaii
LISA MURKOWSKI, Alaska TIM JOHNSON, South Dakota
MICHAEL D. CRAPO, Idaho MARIA CANTWELL, Washington
RICHARD BURR, North Carolina
TOM COBURN, M.D., Oklahoma
Jeanne Bumpus, Majority Staff Director
Sara G. Garland, Minority Staff Director
(ii)
C O N T E N T S
----------
Page
Statements:
Azure, Karrie, United Tribes Muti-Tribal Indian Drug and
Alcohol Initiative, United Tribes Technical College........ 24
Burns, Hon. Conrad, U.S. Senator from Montana................ 2
Chaney, Christopher B., deputy bureau director, BIA, Office
of Law Enforcement Services, Department of the Interior.... 5
Dekker, Anthony, associate director, Clinical Services,
Phoenix Indian Medical Center.............................. 6
Dorgan, Hon. Byron L., U.S. Senator from North Dakota, vice
chairman, Committee on Indian Affairs...................... 1
Edwards, Gary, chief executive officer, National Native Law
Enforcement Association.................................... 22
Gidner, Jerry, deputy bureau director, BIA, Tribal Services,
Department of the Interior................................. 5
Keel, Jefferson, first vice president, National Congress of
American Indians and Lieutenant Governor of the Chickasaw
Nation..................................................... 19
Mead, Matthew H., U.S. Attorney, District of Wyoming......... 9
McSwain, Robert, deputy director, IHS, Department of Health
and Human Services......................................... 6
Murkowski, Hon. Lisa, U.S. Senator from Alaska............... 29
Perez, Jon, director, IHS, Division of Behaviorial Health,
Department of Health and Human Services.................... 6
Ragsdale, Pat, director, BIA, Department Of the Interior..... 5
Wesley-Kitcheyen, Kathleen, chairwoman, San Carlos Apache
Tribe...................................................... 16
Appendix
Prepared statements:
Akaka, Hon. Daniel K., U.S. Senator from Hawaii.............. 35
Azure, Karrie................................................ 38
Child Welfare League of America.............................. 45
Cross, Terry L., executive director, National Indian Child
Welfare Association........................................ 53
Edwards, Gary................................................ 63
Keel, Jefferson (with attachment)............................ 66
Kitcheyen, Kathleen.......................................... 95
MacDonald-LoneTree, Hope, chairperson, Public Safety
Committee, Navajo Nation Council........................... 104
McSwain, Robert (with attachment)............................ 108
Mead, Matthew H. (with attachment)........................... 118
Montana-Wyoming Tribal Leaders Council....................... 140
National Indian Head Start Directors Association (with
attachment)................................................ 161
Posey, Ivan D., chairman, Eastern Shoshone Business Council.. 35
Ragsdale, Pat................................................ 166
Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California........................ 171
Additional material submitted for the record:
Shaffer, Sue, chairman, Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe of
Indians, (letter with attachments)......................... 178
Wilson, Ryan, president, National Indian Education
Association (letter)....................................... 200
THE PROBLEM OF METHAMPHETAMINE IN INDIAN COUNTRY
----------
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 5, 2006
U.S. Senate,
Committee on Indian Affairs,
Washington, DC.
The committee met, pursuant to notice, at 9:30 a.m. in room
485 Senate Russell Office Building, Hon. Byron Dorgan (vice
chairman of the Committee) presiding.
Present: Senators Dorgan, Burns, Conrad, Murkowski, and
Thomas.
STATEMENT OF HON. BYRON L. DORGAN, U.S. SENATOR FROM NORTH
DAKOTA, VICE CHAIRMAN, COMMITTEE ON INDIAN AFFAIRS
Senator Dorgan. I am going to begin the hearing this
morning. I am Senator Dorgan. Chairman McCain is at the Capitol
Building at a hastily called meeting by the leadership on the
immigration bill that is now before the Senate. So he is going
to be substantially delayed this morning. He has asked me as
vice chairman to chair the hearing.
I want to make an opening statement. I want to invite,
however, those who are standing at the witness table to take a
seat. I will introduce all of them. Let me make a statement. We
are joined today by my colleague, Senator Conrad Burns from
Montana, whom is going to sit in with us and who I am going to
recognize for an opening statement as well.
While Senator Burns is not a member of this committee, he
is active on Indian issues and is very interested in the
methamphetamine issue, as are many of our colleagues. Montana,
North Dakota, Arizona, and South Dakota. So many States with
Indian populations are discovering that the scourge of
methamphetamine, which affects our entire country, also has a
very significant impact on Indian reservations and a claim on
the resources of the Indian Health Service.
I want to welcome the witnesses today. Senator McCain and I
decided to hold this hearing on methamphetamines, Senator
McCain after hearing some of the stories in the State of
Arizona about some of the challenges the tribes there were
facing. I have had a number of meetings in North Dakota,
perhaps as many as 1 dozen community meetings, including
discussions with the reservations. We decided to hold this
hearing to not only call some attention to this issue, but also
to try to advance opportunities to address it.
Let me also indicate that later today, Senator McCain and I
plan to introduce legislation which would amend the recently
enacted Patriot Act to specifically include tribal governments
in the methamphetamine reduction grants. As you know, in the
USA Patriot Act, there was added a methamphetamine initiative
which I very strongly supported, as did Senator McCain, but the
omission there was that the tribal governments need to be
eligible to compete for these grants.
The legislation we will introduce this afternoon adds
tribes to the two grant provisions for meth hot spot areas and
for drug-endangered children, and will clarify tribal
eligibility for competitive grants to address methamphetamine
use by pregnant and parenting women offenders. We understand
that the Judiciary Committee in the Senate has no objection to
these tribal amendments, so I am hopeful that they will be
enacted in short order.
I do want to just indicate that while substance abuse has
been a chronic problem in many parts of our country, especially
on Indian reservations, that substance abuse relates to alcohol
and other drugs. But the new scourge of methamphetamine is
causing all kinds of new devastating challenges for all of us.
The drug methamphetamine is so highly addictive and so deadly
in its impact on people.
When we sit down with particularly young people on Indian
reservations and talk through what kinds of things are
happening there, we discover that meth is playing more and more
of a role. Most of the evidence suggests that while there is
some cooking of meth in our country, in my State, for example,
being able to readily access materials by which you produce
methamphetamine allows them to find an abandoned farm home or
virtually anywhere out in a rural area and cook up a batch of
methamphetamine.
While that is happening, more, and more we are seeing
methamphetamine moved into this country from Mexico in very
substantial quantities. Because it has such a deadly addiction
rate and is so difficult to shed once addicted, it is causing
challenges far beyond those of normal substance abuse.
That is the reason that we have decided to hold these
hearings to talk about what is happening and what more we can
do to respond to it.
Let me call on my colleague, Senator Conrad Burns. Senator
Burns.
STATEMENT OF HON. CONRAD BURNS, U.S. SENATOR FROM MONTANA
Senator Burns. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. And thank you for
allowing me this privilege of coming before this committee and
offering a statement. I think everything that you have said, I
want to associate with. I also want just to thank you for your
foresight on this challenge that we face in Indian Country.
The hearing is especially timely.
You know, these chairs are so low. Do we have anybody out
there? I can't see over this darn thing here. [Laughter.]
The first thing I would do, I would saw that off.
Senator Dorgan. Senator Burns, you are welcome, but you
can't be giving us all that personal advice.
Senator Burns. Oh, okay. [Laughter.]
It is terrible not only basically in this particular
problem that we are experiencing across the country, but
especially in Indian country. We acted with some resounding
bipartisanship to pass the Combat Meth Act just this last
night. I don't know how many of the folks here had the
opportunity to see Nightline last night, but they featured the
Montana Meth Project. I have spoken about that project with a
number of you, and many of you have seen the compelling ads
that they are running in Montana to discourage the first time
use of meth.
The danger of meth lies in the ability to grab hold of our
young people after just one hit. It is called the new crystal
meth. It is deadly. Though I believe that the drug is similar
to others we have seen, and they try to categorize it that way,
but I disagree. I have talked with former meth users, their
parents, the treatment experts who have all explained that the
change in the brain chemistry and behavior is profound.
This problem is compounded in Indian country due to a
number of factors. First, the poverty that we find on our
reservations is much higher than on non-reservation land. One
need only look at the Billings, MT area to see this problem.
The medium household income for families on reservations near
Billings, MT is around $14,000 a year. These below average
wages affect a family's ability to provide nutrition, health
care and housing for their children. Given these hardships, the
number of people seeking treatment for drug and alcohol abuse
exceeds the capacity of treatment facilities.
In addition, treatment for meth addiction often takes place
off-reservation, meaning that in order to receive help,
Montana's Indian youth are taken out of the communities that
they know, and are placed in facilities dominated by nontribal
members.
However, this situation represents the best that we can
offer under the current circumstances. Montana does not have
the capability to treat meth addicts in the facilities on
reservations simply because there are no treatment centers
located there.
In addition, the vast majority of recovery done without
recognition of the particular stresses of living on
reservations also offers another challenge. While the actual
recovery and detoxification of meth takes years, the need for
intensive, effective treatment cannot be overstated. The most
effective means to stem the tide of meth addiction is to focus
our efforts on prevention.
In order to have the most positive impact on curtailing
meth use, prevention efforts should be driven by the needs of
local communities. They know where the access is and they also
know where the stress is.
That is why I have introduced legislation permitting
communities to apply for meth prevention dollars with a reduced
match from Indian country and other high meth areas. However,
we cannot just look at one leg of that three-legged stool.
Prevention must be coupled with meaningful treatment and
effective law enforcement.
As far as the law enforcement is concerned, we have seen
greater attention paid to meth, but the resources available to
Indian country have been limited and the nationwide approach
has been less than cohesive. This fractured approach and the
lack of resources has a direct effect on the rapid spread of
meth throughout Indian reservations. With one reservation
bordering on Canada and three other near it in Montana, the
cross-border transportation of meth has become a real problem.
Even meth produced in superlabs in Mexico, as your chairman
has stated, is now coming into our State. I have heard stories
about these bad actors. They actually give it away on
reservations in order to get people hooked on the drug and turn
them into willing buyers.
While the Senate's focus on the immigration debate has been
on illegal immigration, I am pleased to see that some of us are
taking a closer look at the security risk posed by drug
smugglers. I am glad that my colleague from Colorado, Senator
Allard, has offered an amendment which I have cosponsored,
which will require the President to coordinate with the
Attorney General and the Secretary of Homeland Security to
implement cohesive policy to deal with the influx of meth from
the superlabs in Mexico.
While we are making progress on the meth issue, we have
much work left to do. I want to thank everyone and their
patience in allowing me to be here today. I would also like a
written submission from my Montana-Wyoming Tribal Leaders
Council to be included in the record.
[Referenced document appears in appendix.]
Senator Burns. And let me say something else. In Montana,
we were very fortunate in one way. About 3 years ago, a private
party walked up and said, ``We have to do something about
this.'' He had just bought a ranch in Montana and now he owns
two. He wrote a great big check to do a survey, to do focus
groups, and then to pay marketing people out of San Francisco
to produce the ads that we see that were shown on television
last night on Nightline.
Now, yes, this man has enough money to burn a wet mule, but
his heart is in the right place. He stepped up to the plate and
wrote a great big check. He was the largest advertiser in
Montana television, radio, and newspapers last year when he
rolled it out.
He has now come back and is willing to again resurvey the
State to measure the impact, to redo the ads because now there
is a follow-up to it and to start this program all over again.
We want to know what the impact has been. I would tell the
chairman of this committee that I have talked to middle school
principals. My people on the reservations say now kids in
middle school, that is seventh, eighth and ninth grades, are
talking about it in the halls, when it used to be sort of an
underground conversation. That means we are making headway, I
think. When they talk openly about these spots, because they
are tough and they are very, very vivid.
And then you talk, I even had a lady come to me in my
church and she was complaining about them, that they were too
tough. ``Conrad,'' she said, ``you have to get those things off
of the air. They are just too vivid; they are too tough. In
fact, we had to talk to our kids about them.'' [Laughter.]
Thank you very much for your information.
So there are a lot of us in this Senate, and I mean I think
to the men and women who serve here, that doesn't understand
there is not a neighborhood, there is not an area of this
country that is not vulnerable to this terrible, terrible thing
that has been thrust upon us, and we must do battle with it,
and we must use all the resources we have to prevent use one
time. It only takes one shot with this crystal meth. They tell
me it takes 6 or 7 years really for the cure to be permanent.
So I thank this committee and the chairman and the
leadership for having the foresight and recognize the problem
that we have, especially on our reservations, where they have
limited resources to do this battle.
Thank you very much.
Senator Dorgan. Senator Burns, thank you very much for
joining us and thank you for telling us of the Montana
experiment. We are anxious to see the results of that.
Senator Thomas, Senator McCain is at a leadership meeting
on immigration and has been delayed. Did you have an opening
statement?
Senator Thomas. No; thank you. I just want to thank you for
having this important hearing. This meth problem is difficult
everywhere, and frightening sometimes particularly on the
reservations. So we are pleased to have you here.
I wanted especially to be able to welcome one of our
witnesses this morning, the U.S. Attorney from Wyoming, Matt
Mead. We are delighted at the work he is doing and very pleased
to have him here.
Thank you.
Senator Dorgan. Thank you very much. I know that the
testimony from Mr. Mead will be very helpful to us from the law
enforcement side.
The first panel this morning is Pat Ragsdale, director of
the Bureau of Indian Affairs, [BIA] Department of the Interior,
Washington, DC. Mr. Ragsdale is accompanied by Christopher
Chaney, deputy bureau director of the BIA, Office of Law
Enforcement Services, and also accompanied by Jerry Gidner,
deputy bureau director of BIA Tribal Services.
Also with us is Robert McSwain, deputy director, Indian
Health Service, [IHS] Department of Health and Human Services,
Rockville, MD. He is accompanied by Jon Perez. Jon Perez is the
director of the Indian Health Service Division of Behavioral
Health; and also accompanied by Anthony Dekker, associate
director of Clinical Services at the Phoenix Indian Medical
Center.
And then Matthew Mead, who as our colleague Senator Thomas
mentioned, is U.S. Attorney, District of Wyoming in Cheyenne,
WY.
So why don't we begin with Mr. Ragsdale, director of the
BIA.
STATEMENT OF WILLIAM P. RAGSDALE, DIRECTOR, BIA, DEPARTMENT OF
THE INTERIOR, ACCOMPANIED BY CHRISTOPHER B. CHANEY, DEPUTY
BUREAU DIRECTOR, BIA, OFFICE OF LAW ENFORCEMENT SERVICES; JERRY
GIDNER, DEPUTY BUREAU DIRECTOR, BIA, TRIBAL SERVICES
Mr. Ragsdale. Good morning, Mr. Chairman and Senators on
the committee. Thank you for the opportunity to testify on the
problem of methamphetamine in Indian country. With your
permission, I will summarize my views and request that my
written statement be provided for the record.
Senator Dorgan. Without objection.
Mr. Ragsdale. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Chairman, there is no denial that the problem of drug
and alcohol abuse, and in particular the use and trafficking of
meth, is having a devastating effect on our Indian communities,
as well as the surrounding communities. Tribal leaders, police
officers, and human service providers throughout Indian country
have described the problem of meth trafficking and use in
Indian country as epidemic, out of control, in crisis, within
their respective communities.
The collective resources of the Federal, tribal and States
need to be focused to combat this scourge on our communities
throughout the United States. As you hear from other witnesses
today, we are beginning to address this problem. While
prosecution does occur in tribal forums of justice, the tribal
courts are inhibited by Federal law and limits the sentence and
fines to less than one year and $5,000 for the conviction in
tribal court.
We cited examples in our recent testimony before this
committee on child abuse. Absolutely essential to addressing
this problem is cooperative law enforcement between and among
the tribal, Federal jurisdictions and the States. This includes
both State, tribal and Federal prosecutors from the various
jurisdictions.
Criminals have no respect for jurisdictional boundaries and
it is imperative that the collective law enforcement and human
service resource providers work together. Examples of
cooperative law enforcement will be discussed with the other
witnesses today.
Moreover, we also need to have a collective community
strategy with the tribes, States and the Federal Government
that provides for community education, prevention, treatment
and cooperative policing of this epidemic. We look forward to
working with this Committee and our colleagues in the tribal
and Federal agencies to address the problem.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
[Prepared statement of Mr. Ragsdale appears in appendix.]
Senator Dorgan. Mr. Ragsdale, thank you very much.
Next, we will hear from Robert McSwain, the deputy director
of the IHS at the Department of HHS. Mr. McSwain, you may
proceed.
STATEMENT OF ROBERT McSWAIN, DEPUTY DIRECTOR, IHS, DEPARTMENT
OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, ACCOMPANIED BY JON PEREZ,
DIRECTOR, IHS, DIVISION OF BEHAVIORAL HEALTH; AND ANTHONY
DEKKER, ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR, CLINICAL SERVICES, PHOENIX INDIAN
MEDICAL CENTER
Mr. McSwain. Good morning, Chairman Dorgan and members of
the committee. I am pleased to be here today to speak on this
issue. I will summarize my written statement and ask that it be
entered into the record.
Today, I am accompanied by Dr. Jon Perez. I think you need
to know why these two gentlemen are with me. Dr. Perez actually
heads up the national Behavioral Health Program for the IHS;
and Dr. Anthony Dekker is actually a clinician who sees meth
patients on a daily basis. He is also our chief consultant for
addiction medicine and just recently spoke in the area on this
particular issue.
We are pleased to have this opportunity to testify on
behalf of Secretary Leavitt on the problem of methamphetamine
use in Indian country. We are here to tell you that the problem
will need close collaboration among the IHS, its Federal
partners, tribal governments and communities, and State and
local governments.
As you know, Secretary Leavitt has used the Inter-
departmental Council on Native American Affairs to span across
the department for collaboration and partnerships with the
department on many Indian issues. We are here today to discuss
methamphetamine use in Indian country. I guess the situation
can be described in a single word. It is a crisis.
We emphasize that this problem is not specific to Indian
country. A number of you have mentioned that. It affects the
entire Nation and especially the Upper Midwest and West, and
particularly in rural areas. Those are the places where our
Indian communities are located.
The latest information from the department's Substance
Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's national
survey on drug abuse, published in September 2005, indicates
that in 2004 1.4 million persons aged 12 or older had used
methamphetamine in the past year, and 600,000 had used it in
the past month. The number of methamphetamine users who met
criteria for illicit drug dependence or abuse in the past 12
months increased from 164,000 in 2002 to 346,000 in 2004,
particularly in rural areas, all of which are again places
where tribal communities exist.
The highest rates of past year methamphetamine use were
found among Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders at 2.2
percent of the population and persons reporting two or more
races at 1.9 percent. American Indians and Alaska Natives were
coming in third, at 1.7 percent. When you compare this to the
general population, whites are .07 percent; .05 percent for
Hispanics; .02 percent for Asians, and .01 percent for Blacks.
So 1.7 percent for American Indians and Alaska Natives is high.
As we have mentioned in a recent hearing on child abuse and
neglect, the Indian Health Service and tribal programs use its
RPMS program, which is Resources Patient Management System, to
track and report on health conditions of American Indians and
Alaska Natives into the health care system. It is an important
feature because we are a health care provider, so we count the
people who actually come in to our system, and that is where
our numbers are generated.
We have been tracking the larger family of amphetamine use,
which the experts here, Dr. Dekker can speak to the larger
issue, and abuse for some time, and methamphetamine is the
wicked member of this family.
Beginning in approximately 2000, marked increases were
noted in patients presenting for amphetamine-related problems
and that trend continues today. The data indicates it really is
spiking. The abuse went from approximately 3,000 contacts in
2000 to 7,004 contacts in 2005, and increase of almost 2\1/2\
times over 5 years.
The ages most effected, when we start looking at the
population, spanned mid-adolescence through adults in their
forties, with a sizable minority found even in their early
fifties. The ages of the highest usage are found between 15 and
44, with the highest ages being 25 to 34.
Finally, this is one of those issues that does not have any
regard to sex, and that is because males and females are
affected essentially the same regardless of age.
How has the IHS responded? Again, it is through
partnerships. As we have highlighted in our testimony, we have
had a number of those activities going on over the last 3
years. We have established collaborative programming with other
governmental organizations and agencies, from tribal to
Federal, to coordinate medical, social, educational, and legal
efforts. These include partners such as SAMHSA, HRSA, CDC, and
others such as the BIA, Department of Justice and the
Department of Education.
We are supporting communities by giving them tools to
mobilize against the threat by providing them with program
models and training tools, networks and ongoing consultation.
Dr. Perez can speak to the program activities in this regard.
And of course, Dr. Dekker as a clinician can speak to what
our health care providers are doing to respond to this growing
problem.
Special programs are surfacing in our areas in
collaboration with tribal leaders. One was mentioned in
Montana, certainly others are mentioned in several locations
that they are using a series of models. In the matrix models of
abuse treatment, one area is using a four-step program. This is
in Montana. Community readiness assessment programs are
underway in many tribal communities. We are moving into
telemedicine. I know Senator Dorgan at the last hearing, was
very interested in telemedicine and how that might be able to
do outreach.
In closing, the Indian Health Program will continue to
provide treatment and prevention services, as we are a health
care provider, throughout the system, just like we have
responded to many prevalent health care conditions currently,
such as diabetes and certainly in the past such as TB.
The IHS will continue to coordinate and collaborate with
other Federal, tribal, State, and private agencies to address
this crisis.
Finally, we thank the committee for its involvement and
continued support because a crisis of such proportions requires
combined resources and unified action.
Mr. Chairman, that concludes my oral remarks and we would
be pleased to answer any questions.
[Prepared statement of Mr. McSwain appears in appendix.]
Senator Dorgan. Thank you very much, Mr. McSwain.
You have been accompanied by others here. My understanding
is they will be available to answer questions as well. Let me
perhaps ask a couple of questions, then call on my colleague as
well.
I am sorry. Thank you very much.
Matthew Mead, the U.S. Attorney from Wyoming. Mr. Mead,
thank you for joining us. The addition of a U.S. attorney gives
us special law enforcement perspective and I understand Wyoming
has been deeply involved in these issues. So thank you very
much for joining us.
STATEMENT OF MATTHEW H. MEAD, U.S. ATTORNEY, DISTRICT OF
WYOMING
Mr. Mead. Thank you, Mr. Chairman and thank you for
allowing me to be here this morning.
I am Matthew Mead, the U.S. Attorney for Wyoming. It is an
honor to appear before you to provide information about the
growing methamphetamine problem in Indian country and what the
Department of Justice is doing to partner with others to
address it.
First, Attorney General Gonzales recently announced that
the Office of Justice Programs would develop new training for
conducting successful and safe meth investigations specifically
tailored to tribal law enforcement. The AG was on the Yakima
Reservation in Washington State just last week addressing this
and related issues.
OJP also makes grants available to tribal communities for
drug courts. Several tribes and tribal organizations have used
and others are planning to use these drug court grants to
address meth problems. In addition, DEA and FBI have taken
steps to address the issue of drug trafficking in Indian
country. While their activities are summarized in my written
statement, I will just say here that from my experience, both
DEA and FBI have done excellent work in this area.
The Native American Issues Subcommittee, of which I am a
member, hosted a tribal summit in Idaho last fall. The summit's
focus was to create strategies to combat meth distribution and
addiction in Indian country. The result of the summit was a
best practices document which has been distributed to all U.S.
Attorneys' offices.
Two recent cases in Wyoming illustrate what we are doing to
combat the meth problem on the Wind River Indian Reservation.
The first case involved the investigation into the Goodman drug
trafficking organization, a family-run criminal operation based
on the reservation. It served approximately 20 to 50 drug
customers per day and distributed at least 1 pound of meth per
month on the reservation. All together in the Goodman case, 25
people face Federal criminal drug charges and firearms
violations; 22 have been convicted, including, Mr. Chairman, a
tribal court judge. A pervasive drug menace was removed from
the reservation.
The second Wyoming case involved the Sagaste-Cruz drug
trafficking organization. This case illustrates how a ruthless
business plan developed by a Mexican drug ring targeted Indian
reservations in the West for meth distribution. The plan was
hatched after members of the drug ring read a news article in
the Denver Post. The Denver Post article described how liquor
stores in a small Nebraska town were profitably selling huge
amounts of alcohol to Native Americans from the nearby Pine
Ridge Reservation in South Dakota, a reservation that had a
major alcoholism problem.
Members of the Sagaste-Cruz organization surmised that if
they could get people who were addicted to alcohol and give
them free samples of meth, they would replace their alcohol
addiction with a meth addiction. Members of this drug ring
executed their plan by relocating to communities close to the
affected reservations, developing romantic relationships with
Indian women, and introducing these women and others to meth
with free samples.
All of the lower level distributors became recreational
users and then severely addicted. To support their habit,
customers became dealers and distributors themselves, using
free samples to recruit other new customers. In May 2005, a
jury found leader Jesus Martin Sagaste-Cruz of Mexico guilty of
conspiracy to distribute in excess of 100 pounds of meth. For
his role, Sagaste-Cruz was sentenced to life in prison.
Joint task forces and cooperative law enforcement were
critical to the successful dismantling of both of these
organizations. On all our drug investigations, working to gain
and having the support of tribal leaders are keys to the
success of our efforts. In my written statement, I outline in
more detail others DOJ successes, including some great work in
the Eastern District of Oklahoma.
I commend this committee's interest in the consequences of
the meth menace on Indian reservations. If I can deliver a
summary of my message, it is this: Indian country is unique.
Meth is unique. The two together, meth and Indian country, make
the current situation doubly challenging.
As Congress knows, meth is unique in the world of drugs
because of the extensive collateral damage caused by even a
single person using meth. Unfortunately, such damage all too
often falls on children. Indian country is unique because of,
and this is not an exhaustive list, the size of the
reservation, wide dispersal of residents, limited numbers of
law enforcement officers, and the distinctive heritage and
culture of the Native Americans which is passed from generation
to generation.
Each generation provides an opportunity for success, but
also unfortunately for failure. We cannot afford to fail. This
is a time when we can and we must be proactive forming joint
multi-jurisdictional partnerships and working relationships to
aggressively stop the spread of the poison at the reservations.
I would be pleased to entertain questions and I would ask
that my written statement be entered into the record.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Senator Dorgan. Without objection, your entire statement
will be part of the record.
[Prepared statement of Mr. Mead appears in appendix.]
Senator Dorgan. Mr. Mead, thank you very much for being
with us.
Mr. Thomas will inquire.
Senator Thomas. Thank you.
Thank you, gentlemen. I appreciate it very much.
I guess I have a general question that perhaps all three of
you might respond to. Meth is a general problem. We have it
everywhere. We are particularly focused here today of course on
the impact it has on reservations and on Indian country. What
would you say is unique and different about dealing with the
reservation problem as opposed to the general meth problem?
What are the obstacles that make it more difficult, or at least
different?
Matt, would you comment?
Mr. Mead. Yes, Senator Thomas; thank you for the question.
I think there are a number of factors that make it unique.
First, as I said in my statement, meth is unique in and of
itself because of the collateral damage it causes. A single
user can cause damage because as you know it is associated with
extreme violence, child abuse, and a number of other problems.
What makes it extra unique on Indian reservations is this:
Indian reservations, at least in Wind River, for example, can
often be very close communities. It is difficult, and pressure
is put on members of a family when they would be asked to
cooperate against one another. That is understandable. It is
also difficult because, say, in the inner city in America,
there are opportunities to bring in an outside drug
investigator to do undercover buys. That is not as easy on
Indian reservations because many of them are small [population
wise] and people know one another.
I think the other thing that is unique on Indian
reservations is, for example, as I say in my written statement,
the ratio on reservations of law enforcement to citizens is
much lower than it is outside of reservations. This causes
difficulty for BIA law enforcement, tribal law enforcement to
address this problem without having a joint relationship with
DEA and other law enforcement agencies.
Those, Senator, would be a few of my examples of the
uniqueness, both of meth and of the reservation.
Mr. Ragsdale. Thank you, Senator. I would agree with the
U.S. Attorney's analysis. I would also add that the vast
territories that Indian police officers have to cover makes it
more difficult. We have about one-third or one-half, as
compared to rural law enforcement in America in terms of police
resources. I think that is why I focused in my testimony on
cooperative policing is because it is absolutely essential that
the various jurisdictions work together to combat the problem.
Indian country is unique, in my opinion. I spent about 7
years as a police officer of the Cherokee Nation in Eastern
Oklahoma. The Indian clients and beneficiaries that we work
with are probably going to be more apt to be trusting and
cooperative with the Indian police officers than they are from
people that they don't know from other communities. I think an
essential element to policing in Indian country is that the
police resources that we have be tied with the Federal and
State resources that are available, because we have various
jurisdictions that may have prosecutive responsibility for
crimes on Indian property.
Senator Thomas. That is interesting. I would like your
response. In the regular communities, you have local police,
you have State police, you have drug enforcement and so on. Are
those same functions going on on the reservation as much as
they are in a regular community?
Mr. Ragsdale. I would say that they are going on in the
Indian communities to the same extent, but with less resources
to operate.
Senator Thomas. I see. Okay.
Sir?
Mr. McSwain. Senator Thomas, it is a great question simply
because when we talk about where we are located, certainly the
reservations are located in rural America, so there are all the
challenges that go to access and resources available. Clearly,
it is getting the right people there. If you don't mind, I
would like to have Dr. Dekker expand on that. He had a chance
to actually deal with this particular question some time ago.
Mr. Dekker. Thank you, Senator Thomas.
I see in addition to what you said, which I think is very
real, three other factors. One is that there are great
distances for people on reservations to travel to receive
services. The geography alone is a significant challenge. I
have patients who travel 3 and 4 hours to see me for addiction
medicine consultation.
The second thing is that there is the intimidation factor
because of inadequate or at least available interdiction
services is significant. It is the huge distances that people
have to travel that are in law enforcement, and because of
those great distances, they can't supervise large areas
adequately. I have many patients who come in, parents who come
in devastated because even though they know that their kids are
at risk and they are trying to protect them, that if they talk,
they feel intimidated and they feel that harm may come to them.
The last issue I think that is critical is that activities
for young people on reservations unfortunately as not as
available as in other situations. Many times, kids get involved
in activities that they shouldn't be involved in because there
is a perception at least that they can't do other things.
Senator Thomas. Thank you very much.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Ragsdale. Mr. Chairman, if I could add just one more
anecdotal piece of information.
Senator Dorgan. Yes?
Mr. Ragsdale. I was told about 1 year ago that our police
officers were actually intimidated on some reservations by the
criminal element, particularly the drug trafficking element,
just because of the magnitude of the problem. As a former
police officer, I found that pretty hard to believe. So I had
an opportunity to talk to several police officers working on
these particular reservations, none of whom were cowards. They
freely admitted that they were intimidated; that the magnitude
of drug trafficking and illegal immigration into Indian country
in some areas had overcome their ability to provide proper
response.
Senator Dorgan. Senator Burns.
Senator Burns. I thank you.
I have one question, I guess. We fight very hard for HIDTA
and Byrne funds here. They want to combine them. They want to
change them. But the establishment of task forces using State,
Federal, county and municipal law enforcement, they have set up
these task forces in Montana. We have been fairly successful in
really shutting down our labs. And really, with the HIDTA funds
in the high intensity traffic areas, we have been fairly
successful in shutting those down.
Do the law enforcement people on the reservations, and I
don't now why I didn't ask this before, but when you were
talking about working together on this thing, especially, Mr.
Mead, in Wyoming, we face similar situations, although we have
the Canadian border to deal with. Are the law enforcement
people on the reservations, do they work with those task forces
that are created under HIDTA or the Byrnes grants?
Mr. Mead. Thank you for the question, Senator Burns. I am
pleased to answer this one because it is one of the ways that
we have had success in the District of Wyoming.
I went to tribal leaders, both of our joint business
councils, and told them what I thought the problem was. They
told me what they thought the problem was. I asked permission,
and what I wanted was permission for DEA to cross-designate BIA
officers. I wanted permission for DEA to cross-designate our
State task force officers, very similar to what you have in
Montana so that we have seamless law enforcement, because as
was mentioned earlier, these drug dealers don't recognize
geographical or political boundaries whatsoever. If we are
hindered by that, we are going to have one hand tied behind our
back.
So yes, in Wyoming what we did is we got permission from
the tribes. We had a BIA officer, who is very good, actually
co-locate with our State task force team in the area, along
with DEA, along with a deputy from the sheriff's department and
a police officer. This, in my mind, is the only way to go about
this, and that is for the reason that on each reservation, you
may say, well, it is just a few drugs here. They are selling
one gram/one gram. But, this is limited information. You are
thinking in a vacuum.
Whereas, if you enjoin these other people, they may say,
hey, we know the same group is selling it, and DEA, being
involved, will say, hey, this is a regional problem.
So that is what we have done. So the short answer to your
question, sir, is yes, we have them working with these teams,
and I think that is a key to success.
Senator Burns. Well, you know, when the director said when
you cross jurisdiction lines, when we first set those up, I
will tell you, we had a little turf problem. Everybody wants to
protect their turf and it is a normal thing in the
bureaucracies, and that is one of the things we fight every
day. But I will tell you, our U.S. marshal in Montana has been
a real driving effect, and our U.S. attorney there, Mr. Mercer,
has been the real drive in this. Whenever the director brings
up jurisdictions, and I know they are sometimes hard to
penetrate, but we found that once there was trust between the
jurisdictions, we became very effective in this fight.
I had never thought about how we cross jurisdictions on our
reservations. I have seven in Montana. I am going to get a hold
of Bill and we will work that out. But the HIDTA, I don't think
the Senate really has taken a look and seen the effect of HIDTA
and the Byrnes grants and to set up those task forces, because
we have seen them work very effectively in Montana. But once
you break down those barriers, we have quite an effect.
I just want to congratulate you on what you have done in
Wyoming. I will have to follow up and see if we have done as
well in Montana.
Mr. Mead. Thank you, Senator.
Senator Burns. That is the only question I had. It kind of
follows on what Senator Thomas had to say about we have to give
them the tools, and we can make some headway.
Senator Thomas. Do you support Byrnes grants?
Senator Burns. Yes; but he spells it different.
Senator Dorgan. Thank you very much.
Yes?
Mr. Ragsdale. I would just like to add to say I would
totally agree with the Senator and the U.S. Attorney. I would
also like to point out that Congress provided us with a
mechanism for cooperative law enforcement in the form of the
1990 Indian Law Enforcement Reform Act that allows the tribes,
the BIA, State jurisdictions, and Federal agencies to enter
into cooperative law enforcement agreements, which has been
used extensively in the State of Oklahoma and other places for
the type of focus that we need, without anybody giving away
their criminal jurisdiction authority or their prosecutive
prerogatives that the State, tribal and Federal prosecutors
have.
Senator Dorgan. Mr. Mead, in your enforcement actions, how
prevalent is it that they are cooking methamphetamine for
distribution in Wyoming, versus importing it? What I am hearing
is much of it is coming from Mexico. But we in North Dakota had
some hundreds of examples of people creating labs and cooking
their own meth. Now, I am told that it is more likely the meth
is coming from Mexico. What is your experience in Wyoming?
Mr. Mead. Senator, my experience would be consistent with
what you said in your opening statement. I think DEA's numbers
are roughly 80 percent of the meth that is consumed in this
country comes from what we call ``super labs.'' Some of those
we see in California. I think a majority of them, according to
DEA, would be in Mexico.
We do see what we call the small toxic labs, or ``mom and
pop'' labs, but their contribution, I guess, to the amount of
meth is minimal. I think DEA's number if 20 percent. We take
them seriously, obviously, because these are the things that
you hear about in a household or a hotel room that you or I may
be going into unwittingly after it was used as a lab or is
still contaminated. It causes fires and of course when children
are in those environments, it is deeply concerning regardless
of the amount of meth that is produced in that home.
Senator Dorgan. Mr. McSwain, I wanted to mention that Dr.
Perez came to Bismarck, ND to the hearing that we held on
Indian teen suicides. There is I think some relationship
between substance abuse and other very delicate issues that we
have had some hearings on both here in Washington and also the
hearing that I held in Bismarck, ND.
You indicated that you feel it is a crisis. Mr. Ragsdale
feels that the meth issue is a crisis. Meth is a deadly
addictive drug, much more addictive than most other drugs. It
affects the brain in different ways. One of my concerns is that
those who are addicted have precious few opportunities for
treatment. What kind of treatment does a Native American youth
or a Native American addicted user, what kind of treatment
facilities and what kind of treatment programs are available to
them, and in what quantity?
Mr. Perez. You have me on the microphone already? We have
multiple levels of care and multiple means of delivering it,
but it is stressed. Let me describe it this way.
Methamphetamine the way it affects us clinically and
individually is a debilitating disease that can hit you like
that. But it is a metastatic social disease. What I mean by
that is I very much liken it to a cancer. It can start in a
very small circumscribed place. If you can get it and pull it
out, you are okay. If you leave it for any length of time, you
will see the spread. That is what we are starting to see.
So when you are asking about treatment, there are really
three levels of treatment as far as I am concerned. One is the
direct clinical intervention. What we have on-reservation, our
primary reservation units are small clinical counseling,
substance abuse programs. They are staffed, three to four
people, depending upon the size of the reservation. That is the
first line of defense when we are talking about the actual
substance abuse.
Connected to that, we also have pretty significant physical
responses. We have the withdrawals. We have the acute medical
effects of the drug. There we have our clinics, clinic's
emergency rooms. It is not unusual for us to have a first
contact be in an emergency room situation. So we have those for
the immediate, when you come through the door.
Then beyond that, and I will talk about kids, for example.
We have 11 federally funded youth regional treatment centers
that approximately cover one regional area. We have 12 regional
areas. There is residential treatment there. There is also
residential treatment in the State and county systems.
Senator Dorgan. What does that mean, there is ``residential
treatment?'' You started by saying this was a stressed system.
When you say ``residential treatment,'' someone is heavily
addicted, my understanding is you can't put them in for 30 days
or even 60 days, expect them to come out having shed their
addiction and being well.
Mr. Perez. That is correct.
Senator Dorgan. My understanding is it takes 6 months, in
many cases 1 year or 15 months to shed yourself of the deadly
addiction of meth. So how many beds are available? What kind of
circumstance exists for someone who is addicted in most of our
regions?
Mr. Perez. Nationally in terms of our regional treatment
centers, add them all together, we have about 300 beds
nationally.
Senator Dorgan. What is the need?
Mr. Perez. If I take the figures from 2005, and we are
talking about 7,004, those are actual contacts, actual
patients, unduplicated patients, we are talking about 2,900. Of
those that would require inpatient, we are talking about I
would say conservatively about 500, and we extrapolate that
out, so we were starting with 500 and we have 300 beds, that is
for youth, and then the others are going to be going into the
State and other systems.
What we also do, too, is not simply because we are talking
about the Federal system, but we also have I believe about 47
or 48 tribal and urban residential programs, for example NARA
in Portland and Friendship House in San Francisco, and Rainbow
Center in Arizona. So there are many of those.
Now, if I put all of those together in terms of the system
of care, is it stressed? It absolutely is. Are we triaging how
we are dealing with it? Absolutely. It is life and limb first.
Was that responsive to your question?
Senator Dorgan. Yes; my observation about substance abuse,
starting especially with alcoholism, which is a very serious
problem as well, is that there are just a minuscule number of
treatment positions available for the need that exists, just
minuscule. I am talking about, now, in-residence treatment. My
guess is, and I would like you, if you would, to send us some
additional and more detailed information about the number of
in-residence treatment opportunities for those who are addicted
to meth. My guess is that we have the same kind of shortfall.
I would observe again, from a law enforcement standpoint,
Mr. Ragsdale, you talked about the combined law enforcement
efforts, which are good. And Mr. Mead, you talked about what
you all are doing, and that is all very impressive. But you I
am sure would agree that if you have somebody that is addicted,
hopelessly addicted, and they shed that addiction, don't have
the capability to shed that addiction, they are in and out of
the system and back out using again.
So we have to find ways on the treatment side to complement
the enforcement side. If we fail to do that, we will have
failed to have dealt with the entire problem, in my judgment.
You all have traveled, especially from Wyoming, a lengthy
distance. I guess Mr. Ragsdale, you and Mr. McSwain have not
traveled as far this morning, but we appreciate always your
coming to the Committee to give us your testimony. Mr. Mead,
thank you for traveling from Wyoming to give us your
perspective as a U.S. attorney on these issues. We very much
appreciate that.
Mr. Mead. Glad to be here. Thank you, sir.
Senator Dorgan. If you wish to submit further information,
and we will keep the record open in the event that we wish to
submit further questions that you might offer us for the
record. We would like to make available to you the opportunity
to submit additional views as well.
Thank you to all on this panel for being here today.
Next, we would like to call the second panel, Kathleen
Wesley-Kitcheyan, chairwoman of San Carlos Apache Tribe, San
Carlos, AZ; Jefferson Keel, first vice president, National
Congress of American Indians, and Lieutenant Governor of the
Chickasaw Nation, Washington, DC; Gary Edwards, chief executive
officer, National Native American Law Enforcement Association;
and Karrie Azure, United Tribes Multi-Tribal Indian Drug and
Alcohol Initiative at the United Tribes Technical College in
Bismarck, ND.
If all of those witnesses would step forward and take your
seats at the witness table, I would appreciate it.
Kathleen Wesley-Kitcheyan, I hope I am saying that name
correctly. I think I tried at another meeting some weeks ago.
Thank you very much for being with us. You are the chairwoman
of the San Carlos Apache Tribe, San Carlos, AZ. We have asked
that all of you summarize your testimony in the 5 minutes
allotted. We have your entire written testimony and will make
that in all cases a part of the permanent record.
Ms. Kitcheyan, thank you very much for being with us. Why
don't you proceed?
STATEMENT OF KATHLEEN WESLEY-KITCHEYEN, CHAIRWOMAN, SAN CARLOS
APACHE TRIBE
Ms. Wesley-Kitcheyan. Thank you very much.
Vice Chairman Dorgan and other members of the hearing,
please also give my best to Senator McCain. As you said, I am
Kathy Wesley-Kitcheyan. I am the chairwoman of the San Carlos
Apache Tribe.
Today is not a good day because I come here with a very
heavy heart, a heavy heart because I have to tell you about
things on my reservation, my home that is not very positive. It
is like airing our family's dirty laundry.
Like other reservations, the meth problem on my reservation
is quickly reaching epidemic proportions. My people are in pain
and are suffering from meth. As I stated in my testimony in
your oversight hearing on the fiscal year 2007 budget, Indian
country is under attack. We must aggressively address this
problem, starting with the budget cycle.
At that hearing, the issue of meth kept coming up. I
strongly back NCAI President Joe Garcia's call to action. I
believe that this hearing will help us take the offensive on
fighting meth.
Also, I believe it would be helpful if the committee could
hold field hearings in Indian country on this issue so that
members could see for themselves the conditions that we must
grapple with every day due to meth.
At San Carlos, we are doing our best, but have not been
able to properly contain the meth problem, given how quickly it
has grown and how profound it has become. It is shattering
families, endangering our children, and threatening our
cultural and spiritual lives.
We talked about alcoholism this morning. I had to sit down
my 22 year old son about 1 year ago and tell him that the use
of alcohol was bad because 33 member of his dad's family and my
family have died or been in car accidents due to alcoholism. I
have 55 grandchildren from numerous nieces and nephews, and
every day I worry about them.
I lost one about 2 years ago on the Tohono O'odham
Reservation, a rodeo champion. Excuse me. He won over 26
buckles, over 6 saddles. The wrong choices cost him his life.
He was doing drugs, drinking, and was engaged in human
smuggling because of the lack of employment.
Two months ago, a baby was born addicted to meth with a
deformed heart and congenital heart problems. Almost 5 months
ago, a baby was born addicted to meth with legs that are numb
and can never be used.
At the end of 2005, a 9-year old meth user was brought to
the San Carlos Hospital with hallucinations and violent
behavior. This is the youngest user that we have found, but we
are concerned that kids even younger are using meth. About 30
days ago, a young pregnant woman on meth was arrested. While in
jail, she went into premature labor and delivered a baby that
died.
Last month, a 22-year old meth user tried to commit suicide
by stabbing himself with a 10-inch knife. He lived and the
tribe is trying to find behavior counseling and detox services
for him, but it is extremely costly, or we are told that it is
not available. Also, it is difficult to find a facility that
accommodates native cultural and spiritual needs; 2 years ago,
a mother on meth stabbed her little boy to death because she
thought the child was the devil and was possessed. More
recently, a 22-year old male hung himself while using meth.
I could go on, but it is too heartbreaking. My community is
small and we all know each other. These tragic events
dramatically affect my entire community and have ripple effects
that harm and scar our most innocent citizens, our newborns and
children. In fact, as I left the reservation, there are some
mixed feelings about providing this testimony. There are stark
statistics from the San Carlos Reservation due to meth. In
2004, there were 101 suicide attempts, with 2 attempts
resulting in death. Some of the suicide attempts were directly
related to the abuse of meth. And the past 10 suicide attempts,
8 of the individuals were using meth.
In 2004, 64 babies out of 256 were born to San Carlos
Apache tribal members addicted to meth. In 2005, the number of
babies born addicted to meth was even higher. In routine urine
drug screenings at the San Carlos emergency room in 2005, 25
percent of the patients tested positive for meth. Last year,
there were about 500 reports of child neglect or abuse reported
to the tribe's child protective services. About 80 percent of
these cases involved alcohol or drug use such as meth by the
parent.
In the past 12 months, tribal health officials at our
wellness center have received over 150 referrals for meth
treatment. Like our health care and social services personnel,
the San Carlos police department is overwhelmed by the meth
problem. Most of the meth is trafficked in from Mexico. Meth,
other drugs, gangs and guns on the reservation have caused
violence to escalate.
The police department is shortstaffed and lacks the
equipment and weaponry needed to properly investigate meth
crimes or make arrests. Every year, the tribe has a shortfall
of about $1 million in law enforcement. Due to funding
constraints, there are only two to five officers on duty at any
given time to cover 1.8 million acres. Even with limited
staffing, the police department handled 20,590 offenses in
2004. We commend the administration, though, and Congress for
its efforts to finally increase funding for Indian country law
enforcement. We hope that these efforts can continue. For too
long, the problem has been neglected. We also thank Chris
Chaney for his efforts.
To combat the meth problem at the tribal level, we have
taken some decisive action. Every program and agency within the
tribe is working together on this problem. The tribe's goal is
to make it clear that meth is not tolerated and that the tribe
takes swift and severe action against meth perpetrators. The
tribe recently held a meth forum with mandatory attendance by
all tribal programs. At the forum, we created a prevention
coalition to develop and implement strategies to stop meth.
The tribe has launched a media campaign to educate the
community about meth and is holding community education forums
on meth. Further, the tribe has instituted a drug testing
policy for all employees, which as you probably understand, is
not very popular. The tribe has revised its legal code to
criminalize meth. Also over 10 months ago, the tribe and the
U.S. Attorney for Arizona, Paul Charlton, began quarterly
meetings to discuss the meth problem. Recently, the U.S.
Attorney announced a policy of zero tolerance for meth dealers.
Over the past 2 years, the U.S. Attorney's Office has gotten
several convictions or guilty pleas from meth dealers on the
reservation. The tribe strongly supports these prosecutions and
convictions because they have a definite deterrent effect.
Furthermore, the tribe has partnered with the FBI, DEA,
ATF, ICE, and the BIA. These agencies are actively
collaborating with us. These relationships are yielding many
positive results, including specialized training, increased
investigation and arrests, and increased resources.
Also, the Arizona State Highway Patrol is back on our
reservation patrolling it at our invitation. We hope that
through these partnerships we can stop meth on the front end
instead of waiting until there is violent crime for meth.
There are many good people on the San Carlos Apache
Reservation. Many of our children have dreams and hopes just
like all American children, for a better life. We also still
have our language. We still do our dances and practice our
traditional ways. We have the great spirit of our ancestors
alive in us, but I am afraid that the spirit of our ancestors
will die if we continue to let meth prevail. We still have a
long way to go.
Thank you very much, Senator Dorgan, for your efforts on
this problem. Thanks.
[Prepared statement of Ms. Wesley-Kitcheyan appears in
appendix.]
Senator Dorgan. Tribal Chairwoman Wesley-Kitcheyan, thank
you very much for being with us.
How many enrolled members does your tribe have?
Ms. Wesley-Kitcheyan. We have approximately 13,000.
Senator Dorgan. Thank you.
Next, Jefferson Keel, first vice president of the National
Congress of American Indians, and Lieutenant Governor of the
Chickasaw Nation. Mr. Keel, thank you very much for being with
us.
STATEMENT OF JEFFERSON KEEL, FIRST VICE PRESIDENT, NATIONAL
CONGRESS OF AMERICAN INDIANS, AND LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR OF THE
CHICKASAW NATION
Mr. Keel. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and thank you for the
opportunity to speak to you. I am very honored to be here on
behalf of the National Congress of American Indians to present
this testimony. I will summarize my comments, as you asked. We
have provided written testimony.
I would like to thank Chairman McCain for hearing and
responding to our calls for comprehensive discussion and to the
other Senators who have made opening statements. I greatly
appreciate that.
As has been stated earlier, Indian reservations have become
a target for methamphetamine drug traffickers. Our children and
young adults are at high risk and many of our communities are
being severely depleted in tackling this epidemic.
My written testimony covers the breadth of the problem in
Indian country, but what I hope to share this morning is what
Indian country is doing and where we need additional help. We
recognize the crisis and we also have a vision for addressing
the crisis: Strong tribal law enforcement against the drug
traffickers, and an even greater focus on prevention and
treatment that strengthens tribal cultural values in our
children and our young people. Our tribes have found that
integrating traditional values is essential to our efforts to
fight drugs.
Some examples. The traditional children's game of Cherokee
marbles has been passed down for generations, but at least in
the past 2 years it has taken on a new meaning. At public
elementary and middle schools across 14 counties in Oklahoma, a
demonstration program called ``Use Your Marbles: Don't Use
Methamphetamine'' sets up the game as a strategy to prevent the
use of drugs. It is an innovative method to introduce our
children who are being affected in greater numbers to how to
combat the use of methamphetamines, the use of drugs.
Treatment and wellness programs like White Bison and the
One Sky Center in Oregon integrate traditional ideals into all
aspects of their treatment and counseling programs. Even our
law enforcement has turned to tradition. Tribes such as the
Lummi Nation are using banishment to completely remove drug
dealers from the community. Other tribes like the Yavapai
Apache Tribe of Arizona are establishing alternative drug and
family courts to address issues of addiction.
We are increasing self-sufficiency. Our tribes and tribal
organizations are educating themselves about methamphetamines.
The National American Indian Housing Council has developed a
national curriculum for the identification and cleanup of
methamphetamine labs. They have completed 50 trainings in
Indian country in just the past year, and the training has led
directly to law enforcement against a number of operations. The
training also allows tribes to save costs by conducting their
own cleanups. We are working together cooperatively.
As mentioned earlier this morning, one of the most
successful strategies has been for Indian country law
enforcement to work through task forces and cooperative
agreements. This was certainly true for my own community, where
the Chickasaw Nation's police force, the Lighthorse Police,
worked together with a multi-agency Federal, State and tribal
drug task force. We participated in one of the largest
methamphetamine busts in Oklahoma and Texas region against the
Satan's Disciples, a violent street gang from Chicago.
There are hundreds of cooperative law enforcement
agreements in Indian country, but there are also places where
the cooperation is not as good. From our perspective, the key
to cooperation is that all agencies respect the tribal
community. For that, we need to build tribal capacity. With
tribal law enforcement that is better trained, equipped and
adequately staffed, we will have more respect and cooperation
with outside law enforcement agencies.
I come to you today with a list of ideas that can help our
communities address this position. First, we hope to see
continued White House involvement in a coordinating role for
the Federal agencies, with NCAI and tribal leaders serving on
the tribal side of the partnership. In the upcoming
reauthorization of the Office of National Drug Control Policy,
Congress can create a permanent Deputy Director for Indian
country.
Second, we also call on all Federal agencies who are
involved in fighting drugs, such as the Drug Enforcement
Administration, to create a permanent link for American Indian
and Alaska Native tribal governments.
Third, Indian country needs increased resources in the
agencies with responsibility to support the tribes. We need to
renew and expand the COPS program, the Community Oriented
Policing Service. A total of 759 law enforcement positions in
Indian country have expired or will expire between 2004 and
2006. The COPS program has been a huge benefit for Indian
country policing and we need permanent funding to sustain these
positions. NCAI urges either the extension of the COPS grants
or a permanent new program to replace COPS.
We also urge a 10-percent increase in law enforcement
funding in the Departments of the Interior and Justice, and
that really isn't enough. That is just a drop in the bucket,
but it is a start. We must prevent the IHS funding from falling
further behind. Most drug treatment and prevention programs in
Indian country are funded through the IHS. As you heard this
morning, I am not sure where Dr. Perez got his numbers. He said
the need was about 500 beds for residential treatment. I think
those are just the ones that are reported that actually go
through the formal system. I believe that the number is far,
far higher.
At a time when we need to be expanding these services, the
IHS funding has not kept pace with inflation or population
growth. It is vital that the IHS receive at least increases to
maintain current services, and that is approximately $440
million over the fiscal year 2006 level.
Tribes should also be included in all health related
methamphetamine grants outside of HHS. I was pleased to hear
this morning that the Senate has adopted legislation to address
this issue. We greatly appreciate that.
We need increased funding for tribal courts. Tribal courts
are dealing with many first time drug offenders and are trying
to put them back on track. The caseloads are overwhelming and
they need the funds to function properly so that the courthouse
door is not a revolving door, but a one way door back to a
healthy life.
We need to maintain the National American Indian Housing
Council's methamphetamine training funds, and increase funds to
the Department of Justice's Indian Alcohol and Substance Abuse
Prevention Program and SAMHSA grants.
In addition to the requested additional funding for both
behavioral and physical health services at the IHS, our health
systems need to be modernized to better address prevention and
treatment. We call on Congress to pass the Indian Health Care
Improvement Act this year, this session.
There are also several relatively simple structural changes
that can address the perceptions of Indian country that have
encouraged external drug traffickers to target our communities.
We need to clarify the status of tribal police officers
participating in Federal tribal drug task forces to ensure that
they are treated as Federal officers.
Second, currently the U.S. Sentencing Commission guidelines
do not give the same respect to prior tribal court convictions
that it gives to prior State convictions in calculating a
defendant's criminal history.
Finally, tribal sentencing authority is limited to 1 year
under the Indian Civil Rights Act. This timeframe may limit the
ability of tribal courts to mandate treatment programs that
last longer than 1 year.
In conclusion, I would like to thank you, Mr. Chairman, and
the other Senators and this committee for holding this hearing
today. We look forward to working on this issue with all of our
tribal communities and the committee. I will be happy to answer
any questions.
Thank you again.
[Prepared statement of Mr. Keel appears in appendix.]
Senator Dorgan. Mr. Keel, thank you very much.
We have been joined by our colleague from Alaska. Would you
wish to make any statement at this point, or should we hear the
remaining two witnesses?
Senator Murkowski. Mr. Chairman, I would prefer that we
keep on track. I apologize for being late, but this is
something that I am extremely interested in. I would like to
hear the testimony of the witnesses, and then if I could have
an opportunity to comment. Thank you.
Senator Dorgan. All right. I thank Senator Murkowski.
We will hear the final two witnesses. Gary Edwards is the
chief executive officer of the National Native American Law
Enforcement Association. Mr. Edwards, you may proceed. As I
indicated, if you will summarize your statement within the five
minutes allotted, we would appreciate it.
STATEMENT OF GARY EDWARDS, CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, NATIONAL
NATIVE AMERICAN LAW ENFORCEMENT ASSOCIATION
Mr. Edwards. Mr. Chairman, distinguished members of the
committee, distinguished panel, tribal elders and leaders, I am
Gary Edwards, the chief executive officer of the National
Native American Law Enforcement Association. I have prepared a
written statement and ask that it be entered into the record.
Senator Dorgan. Without objection.
Mr. Edwards. It has become common knowledge that
methamphetamine is a nationwide problem that is affecting both
tribal and nontribal communities. However, it may not be common
knowledge that meth appears to be a bigger problem for tribal
communities than for nontribal communities.
There are at least four reasons for the differences. One
reason is the correlation between meth and alcoholism.
Unfortunately, the ethnic group with one of the highest rates
of alcohol addictions is Native Americans. Accordingly, Native
Americans and their tribal communities are and have been
targets of meth distributors.
A second reason pertains to the financial conditions of
most tribal communities. Most tribal communities rank or at the
near bottom of most financial parameters.
A third reason pertains to the geography of many tribes.
More particularly, research suggests that the majority of meth
distributed in tribal communities is smuggled through the U.S.
borders with Mexico and Canada. In a recent tribal border
security pilot program, NNALEA and its partners identified 41
tribes who were either on or located within 100 miles of United
States borders with Mexico and Canada. The participating tribes
of the Tribal Border Security Pilot Project, the majority of
the participating tribes reported that they had encountered
drug smuggling across their respective borders.
Undoubtedly, these tribal communities, among others, are
and have been prime targets for the distribution of meth by
smuggling cartels.
A fourth reason pertains to the numerous jurisdictional
issues that confront tribes that may not confront nontribal
communities. Examples are such as Public Law 280 and outdated
tribal codes wherein meth is not specifically identified as a
crime.
We must be organized in our approach in fighting this war
against meth. The National Native American Law Enforcement
Association agrees with the current administration that this
war against meth should focus on the following areas:
Prevention and treatment; law enforcement; education; and
management of meth's unique consequences.
In addition, NNALEA believes that an Indian country drug
czar should be appointed to specifically assist the national
drug czar in the war against meth. This Indian country drug
czar would be tasked through the BIA Office of Law Enforcement
Services for coordination. Having this drug czar alone would
not make the difference that we need in fighting this war
today. We need additional funding, additional funding for the
BuIA Office of Law Enforcement Services so that they can
provide law enforcement support, detention facilities, staffing
and training, and a 5-year strategic plan so therefore our
funding should be approached on a 5-year strategic basis. We
have entered within our testimony specific amounts that we
think would be most helpful in these areas.
NNALEA also recommends a funding increase for the IHS to
implement their plans and strategies for Indian country across
a five year strategic plan.
As we look at the meth problems, tribes are also affected
by broader processes such as homeland security issues, global
warming, population growth, and globalization. Meth is both a
problem in itself and a symptom of broader stress for Indian
country. The U.S. Patriot Act, additional funding and an Indian
country drug czar are weapons in the Indian country war against
meth, as well as the fight against broader stress issues for
tribes.
However, winning the Indian country war against meth will
be achieved by tribal leaders, tribal councils, tribal elders
and tribal communities that carry the war lance symbolizing
that Indian people will not tolerate drug use.
In closing, I think that the words of the great Sioux chief
are appropriate here. The great Sioux Chief Sitting Bull said,
``Let us put our minds together and see what kind of future we
can build for our children. Hope is strong medicine. Let's us
keep hope alive.''
I am happy to answer any questions you may have.
[Prepared statement of Mr. Edwards appears in appendix.]
Senator Dorgan. Mr. Edwards, thank you very much for your
testimony today.
Finally on this panel we have Karrie Azure. Karrie Azure is
a tribal judge on the Turtle Mountain Chippewa lands in North
Dakota. She is appearing here on behalf of the United Tribes
Multi-Tribal Indian Drug and Alcohol Initiative. Judge Azure,
thank you very much for being with us, and you may proceed.
STATEMENT OF KARRIE AZURE, UNITED TRIBES MULTI-TRIBAL INDIAN
DRUG AND ALCOHOL INITIATIVE, UNITED TRIBES TECHNICAL COLLEGE
Ms. Azure. Thank you very much, Mr. Vice Chairman.
It is a great honor to be testifying before this committee
today on this most pressing issue in Indian country. As stated,
I am a member of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians
and I serve as an appellate justice for my tribe. I also appear
today on behalf of United Tribes Technical College, the Inter-
Tribal Justice Program.
United Tribes received a Bureau of Justice assistance grant
in September 2004 under the Indian Alcohol and Substance Abuse
Program. The grant received is administered through United
Tribes, but the intended service area is comprised of the four
major reservations in North Dakota.
The purpose of the grant is to create an intertribal task
force. The intention is that through cooperation among agencies
at the tribal, State and Federal levels, a sensible solution to
the methamphetamine epidemic will be created.
What is unique about this task force is that it is
comprised of a consortium of tribes, something that can prove
often difficult within Indian country. Mr. Vice Chairman, I am
pleased to report that the collaboration among the four tribes
remains key to our success.
As strongly stated already by tribal leaders and officials
in addressing the methamphetamine problem, it is unrealistic
for tribes to engage in a battle against substance abuse alone.
Developing partnerships with local, State and Federal
governments is necessary. In that vein, United Tribes'
borderless strategy to combat substance abuse is in line with
the objectives of the National Congress of American Indians
urging tribes to develop laws and policies to combat
methamphetamine abuse and drug trafficking; seeking tribal
partnerships with the White House; and requesting congressional
hearings to address the issue.
It is important to stress at this point the accomplishment
of one of those objectives through attendance at the hearing
before the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs today.
Mr. Vice Chairman, I would like to bring to your attention
for 1 moment what is occurring within the U.S. Attorney's
office, particularly the efforts of Thomas Heffelfinger. In
October 2005 a task force of U.S. attorneys from throughout
Indian country met with tribal leaders, including
representatives of our task force. Mr. Heffelfinger indicated
that the task force he has created will employ strategies
similar to those of our grant.
The plan will encourage U.S. attorneys in Indian country
districts to work closely with tribal leaders and tribal,
local, State, and Federal law enforcement personnel to ensure
that law enforcement actions against methamphetamine
manufacture, distribution and use in Indian country are carried
out in a comprehensive manner that recognizes the needs of the
various jurisdictions involved, most importantly, that
addresses the law enforcement and safety needs of the citizens
of tribal nations within Indian country.
We believe this effort is an important step forward in
combating methamphetamine use in Indian country.
Mr. Vice Chairman, efforts at combating the methamphetamine
problem in Indian country continue under the guidance of the
Inter-Tribal Task Force in North Dakota. From meetings
conducted thus far under the grant, United Tribes has
identified key findings among tribal populations within the
State.
Approximately 90 percent of individuals entering treatment
programs at Turtle Mountain are methamphetamine-related. There
is a low recovery rate of methamphetamine addicts,
approximately three percent, due to the fact that the treatment
length is not long enough.
IHS is not coding, that is tracking, methamphetamine use,
so data is unreliable. There is currently no concrete data
available. Methamphetamine dealers are traveling from
reservation to reservation, which causes problems with
jurisdictional issues. Juveniles are being used as dealers and
pushers because of lesser sanctions against them.
House explosions are occurring on reservations because of
methamphetamine labs gone awry. For those reservation
communities that have resident treatment facilities, there is a
lack of bed space for new patients. Specifically at Turtle
Mountain, we have a tribal population living on or near the
reservation of about 14,000, and we have a resident treatment
facility with only eight beds. This is highly inadequate.
There are no treatment facilities within the State for
juveniles, and the only long-term treatment facility for adults
is at the State penitentiary. Treatment time is not long enough
for methamphetamine addicts; 28 days is not enough time.
Oftentimes, the need for recovery for methamphetamine addicts
is 6 months or longer.
There is a lack of law enforcement. There is not enough
funding to address the need on many reservations, and due to
recent budget cuts, the Turtle Mountain Reservation will lose
its drug investigators. Spirit Lake will lose one police
officer when it currently only has one officer on duty per
shift.
There is a dramatic increase in the number of babies being
born affected by methamphetamine. Information is not being
shared with the community. We need to educate the tribal
community so members know what is going on with
methamphetamine. Drug testing is not being done at all levels
of employment in our tribal communities.
As a brief side note, as you might be aware, Mr. Vice
Chairman, the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians recently
passed unanimously by the tribal council an exclusion and
removal ordinance. This ordinance has been at the forefront of
the tribal chairman's agenda since July 2005 and was instituted
to deter malicious violations on the reservation.
The resolution applies to any individual who violates the
peace, welfare and happiness of the tribal membership through
illegal drug activity. This resolution is another example of
the work being done at the grassroots level to combat the
methamphetamine epidemic.
Therefore, Mr. Vice Chairman, as is evident through the
listing of preliminary findings, the implementation of the
United Tribes grant is a proactive and positive step toward
eradicating the methamphetamine problem in Indian country.
Through collaboration and cooperation between all levels of
government and continued support of grant programs that provide
the opportunity to open the lines of communication between
these levels of government, workable solutions will be
identified and implemented to ensure the prosperity of future
generations of Indian people.
Mr. Vice Chairman, thank you for allowing me to testify
today and I look forward to answering any questions you might
have.
[Prepared statement of Ms. Azure appears in appendix.]
Senator Dorgan. Ms. Azure, thank you very much.
I am going to ask a series of questions, then I will call
on my colleague, Senator Murkowski.
I am going to ask you, Ms. Azure, in a couple of minutes
about the 90 percent of the individuals entering treatment
programs at the Turtle Mountain Reservation being meth related.
That is an unbelievable statistic. I am going to ask you about
some of that.
But first, Chairwoman Wesley-Kitcheyan, your testimony is
just heartbreaking. I know you said that you, as chairman of
our tribe, were almost reluctant to come here because of airing
dirty laundry in public, the perception of doing that. I know
you said that. I think your testimony is enormously helpful and
I hope will persuade the Congress to work with you and with
others and be much more aggressive, and I hope in the long term
will save lives.
Let me just review a couple of the things you described: A
9-year-old meth user; 9 years old, a meth user; a 22-year-old
meth user trying to commit suicide by stabbing himself with a
10-inch knife; 101 suicide attempts on your reservation of,
what, 15,000 people, you said?
Ms. Wesley-Kitcheyan. About 13,000.
Senator Dorgan. About 13,000 people, in 1 year, 101 suicide
attempts, some related to meth. Of the past 10 suicide
attempts, 8 of the individuals were using meth; in 2004, 64
babies out of 256 born to the San Carlos Apache Tribal members
were addicted to meth; 24 to 25 percent of pregnant women at
the San Carlos Reservation tested positive for meth, pregnant
women.
Just going through this list, it just breaks your heart to
understand the human misery that is visited upon these Indian
reservations as a result of those who are peddling this deadly
addiction to methamphetamine.
But let me just say to you that it is very hard to talk
about these things in public for a tribal chair on behalf of
your people, but I think it is also very important, because if
we don't get this country and the Congress to understand the
dimensions of this crisis, it is not going to be responded to
as aggressively as it must.
I could tell when you described, was it your nephew?
Ms. Wesley-Kitcheyan. My grandson.
Senator Dorgan. Your grandson, a rodeo star, who took his
own life, or was killed?
Ms. Wesley-Kitcheyan. No; it was in a car accident. He was
on the Tohono O'odham Reservation and he was engaged in human
smuggling, as well as drinking and doing drugs.
Senator Dorgan. Yes; I could tell when you described that
and had difficulty describing it, how profoundly affected all
of us are by what people get involved with when addicted to
meth.
I have at meth meetings in North Dakota used a series of
about seven charts of a woman who was arrested for meth use, a
vibrant beautiful woman, with her mug shot at a police station,
and then over the next 6 years, six additional photographs of
that woman. It is unbelievable to see what has happened. That
woman at the end of 6 years looked almost like a cadaver. It is
unbelievable the effect of methamphetamine on humans.
Ms. Azure points out 90 percent of the individuals entering
treatment programs at Turtle Mountain are methamphetamine
addicted. She says there is a very low recovery rate for meth,
which is what I was asking the Indian Health Service about. You
say 3 percent due to the fact that treatment is not long
enough.
I don't want to give testimony here, but let me just also
point out a family that came to a meeting I had in Dickinson,
ND recently. A young daughter, 3.6 grade point average, junior
in college, a terrific young woman, doing well, all of a sudden
at a party got a hold of some meth, became addicted, and is in
and out of jail ever since. And that family came to this
meeting I had to say they were fortunate that that daughter of
theirs was kept in jail for a lengthy period of time so that
then they could find a treatment center where she now is that
would give her at least 1 year to 15 months of concentrated
treatment because that is the only way she can shed her
addiction. She can't shed her addiction unless she has that
kind of treatment.
My great fear is that we don't have nearly enough resources
devoted to this. First, stopping the flow from Mexico coming
in; second, stopping the cooking of meth here in this country;
third, when we have these people who are addicted, putting them
into a treatment program that really does work, a lengthy
program. This can't be like other addictions because it doesn't
work the same way. It is much more deadly.
I didn't mean to give a statement here, but I was really
taken by the testimony here. Mr. Keel and Mr. Edwards, you
described the additional money that is necessary. You can't do
this without having treatment beds, without having law
enforcement, without having intervention and opportunities.
So let me just ask a couple of very brief questions.
Chairwoman Wesley-Kitcheyan, this is the second time that you
have been a part of a group that I have had the opportunity to
listen to. You come to Washington, DC and you described to us
this morning a devastating set of circumstances. You are a
tribal leader. What is the most important one or two things
that you think we can and must do to give you the tools and to
be helpful to you to address this and turn it around?
Ms. Wesley-Kitcheyan. I believe that the most important
thing that Congress can do is to restore the funding to BIA,
IHS, and possibly more as well, because the first panel
described treatment centers. Some of my people have to wait and
then they give up waiting to be placed in those treatment
centers. Prevention, dollars for prevention would be number
two, in my opinion. Social services is facing a $16-million
shortfall in BIA. Next year, I understand it is going to be $11
million. We need that. Our kids need that.
Senator Dorgan. Ms. Azure, in your role as a tribal
appellate judge, you have people come before you whom I assume
you know, or at least others tell you, are addicted to
methamphetamine. Is that correct?
Ms. Azure. Yes; that is correct, particularly a lot of the
kids that I see are involved in custody cases, because they
were child abuse and neglect cases at the lower court level.
The reason why many of the children were removed was because of
meth use in the home.
Senator Dorgan. And if you see someone coming before you
that has a meth addiction, and you need to respond to that in
your judicial role, what normally would you do? Because you
understand from your testimony that treatment for that cannot
be treatment of 2 weeks or 30 days somewhere. It has to be a
much more aggressive treatment. What do you do?
Ms. Azure. Unfortunately at the appellate level, we can
either just dismiss the case or remand it to the lower court
with instructions. In those cases, we would remand to the lower
court with a recommendation that they seek further treatment.
Along with what Ms. Wesley-Kitcheyan stated, in the State of
North Dakota there are no treatment facilities for juveniles at
all.
Currently, at Turtle Mountain there are two juveniles that
nobody wants to take in their treatment centers because of not
only their substance abuse issues, but they have behavioral
problems. They are unruly children, I guess, or unruly
juveniles and they cannot be handled.
So we have a problem with those two individuals. Their
parents have nothing to do with them anymore. So this is a
problem. This is the future of our reservation: These children.
We have tried to get them into other State treatment programs.
Oftentimes, South Dakota will handle these cases. And also for
the adults, at Turtle Mountain we only have eight beds in our
residential facility, which is not nearly enough. However, the
State penitentiary does have a program and it seems to be
working due to the fact that they are incarcerated for over the
6-month period.
Senator Dorgan. About 1\1/2\ weeks ago, I sat down with up
to I guess 10 or 12 teenage students on an Indian reservation
in North Dakota. No press was there. No parents were there. No
teachers were there. I just wanted to sit down and talk to them
about their lives, about the challenges, about substance abuse,
about teenage pregnancy, all the things that are happening on
their reservation that represent their experience.
It was a fascinating discussion. Also heartbreaking in many
ways as well, but we have so much to do.
Mr. Edwards, I think you and Mr. Keel described
circumstances where you believe that there are drug dealers
going reservation to reservation to create addiction, and
therefore create a market. Do you believe it is that
deliberate? And how significant is that?
Mr. Keel. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
I believe it is deliberate. I believe they treat it as a
business. In order to create a business, you go to somewhere
where the people are vulnerable. Our children are vulnerable in
the rural areas where they have a lack of resources. For
instance, law enforcement, I think it has already been pointed
out that the vast area, the geographic size of some of these
areas are unmanageable by tribal police.
Senator Dorgan. When you say ``they,'' is it organized
crime or is it the development of new drug rings?
Mr. Keel. I believe it is both. I believe it is the, well,
let me go back. A couple of years, 2 or 3 years ago in
Oklahoma, we had a real epidemic of local folks cooking this
meth. In the rural areas, they would cook it and then sell it
and create a market.
As the State of Oklahoma clamped down and created laws
where it made it harder to buy the actual phedrine and some of
the things are used in the manufacturing of this drug, it made
it harder for them to get the materials. And so, this created
an opportunity for some of the areas from Dallas, from Mexico,
from other places to come in with their drug that is already
made. The way you create a market is to get someone addicted.
And so you give it away. You give this, or you create a real
cheap market.
Senator Dorgan. Do you think there is a deliberate strategy
to create a customer base by addicting people with the free
samples?
Mr. Keel. Absolutely.
Senator Dorgan. Mr. Edwards, would you comment on that?
Then I am going to call on my colleague, Senator Murkowski.
Mr. Edwards. Yes; I think it not only is organized by drug
cartels and for money, but I also fear that terrorists and
people that are wishing harm to our country in general are also
orchestrating some of this particular advancement of
methamphetamine, and the smuggling of that across the borders.
It is relatively inexpensive compared to other drugs, but its
treatment is severe, the implications of what it does to the
brain and how long, as you mentioned, it takes for that person
or persons to recover. I think that would be terrorist tactic
that we must be aware of today and we must stop this drug from
coming across our borders.
There are certain things that we can do and we have done,
and the Patriot Act helps us do that with regard to stopping
the manufacture in the drug labs inside the United States. But
now, all indications show that 80 percent of the drug is being
smuggled from Mexico into the United States. We must stop that.
Senator Dorgan. Mr. Edwards, thank you very much.
Senator Murkowski.
STATEMENT OF HON. LISA MURKOWSKI, U.S. SENATOR FROM ALASKA
Senator Murkowski. Thank you, Senator Dorgan, and thank you
to the witnesses that have given such compelling testimony here
this afternoon.
I wish that we had had an opportunity to point out the
young people that were in the back of the room who just left.
There must have been 20 of them at one point in time. I look at
that, I look at them and recognize this is how we are going to
make the difference when it comes to the prevention and the
education. These young people need to hear how meth is killing
our people. They need to understand that this is real, that
this is devastating, and this could be them and their families.
Unfortunately, as we know with all of our young people,
there is a little bit of invincibility. We can do anything and
make it through and be fine. Meth is different. And if there is
one thing that I have picked up from the testimony that I have
heard here this morning, meth is different and we need to treat
it differently.
Now, I was sitting here thinking, when it was cocaine or
when it was ecstasy or when it was heroin, did we have a call
for a drug czar? Did we have task forces being formed to look
specifically at one drug? I don't recall that we did. I think
we acknowledged that we have a terrible problem with substance
abuse and we have to deal with it, but we have never identified
one drug and said, this is killing our people. And meth is
doing just this.
And so, I appreciate the fact that we are using terminology
like declaring war on meth. We must be tougher and stronger and
more adamant about eliminating it, eradicating it than we have
anything else because it will kill us in larger numbers than
any other drug out there, is what I understand.
And Mr. Chairman, I want to thank you for your very
personal initiative and your leadership on this issue. We have
a long way to go, and I was listening to you talk about how we
have to approach the treatment differently. When we are talking
about the dollars and acknowledging that treatment programs for
young people simply don't exist and those that do are not
adequate. We have a very seriously long way to go in how we are
going to deal with this.
We are seeing meth present its ugly head all over Alaska
right now. I have always liked to think that we are far enough
away, we are remote, we are inaccessible, we have geographic
challenges that make certain aspects of commerce next to
impossible in my communities. And you know what? Even with
those challenges, something like meth gets in and it starts to
take out our villages. We are seeing it up in Barrow, the
furthest north community. That community has declared war. They
were shocked when they discovered that meth was being cooked in
Barrow.
We don't quite know what to do yet, and listening to you,
it appears to me that we are all in this together. Nobody quite
knows what to do yet. I think it is because we are dealing with
a drug that is different.
Mr. Edwards, I want to ask you from the enforcement
perspective, one of the issues that we have been dealing with
in Alaska, so many of our villages are dry or damp, and so we
try to put some accountability with the U.S. Postal Service to
help us keep the alcohol out of the communities. How do we do
it with something like meth, when you are talking about moving
a much smaller, much easier to hide item? What hope can you
give me in terms of what we are doing currently to stop the
smuggling?
You have indicated that 80 percent of this stuff is coming
over the Mexican border. Are we making any headway at all in
identifying and stopping?
Mr. Edwards. I think we are making good headway in non-
Indian territory, but not near as quick a headway in Indian
country because the resources have not been targeted there and
delivered there. Indian country is doing the best we can with
the resources we currently have, and it is a rare instance
where the true partnership develops and we get the funding we
need to stop those type of smuggling.
One thing, and we are looking just at the continental
United States and the 40 tribes within that area, that our
surveys showed us was that of these tribes, the tribes believe
that they need a total of 533 additional law enforcement
officers just to maintain their current level of smuggling
preparedness, patrols and general other criminal type
activities.
When we are dealing with methamphetamine, I think the key
thing here is that we have to realize that this is not like we
used to deal with cocaine or heroin, where we would go in and
we would work and we would do a bust and we would work our way
up the food chain. This is a unique, different culture. It is
more of a closed culture. So consequently, it is much harder
for law enforcement to infiltrate.
So consequently, that is why I am saying we need to have a
drug czar in place so that we can begin a planning strategic
process that we understand now more about this terrible drug
and disease. We understand that it is a very gang-prone method.
It was a Hell's Angels drug back in the 1970's and 1980's. We
have dealt with these things before. We have been successful,
but we need to have a coordinated effort.
Right now, we have a lot of different agencies going out
and doing different things, conducting training and education,
but somehow we need to pull that together.
Senator Murkowski. You have indicated through your words
here that you recognize that there has to be a different
approach with this drug. Is that generally accepted within the
law enforcement? And do they recognize that this approach has
to be different with meth?
Mr. Edwards. Yes; I think it is. And that is in Indian
country and non-Indian country. The COPS office, the Community
Oriented Policing Service, conducted a methamphetamine
initiative back in 2005, and some of their findings at the end
of 2005 indicated that they had five pilot sites and none were
on reservations. And the approach that they used and what they
learned are some of the things that I mentioned to you, that it
is different, it is a more closed society.
You do have it where you can manufacture it right there
locally with people that know each other. These things that I
am telling you are conclusions that they have drawn. But now we
need to take that and make it a culturally effective thing for
our particular Indian communities.
Senator Murkowski. What can we do, and I will direct this
to all of you who can jump in here, what can we do from the
prevention and the education perspective within Indian country,
up in our native villages, down on the reservations. What can
we do to have an effective prevention message so that our young
people are getting it and steer clear of it? What do we have to
do? Does anybody have any good ideas?
Mr. Keel. I will try. I think one of the problems that we
have in Indian country is a lack of a coordinated strategy in
Indian country for a message to go out nationally. There are
some organizations, the National Congress of American Indians,
the National American Indian Housing Council, several of those
have newsletters that we send out. But tribes are not treated
the same as States in terms of the grants that go out to some
of the drug prevention strategies.
I think a coordinated effort nationally that includes the
tribes and the States and all of the other national agencies
together, putting together a message that reaches our young
people down at the high schools and even down in the junior
high and elementary levels. It has to go locally. I think the
Indian tribes with tribal governments are more local. They are
more able to do that, particularly with the reservation and
some that are isolated.
Methamphetamines, it affects the whole family. It is
shattering the families because there are instances, for
instance in the Navajo Nation, where a grandmother was recently
arrested, three generations of that one family, for selling
drugs. You know, they are all involved. And so, somehow we have
to reach our people and it has to be a coordinated strategy.
Ms. Wesley-Kitcheyan. If I may please? Senator Murkowski,
thank you very much.
I really believe that one of the things we should do in
terms of prevention and intervention is that we need to develop
educational curriculum for Head Start students on up to the
senior level.
Secondly, I think we need to exercise tough love for our
children. I know and I have seen many parents think that they
do good by providing just about anything that children want,
but that is not the way. We can develop a strong juvenile code
as a tribe and stick with it. And continue to look for
prevention programs, treatment centers, get in highly
specialized personnel in the Indian Health Service or tribal
health service to provide counseling for our children because
we really don't have that at this point.
Senator Murkowski. I appreciate the advice on kind of a
coordinated campaign. Certainly from the national perspective,
meth is huge, everywhere. But it does make me wonder if you
don't need a more defined strategy within Indian country where
the devastation just seems to be that much more acute.
Of course, as a parent, we are all aware you can talk the
talk, but if you are the messenger that teenagers are tuning
out to, we can talk all we want. This is going to have to be
something where we have an ability to actually have a
communication with the young people. It is almost, maybe we ll
need to sit down with 10 or 12 of them and do it one group at a
time.
I am not quite sure what it is, but we are not getting the
message out yet that this is something that does kill you and
your family, and that the long term consequences are simply not
worth the risk.
Mr. Edwards, you look like you wanted to jump in there.
Mr. Edwards. I think when we look at meth, education is
certainly a key for not only the children, but also for the
tribal leaders, elders and the community in general, and also
through the whole process of enforcement and then recovery.
But you know, meth is like any adversary or foe. It has
weaknesses. In Indian country, I think there are two primary
vulnerabilities of meth that we can turn into our strengths.
Those are peer groups, the use of peer groups, and the economy.
Right now, it is a cheap substance. We must go into the
distribution, the supply, the manufacturing method with our law
enforcement and we must make that more expensive to where
people can't afford it, for one reason.
The next thing in dealing with the children and everything,
we must remove the criminal peer groups such as gangs. And then
we must interject and change those peer groups to positive
organizations that are safe places for kids that provide hope
for the future, such as Boys and Girls Clubs of America and
tribal youth organizations.
These have proven to be effective and I think used in the
proper context, and also with the infiltration of police being
there and explaining and educating in these particular groups,
that we will be successful.
Senator Murkowski. I am going up to the State next week and
visiting in about five very small villages outside of the
Kotzebue region. When I am in the State and am talking with
young people, this is something that I bring up at every
opportunity. I think it is something that we as policymakers,
you and all of your roles, we need to be talking about it all
the time and making sure that we have the facts with us, and
letting our young people understand. So that will be my mission
next week.
Mr. Chairman, I want to thank you for again your leadership
on this and for the time with the witnesses here this morning.
Senator Dorgan. Senator Murkowski, thank you very much, and
thanks for your continuing concern on the meth issue.
I want to indicate again that Senator McCain was a
stimulant for the calling of this hearing, along with myself,
and is fully committed on this issue. He was called to
leadership meetings this morning on the immigration bill that
is on the floor.
But Senator McCain and I plan to introduce later today
legislation which would amend the recently enacted U.S.A.
Patriot Act to specifically include tribal governments in
methamphetamine reduction grants. It would add tribes to the
two grant provisions for meth hot spot areas and drug-
endangered children, and clarify tribal eligibility for the
competitive grants to address methamphetamine by pregnant and
parenting women offenders.
I wanted to make that point again, and to indicate on
behalf of the chairman that this committee will continue to be
vigilant and aggressive on the methamphetamine issue. We thank
very much the witnesses who have come today to testify.
This hearing is adjourned.
[Whereupon, at 11:35 a.m., the committee was adjourned, to
reconvene at the call of the chair.]
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A P P E N D I X
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Additional Material Submitted for the Record
=======================================================================
Prepared Statement of Hon. Daniel K. Akaka, U.S. Senator from Hawaii
Thank you Mr. Chairman and Mr. Vice Chairman for holding this
important oversight hearing. I am pleased that our witnesses are
provided this venue to discuss the effects of methamphetamine use in
Indian country, as well as solutions that can be shared with Native and
rural communities across the nation. Meth trafficking and usage are
serious problems in this country that continue to significantly burden
and disproportionately impact our Nation's indigenous people.
With Hawaii having the highest meth usage rate in the country, I am
very familiar with the devastating physical, social, and economical
problems resulting from the presence of meth in our communities.
Unfortunately, I have witnessed first hand the deterioration caused by
meth usage on the well-being of Native Hawaiian youths and their
communities. This drug depletes the productivity and energy of some of
our brightest and most promising young people, robbing them of the
experiences of youth and leaving them disadvantaged for the future. It
also weakens the cultural foundation of these communities that in turn,
inhibits the ability of our indigenous people to contribute to the
larger society.
I look forward to working with the committee and my colleagues to
ensure that every effort is made to empower the indigenous people of
this country to not only treat meth abuse, but also to prevent meth
trafficking and usage in their communities. I thank the witnesses here
today for presenting their testimony.
______
Prepared Statement of Ivan D. Posey, Chairman, Eastern Shoshone
Business Council
Good morning. My name is Ivan Posey and I currently serve as the
chairman for the Eastern Shoshone Business Council and cochair for the
Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho Joint Business Council. We both
share the 2.3 million acre Wind River Indian Reservation in west
central Wyoming. It is the only reservation in the State of Wyoming.
There are currently 3,900 Eastern Shoshone and 8,200 Northern
Arapaho tribal members. Over 50 percent of tribal members from both
tribes are under the age of 30. The reservation is home to
approximately 7,000 American Indians and 9,000 non-Indians.
First of all I would to thank the distinguished Senators on the
committee, including our own Senator Craig Thomas, for allowing me to
testify on a very important issue that is affecting Indian country--
methamphetamine.
I would like to present testimony on the following: Foster Care,
Health Care, Education, and Law Enforcement.
FOSTER CARE
According to workers in the social service programs for the tribes,
methamphetamine plays a large role in 65 percent of all cases involving
child neglect and placement of children in foster care. Use of the drug
has devastating and sometimes lasting affects to the tribal family
structure. Let me explain, foster care parents are hard to come by in
Indian country which sometime places the burden on relative placement
which may be the grandparents, uncles, aunts, and siblings. Although
our extended family structure is a great strength for us it sometimes
has negative affects on the children in the system that may still have
close ties with a parent, or parents, who are still utilizing this
illegal drug. When a family member has a substance abuse problem it
affects the whole family. We don't alienate our family members and that
sometimes creates a codependent system for the whole family including
the children. With the drug so easily available and addictive it
increases the chances of violence in households.
The strain on our social workers is tremendous considering the
rural setting of the reservation and the distance between our four
communities and the towns of Lander and Riverton. The continuing
coordination with the court system, recovery programs, counselors and
others involved with children is, at times, overwhelming. Our social
services programs are staffed with committed people who are being
bombarded with the affects of this drug in an already strained system.
I believe that we must provide the family with the necessary tools
to adequately address this problem. This may include counseling for the
entire family and the resources to adequately fund these initiatives. I
understand that there is no easy solution when it comes to the
devastating affects of methamphetamine in Indian country but realize
that family structure is the most important.
EDUCATION AND HEALTH CARE
There was an instance where a young lady went to school
``tweaking'' from the affects of this drug. She mentioned to her
friends that she acquired the drug from her parents ``stash'' and that
she would share with them if they wanted some. The sad part of this
story is that this young lady was in sixth grade.
Access to this drug has become more available to students in all
grades on and off our reservation.
Methamphetamine among parents affects students, especially
preschool and Head Start age, through increased absenteeism and
malnutrition. When parents who use don't have an appetite they in turn
don't feed their children. This has a direct affect on a child's
learning ability.
Education, I feel, is the key to addressing the problem of
methamphetamine in Indian country. Whether it is the local school
system, tribal governments, or interagency coordination, getting the
word out on the devastating affects of this drug is essential. There
has to be more efforts to educate our elders and community members to
the dangers of methamphetamine use. Our tribe currently performs pre-
employment and random drug testing and has established an employee
assistance program for those who wish to seek help if they are tested
positive.
Our health care system in Indian country is already at the breaking
point for providing adequate health care for tribal people.
Methamphetamine use has increased the number of vehicle crashes,
domestic violence visits, and prolonged hospital stays due to some of
these factors.
The use of this drug has long lasting affects to those who become
addicted. Long term affects range from continued mental and dental care
to permanent brain damage. Some people will become lifelong patients to
our tribal health care systems.
What is needed in Indian country are residential treatment
facilities that address chemical dependency in sometimes a cultural and
traditional manner; 80 percent of all residents in the Rock Springs, WY
treatment facility are from the Fremont County, where we reside. This
facility is 2.5 hours away from our home. Some youth patients go as far
as California and South Dakota.
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Law enforcement have seen four homicides in 2004 related to
methamphetamine use on the Wind River Reservation. There were 284 drug
related misdemeanors in 2004 [possession, sell, and manufacture] with
99 in 2005. There were also 125 child abuse cases reported in 2004 and
90 in 2005.
One of the key aspects to combat methamphetamine was the
establishments of partnerships with the Drug Enforcement Agency and the
Wyoming Department of Criminal Investigation. Support from the Shoshone
and Arapaho Tribe Joint Business Council for this partnership was
instrumental in allowing this to happen in 2004.
Our local law enforcement has been very active working with other
organizations to address the problem and look at the issue in a broader
sense.
The major drug bust in May 2005 has shown that this drug does not
discriminate. From our judicial system to our local schools it has, and
continues, to have drastic affects. With our rural setting we still
need enough uniformed officers to adequately patrol and protect our
homes. We need an increase of funding for our law enforcement and
tribal courts in Indian country.
SUMMARY
In closing I would like to emphasize the need for more prevention
programs that can be offered through our Boys and Girls Clubs or other
youth organizations. There is also a place for this at our senior
citizens programs. We need to continue to educate at all age levels and
strongly push the negative affects of this drug. We also need to look
at long term treatment facilities in areas such as ours which are in
rural settings which makes us send our loved ones to other states to
receive treatment. The emphasis needs to be Prevention, Education, and
Treatment. Unfortunately, those caught in the middle are subject to our
law enforcement and judicial systems.
As sovereign nations, Indian tribes need to look forward to ensure
that we pass the torch to our younger generation so our people have the
same right to quality of life and other opportunities as we have had.
Methamphetamine is a very real threat that we need to address and
overcome as a Nation to feel we did what we could to make this a better
place for those who follow us.
Thank You.
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