BIA Office of Justice Services
Deputy Director
 Christopher B. Chaney
Office of Justice Services
Bureau of Indian Affairs
1849 C Street NW, MS-4551
• Washington, DC 20240
Telephone: (202) 208-5787 • Fax: (202) 208-6170
The Bureau of Indian Affairs Office of Justice Services (BIA OJS) is responsible for law enforcement and public safety throughout Indian country. The BIA OJS provides police services, criminal investigations, and detention services to tribal communities. The BIA OJS protects life and property, promotes and preserves public safety, protects the rights of all people, interacts with tribes in a government-to-government capacity, and upholds the sovereignty of tribes. The BIA OJS is comprised of five areas:
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The Division of Law Enforcement provides police and investigative services and combats serious crime including homicides, sex offenses, robberies, assaults, child abuse, domestic violence, and the manufacture and trafficking of illegal drugs (including methamphetamine). Police officers and criminal investigators investigate violations of both federal and tribal law. The BIA OJS supports 201 law enforcement programs. Of these, 47 programs are operated directly by the BIA OJS and 154 are contracted to be operated by tribes.
- The Division of Corrections provides funding for 59 tribally-operated detention facilities and directly operates 19 detention facilities. The focus of this program is to provide detention services for tribal communities and to improve detention centers in order to make them more safe and secure.
- The Indian Police Academy is co-located with the Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Law Enforcement Training Center in Artesia, New Mexico. Academy staff provides basic police, criminal investigation, and detention officer training for BIA OJS and tribal officers.
- The Division of Professional Standards investigates allegations of wrongdoing by BIA OJS employees in its Internal Affairs capacity. In addition, the Inspections and Evaluations unit inspects police departments, criminal investigations units, and detention facilities to ensure that such programs are being run in a safe and professional manner.
- The Division of Tribal Justice Support encourages the establishment and development of tribal courts. In addition, the division assists with the provision of judicial services for tribes that do not have tribal courts. This is done through BIA Courts of Indian Offenses, also known as CFR Courts.
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