Verified Document

Tribal Law Enforcement The Legal Responsibilities Of Term Paper

Tribal Law Enforcement The legal responsibilities of the federal government has been on the increase with each passing year though the basic responsibility of preventing and controlling crime rests with the state, local and the tribal governments for it to be effective. There are several tribal police units that are entrusted with the control of crime and prevention of the same assisted by the tribal judicial systems that have the duty of applying the law. These two bodies, the tribal police and judiciary system are the ultimate expression of tribal sovereignty. These two systems help the nation express it sovereignty since they assist in enacting, enforcing as well as interpreting the national laws at the grassroots level (National Congress of American Indians, 2010).

Nature of Indian law enforcement system

Most of the public safety and criminal justice systems that are in the Indian legal system and Indian Country are funded by the federal government. This has seen an increasing workload handed to the Indian police department in the face of rising crime rates, increased involvement of the police in the social concerns that relate to crime, heightened community demands for police services, yet the Indian police system is struggling to meet all these demand on a very limited resource base. The success so far of this process is from the dedication that is there among the men and women who are working for the Indian Country police department and their professionalism that keeps them going each day of the week.

The nature and reality of the police in Indian country are as below;

The nature of the bureaucracy among the Indian police is such that they are within a very complex jurisdictional net, they are also answerable to multiple authorities, they have very limited resources from which they operate yet they have to patrol some of the most isolated areas of Indian country without much assistance from the partner law enforcement agencies.

The pressure on the police department is overwhelming as there are only 2,380 Bureau of Indian affairs and tribal uniformed officers that are accessible and enlisted to serve well over 1.4 million Indians on a geographical area of 56 million...

This then leaves gaps for the criminal elements that still widely threaten the security of the people and the development as well. There is rarely more than one officer on duty on the regular basis, and even this one officer normally has no adequate backup hence have to keep innovating means of compensating for the lack of backup.
The tribal court system

Despite the fact that there have been efforts to restrain the extent of the tribal justice system, tribes still have the ultimate authority to determine the legal system that govern them and the forums where such can be administered as well as the relationship that exists between the legal body and other governing bodies within or without the tribe. Among the many Indian tribes, the procedures used to handle the conflicts and crimes as well as disputes differ among the Indian Nations. Among many tribes, there is a dual justice system in existence, one that is based on the American paradigm of justice and the second purely based on the indigenous paradigm of justice. It is worth noting as well that some have the hybrid system that resulted out of imposed American style of justice system yet with indigenous philosophy, practices and methods into the court policies, practices and procedures (Vicenti, C.N., 1995).

There are fundamental differences that exist between the American justice system and the Indian tribal justice system that sets them totally apart. The American system has a vertical structure and hierarchy that limits the affected…

Sources used in this document:
References

Ada Pecos Melto Stephen Wall, & Hayes Lewis, (2004). Integrated Justice Systems in American

Indian Communities Planning Series: Understanding the Tribal Justice and Law Enforcement Environment. Retrieved December 4, 2011 from http://aidainc.net/CRD%20Envir.pdf

Fairbanks, C.D. (1991), Mediation in the Tribal Courts: Revitalizing Traditional Concepts of Justice, paper presented at the Native American Rights Fund National Conference, Dispute Resolution: A Reaffirmation of Indian Concepts of Justice, sponsored by the Indian Law Support Center.

National Congress of American Indians, (2010). Law Enforcement and Tribal Courts. Retrieved December 4, 2011 from http://www.ncai.org/Law-Enforcement-and-Tribal-Cou.34.0.html
Cite this Document:
Copy Bibliography Citation

Related Documents

Commission Report There's a Substantial Gap Between
Words: 3761 Length: 12 Document Type: Research Paper

Commission Report There's a substantial gap between the notions presented by the 9/11 Commission on inadequate imagination and its suggested solutions. It's unlikely that the primary modifications can help create analytical solutions in a limited amount of time. The advancement of national intelligence centres is really a pricey solution and idea that rests on impractical belief in the impartiality and just approach of the policymakers. The requirement of a bigger and

Courts Deal With Racial Profiling
Words: 599 Length: 2 Document Type: Essay

Law Enforcement Jurisdiction & Authority Law Enforcement Jurisdiction and Authority As with many governmental agencies, law enforcement is partitioned by agency type, organizational mission, overall size, and jurisdiction. The law enforcement agency spectrum is broad, spanning a range from small town police departments to extensive federal agencies. The brief descriptions below correspond to the categorical jurisdictions and authority of U.S. law enforcement agencies. Federal Law Enforcement Agencies The Bureau of Justice Statistics reports that

Environmental Crimes and Health and Safety Law
Words: 3051 Length: 11 Document Type: Research Paper

Environmental Crimes and Health and Safety Law Violation With the current changes in weather patterns, strange climatic conditions and other uncontrollable natural disasters, there has been a lot of attention directed towards the environment and the way people may be contributing to the degradation of the environment in small ways that is summed up results into the disasters that we see on daily basis. The environment is becoming unpleasant on an

Terrorism Is at This Point One of
Words: 2444 Length: 8 Document Type: Term Paper

Terrorism is at this point one of the main threats that decision makers in the field of national security have to deal with especially in the United States. The issue has been raised mainly after the events from 9/11 2001, but have been a constant concern for the law enforcement agencies since the beginning of the 90s and even before. The United States have a particular way in which it

Gang Activity Please See Notes
Words: 3398 Length: 10 Document Type: Essay

This becomes further complex as economic ties blur between the poor and middle classes and the expectations each has about the definition of materialistic success. By belonging to a subculture, however, one can feel part of something larger, insulated a bit from the criticisms and unattainable messages of the upper middle class, and certainly a way to belong and feel important with one's own environment (Siegel and Welsh, 2009,

Equality of Arms in International
Words: 3446 Length: 10 Document Type: Term Paper

Historically, since the end of the Vietnam War in 1975, Cambodia has suffered under the oppression of dictators such as Pol Pot, who instituted Communism and its related rights violations of law. As a result, the question of the future of Cambodia has become vitally important and likewise, international law has had to step in to remedy the situation. Statutes and Charters from the United Nations Tribunals The evolution of international

Sign Up for Unlimited Study Help

Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.

Get Started Now