Oklahoma reportedly has one of the highest rates of missing or murdered Native American women, but it can be hard to get a full picture of the problem because of a lack of comprehensive data.
Reps. Mickey Dollens, Daniel Pae and Merleyn Bell filed five bills to address the issue. The proposed legislation that will be up for consideration during the legislative session that begins Feb. 3 comes after Dollens held a November interim study on the issue.
Pae, R-Lawton, wants the state to create a
red alert system that would notify the public anytime an indigenous person goes missing in Oklahoma. The system, which would be run by the Department of Public Safety, would be similar to Amber Alerts used to notify the public of missing children.
Nationwide, only some tribes use the Amber Alert system, although the
number is growing due to changes at the federal level.
Legislation introduced by Pae also would require the Council on Law Enforcement and Education Training to
develop one hour of cultural sensitivity training relating to missing and murdered indigenous people.
“That’s so law enforcement officers can properly communicate with family members and make sure there aren’t any misunderstandings,” he said. “There also would be just a greater understanding of the culture as well.”
The bill is named Ida's Law, after Oklahoma resident
Ida Beard, who went missing in 2015. Law enforcement officials still don't know what happened to the woman who was 29 at the time.
The state liaison and the federal coordinator would work together to navigate complicated jurisdictional boundaries that can often slow down such cases, Dollens said.
"It's going to be a perfect match," he said. "We're one of 12 states to get a federal coordinator, and it's very much needed. That even validates the need for a state liaison, the fact that President Trump and his administration identified Oklahoma as a high-need state to address this issue."
Oklahoma legislation seeks to prevent missing, murdered Native Americans
