Found Deceased MT - Selina (Selena) Not Afraid, 16, I-90 rest area between Billings & Hardin, 1 Jan 2020

Few law enforcement officers were willing to appear in this documentary. The Bureau of Indian Affairs and FBI have a no media policy for unsolved cases, and the Big Horn County Sheriff’s Office seems to have a standard fellow-cop bro code. But the guy that shows up the most is former Undersheriff Eric Winburn, who was relieved of his position months after Selena Not Afraid’s body was found. (Her dad was appointed Undersheriff next, so … there’s that.) At the time of his interview, Winburn had retired comfortably to Idaho, and had no fear of retribution from current Sheriff’s Office employees. He has a lot to say about his perceptions of the Crow and Northern Cheyenne communities—that they don’t take good care of their kids, that they’re eager to blame some “white boogeyman” for bad things that happen to their loved ones—and they’re pretty classic sweeping generalizations one might expect from a white cop from a majority white area where the sentiment surrounding Natives is not great. But hey, he was willing to speak. Cool. If this show seems one-sided, its villains edited to appear almost cartoonish, that’s a fair criticism. But if these dudes aren’t willing to speak for themselves here, maybe that’s on them.

As the episodes unfold, family members take up activist roles, hosting rallies and maintaining as much media attention as possible for the missing and murdered women they loved. Kaysera Stops Pretty Places’ grandmother Yolanda Fraser organized various demonstrations in the area, and Selena Not Afraid’s aunt, Cheryl Horn, presumably the last family member to have spoken to Selena before her death (dismissed as craving “her 15 minutes of fame” by former Undersheriff Winburn) hosted search party volunteers at the rest stop where her niece was last seen.
 
He has a lot to say about his perceptions of the Crow and Northern Cheyenne communities—that they don’t take good care of their kids, that they’re eager to blame some “white boogeyman” for bad things that happen to their loved ones- and they’re pretty classic sweeping generalizations
I agree, the officer is probably not to win any community awards for sensitivity.

At the same time, one can be very unsensitive, yet also provide brutal, but accurate assesments about an athletes ability to compete at a certain level, a budding actresses potential, a start up companies chance of success, or..... where certain criminal perpetrators are likely to be found.

In the end, statistically the most dangerous threat to a young black male is another young black male. The most dangerous statistical threat to young Scottish males in say, Glasgow is not a violently inclined immigrant- its a young Scottish male.

Likewise, I am guessing that statistically, the most dangerous threat to native American women on reservation comes from native American males.

Native American women not only have the statistics to contend with, but they also need to contend with their own people's sovereignty to contend with. As my non native Puerto Rican friend tells me, sovereignty is not always managed well.

Mismanaged sovereignty can create "systems" where some matter alot more than others. Once systems are created, that same sovereign status makes them very hard to dismantle.
 
<modsnip - quoted post removed>
<modsnip> Crimes that occur on sovereign nations, above misdemeanors are under the purview of the FBI. This has been in effect for over 30 years.

 
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<modsnip> Crimes that occur on sovereign nations, above misdemeanors are under the purview of the FBI. This has been in effect for over 30 years.

<modsnip> Assaults on Native women aren't prosecutable in TRIBAL court in many places, and federal jurisdiction doesn't always lead to prosecution. The issue then is a lot of victims feel like they have no route to justice.


Native American women still have the highest rates of rape and assault


<modsnip - no link for statement made as fact>
 
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Selena Not Afraid went missing while in the company of friends from the reservation.

Mildred Old Crow, went missing while in custody of Native American guardians on the Crow reservation.


Arden Pepion went missing while in custody of her uncle, on the Blackfoot reservation.

Ashley Heavy Runner, disappeared on Blackfoot reservation. Ashley Loring Heavyrunner Wanted to Help Find Missing Indigenous Women — Then She Disappeared
 
It's been a longstanding complaint about offenders from other backgrounds coming to or living on reservations and committing crimes and then being immune from prosecution from tribal jurisdictions.
Tribal police have jurisdiction over cases on a Reservation where either the perpetrator or the victim is native American.

<modsnip> They are capable of same level of criminality and the same level of law abiding behavior as any other group of humans.

This fact is reflected by the cases linked on this thread:

Selena Not Afraid was not victimized by outsiders. The people suspected of being behind the disappearance of the 8 year old child are both tribal members. Arden Peion's uncle is likely a tribal member. Likewise, Ashely Heavy Runner was known to have contact with criminals from The Blackfeet nation.

The above reflects a pattern that is, not surprisingly, similar to every other groups of humans: Crime victims are most likely victimized by other members of their own ethnicity, or socio economic back ground. <modsnip>
 
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Tribal police have jurisdiction over any case occurring on a Reservation where either the perpetrator or the victim is native American.

<modsnip> They are capable of same level of criminality and the same level of law abiding behavior as any other group of humans.

This fact is reflected by the cases linked on this thread. Selena Not Afraid was not victimized by outsiders. The people suspected of being behind the disappearance of the 8 year old child are both tribal members. Arden Peion's uncle is likely a tribal member. Likewise, Ashely Heavy Runner was known to have contact with criminals from The Blackfeet nation.

The above reflects a pattern that is, not surprisingly, similar to every other groups of humans: Crime victims are most likely victimized by other members of their own ethnicity, or socio economic back ground.
<modsnip>
<modsnip> I'm merely stating facts that are repeated in numerous studies that Native American women are the exception to the pattern about people being victimized most frequently by their own race. That doesn't mean it doesn't happen, and I never once said that it didn't, so I'm baffled as to why that's the counterargument being used here by multiple people.

<modsnip - no link from an approved source>
 
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Jan 26, 2024 update


[…]

"A lot of people are going in the prevention direction where they are addressing issues at the root causes. At the academic level, Rocky Mountain College and MSUB have made attempts to support Indigenous students far more than what I've seen in the past. The schools here are engaged in terms of learning about the crisis. There are pushes from various industries regarding the crisis which I do see happening daily here in Billings,” explained Sleeper.

[…]
 
A man has been charged in Selena Not Afraid's death, On Dec. 24, Robert Alvin Morning-Bromley III was charged with two counts of criminal criminal endangerment in Big Horn County District Court for leaving two people (identified as "Adult Doe" and "Minor Doe" in court documents) stranded at a rest stop while both were intoxicated and not appropriately dressed for winter weather.

 
DEC 30, 2024
The court documents state that at a rest area in Big Horn County, Morning-Bromley left Not Afraid and Adult Doe behind after they exited the van. Despite being aware of their intoxication and inappropriate clothing for the cold weather, he drove away without them.

The court documents allege that Morning-Bromley's actions created a substantial risk of death or serious bodily injury, as he was aware of the cold temperatures and the intoxicated state of both individuals.

PDF linked in the article:
 
HARDIN (KPAX) — A man has been charged in connection with the death of 16-year-old Selena Not Afraid, who disappeared on Jan. 1, 2020 after attending a New Year's Eve party in Billings.

Robert Alvin Morning-Bromley II has been charged in Big Horn County District Court with two counts of felony criminal endangerment.

Prosecutors allege Morning-Bromley left the teenager and an adult at a rest stop off Interstate 90 between Hardin and Billings knowing they were both intoxicated and not dressed for the weather.

The charges allege Morning-Bromley's actions "created a substantial risk of death or serious bodily injury" to Not Afraid and the adult by leaving them at the rest stop under the circumstances.

 
The charging documents filed against Morning-Bromley state that on Dec. 31 a person identified by the initials J.B. dropped Not Afraid off at a New Year's Eve party in Billings and watched her enter the residence. J.B. returned to the residence at about 2 p.m. the following day looking for Not Afraid but she and others had already caught a ride with Morning-Bromley back to Hardin.

The documents state Not Afraid, the unidentified adult and three others were given a ride in a van by Morning-Bromley and the group "continually consumed extensive amounts of alcohol." Morning-Bromley later told investigators that the van he was driving had mechanical issues with the water pump causing him to stop and start the vehicle at different locations on the trip from Billings to Hardin.

When the group reached the closed rest area Morning-Bromley pulled in by passing a gate. Both Not Afraid and the adult got out of the van, and Morning-Bromley "was aware that both (Not Afraid and the adult) had been drinking a bottle of Black Velvet while traveling and were highly intoxicated," court documents state.

Morning-Bromley got the vehicle running and called for the two to get back in the van but neither listened to his instructions and he left the rest stop with them, according to the court records. Neither was dressed for the weather conditions, and the adult did not have shoes on.
 
DEC 31, 2024
  • Morning-Bromley called his mother who was in another vehicle about 15 minutes behind.
  • When she arrived she found the adult who said Selena had run "into the field south of the rest area, across the fence, and towards the hills."
  • The woman honked the horn, then left.
  • When his mother arrived in Hardin, Morning-Bromley told her he didn't know who the girls were but that they were "(b)eing little 🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬 and wouldn't get in."
  • Morning-Bromley did not contact police to report Selena had been left at the rest stop, and there is no record of him ever calling or reporting to LE that she was missing.
 
I wouldn't even leave a dog, let alone a person alone at a rest stop on I-90. Especially in the winter! Montana winters are no joke, even mild days can change in temperature more than 40 degrees colder within an hour or so. Not including wind chill, the wind always blows there.

There is a level of inhumanity in that kind of calousness. At least notify authorities, or her family.

Granted, she drank alcohol, got out of the car, ran off, whatever the story is...but I just think maybe there is more to this story. Glad he is being charged.
 
I don't see him on the jail roster, and I also couldn't find a mugshot in MSM.


People can be charged, without being arrested. Often, it is opposite, People are arrested, then charged. In this case, the suspect has been charged, based on information and facts after the occurence. Now, there will be a warrant issued for his arrest.
 
Very long article.


Morning-Bromley did not contact police and there is no record of him “ever calling or reporting to law enforcement that [Selena] was missing.”

He is set to appear in court on January 21 – a day after Selena’s body was found five years ago.
 

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