Tulalip News

By Kalvin Valdillez, Tulalip News

By Kalvin Valdillez, Tulalip News

On the afternoon of August 6, Representative Rick Larsen (WA-02) visited with the Tulalip Board of Directors, the Tulalip Police Department, and members of the Tribe’s Treaty Rights Office and legal team to discuss a bill recently introduced to congress this month. 

The bill is officially titled the Protection for Reservation Occupants Against Trafficking and Evasive Communication Act, or the Protect Act for short. If passed, this could have a major impact for tribal nations as they continue to combat the opioid and fentanyl crisis. 

Tulalip Chairwoman Teri Gobin opened the gathering and shared, “First of all I want to welcome you to Tulalip and thank you for leading and introducing this bill. It’s amazing what this could do for us, the Protect Act of 2024. We’ve had 71 fentanyl overdose deaths that accounted to an actual overdose, but we’ve had a lot more deaths than that (due to addiction). The sad thing about it is the children. So many of the children are being left orphaned, both of their parents passing away from overdose. We’re having a lot of children who are born addicted, born with it in their system. So, our hands go up to you, we’re really excited about moving this forward. It’s time.” 

The Protect Act addresses a glaring jurisdictional issue that currently prevents tribes from prosecuting non-tribal members for illiegal drug activities on the reservation. The act is specific to drug trafficking, but it is key to battling the crisis and preventing loss of life on reservations throughout the country and a big step for tribal court systems. 

Providing a little historical context, Vice-Chair Misty Napeahi explained, “The Oliphant v. Suquamish Indian Tribe was passed by the United States Supreme Court in 1978, which literally took away the ability for tribes to prosecute non-tribal people on the reservation, and that is steeped very much in racism. I feel really thankful for you and the other congress people that are going to sign on to this bill for standing up for tribes. The people that bring the drugs in, they’re not dumb. They understand jurisdictional issues and they fully capitalize on it.”

BOD Glen Gobin added, “Across this nation there’s a fentanyl epidemic that every state is dealing with and are feeling the impact. For tribes, it’s even more difficult because of the jurisdictional questions that come up, who has criminal authority over non-Indians on the reservation. This bill looks to address that and bring safety to our community to deal with this. We’re looking to protect all of our citizens on the reservation and stand up and be part of this, fight against this epidemic that we’re all dealing with.”

In Larsen’s official press release, he surmises the Protect Act, and it reads as follows: 

Specifically, the PROTECT Act:

• Provides parity for Tribal courts to issue search warrants for certain electronic communications, including social media, by adding Tribal courts to the list of courts with “competent jurisdiction” under the Stored Communications Act.
• Expands Special Tribal Criminal Jurisdiction (STCJ) to crimes associated with drug trafficking.

Amends the Bureau of Prison’s (BOP) Tribal Prisoner Program (TPP) by expanding eligibility to offenders who commit drug-trafficking-related offenses.

According to the Snohomish County Opioid Overdose and Prevention Data and Dashboard, there were 188 overdose deaths in our county alone last year. There have been numerous studies from the likes of the CDC and Washington Post that show Native communities have been hit the hardest by the opioid crisis. 

The Washington State Department of Health’s Opioid and Drug Use Data Dashboard gives detailed and up-to-date statistics about the epidemic in real time. If you navigate their website and pull up overdose deaths stats based on demographics, the results are shocking. For all other races and ethnicities, there was an average of about 30 deaths per 100,000 people in 2022. The number for Alaskan Natives/American Indians was literally off the charts, with over 120 deaths per 100,000 population. 

Director of Treaty Rights Office, Ryan Miller, expressed, “I’m very excited to continue to push this forward and add this as another tool in our ability to fight this problem on our reservation; for the surrounding communities as well. Yeah, we’re focused on the Tribe, we’re focused on the reservation, but this affects everybody, all of the communities around us. We’ve got so many tools that we’ve been successful with, the Healing Lodge and so many other things that have helped us bring our members out of addiction and back in the community. And those have been fantastic, but without that tool to be able to put away the people who bring these drugs on the reservation and commit these crimes against our community members, we’re not going to be successful. This is a huge step towards that.”

You can follow the bill as it goes through the process of becoming a law, as well as read it’s official text, by visiting https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/house-bill/9310?s=1&r=1. 

Said Representative Larsen, “I look forward to working with you all to get the Protect Act passed and signed into law to ensure that tribes have the tools to combat the opioid epidemic and save lives. I raise my hand to all of you for the important work that you’re doing to save lives and make your communities safer.”

By Wade Sheldon, Tulalip News

The annual National Night Out (NNO) brought together community members at the Tulalip Amphitheater on Tuesday, August 6, fostering a deeper connection between the Tulalip Police Department (TPD) and the people of Tulalip. Several families attended to support TPD while also getting some cool swag.

NNO strives to educate the community about various police and community programs that are accessible to them. These programs include child support, mental health and wellness, educational services and more. Each tribal department spotlighting these services had a booth where kids and adults received gifts, and could participate in games like spinning the wheel for prizes, or making buttons and keychains.

Moving along with the theme of the evening, the new Chief of Police, Shawn Ledford, was on the scene to introduce himself and express his excitement about joining the community. He shared his eagerness to engage with residents, saying, “I can’t wait to sit down, have some coffee, and go over your concerns and how the police department can meet the needs of this community.”

Ledford highlighted the importance of NNO, stating, “It’s a good opportunity for the community members to come out, meet some of the officers, and see some of the equipment. Break that barrier down where maybe the officer seems intimidating at some point, or it’s hard for them to make connections when they are out patrolling. Here, they can spend time with the officers and the K-9 and get to know each other.”

He also outlined his plans as the new Chief, emphasizing his commitment to safety: “Coming to Tulalip, I’m going to make sure that this is a safe community, making sure that we address the drug problem; help the users and hold the dealers responsible. We want to address any gang issue right away; make sure it’s not tolerated here on the reservation. Keep the neighborhoods safe. We want people to be able to walk around their community and not be worried about being a victim of crime.”

The event strengthened the bond between the Tulalip community and its police department, laying the groundwork for a safer and more connected future.

By Wade Sheldon, Tulalip News

With their ever-growing community in mind, the Tulalip Tribes hosted a groundbreaking ceremony on August 5 for their new 85-unit apartment building, Quil Creek Crossing. Located just off 27th Avenue on Sandra Madison Loop Road, the groundbreaking marks the beginning of a new chapter in the Tribes’ history. 

Following a blessing of the land by tribal members Clarissa Johnny and Andy James, community members gathered to witness Tribal leaders, and representatives from the Wenaha Group and Korsmo Construction, as each of their golden shovels struck the earth.

Chairwoman Teri Gobin spoke about how the property was once filled with tires and junk vehicles and how glad she is that Tulalip could turn it into housing for tribal members. She emphasized that taking the land back was extremely important, but what’s more critical is providing affordable living spaces for Tribal members.

Vice Chairwoman Misty Napeahi shared, “We started this project pre-COVID, and we wanted to build a community for our 19-25-year-olds. There are 648 young adults in that age group. So, we thought about building a community for them. What would they want? We have one, two, and three-bedroom apartments. We know some of our people already have children, so we wanted to build for their families. It will be a beautiful complex with a basketball court, a BBQ pit, and walking trails. We are trying to build a healthy community for our young people. Also, they will have an opportunity to get residency so that in the future, if they do want children, they will be eligible for enrollment.”

The new apartment building is being created with an emphasis on comfort, while also acknowledging that it can be loud when many families are in one place. Secretary Theresa Sheldon discussed the challenges of growing up in low-income housing with holes in her floors and how so many of us accept these problems as normal. She went on to discuss the available amenities that will be offered in the apartments. There will be modern appliances, stylish cabinets, and quality rugs. Additionally, she mentioned using soundproof materials for the walls and floors to ensure privacy.

“The site was designed with families in mind,” said Jason Crain, senior project manager for the Wenaha Group. “Most apartment complexes avoid having 3-bedroom units, and this apartment complex has several. It was intentional by the Tribes to promote a family environment, create a home, and raise your kids. The site has a bunch of amenities to support that. There is a large playground and a garden area. There are some playscape areas that are going to have some culturally significant artwork in the native language. The aesthetic of the building is designed to reflect the Tribe’s heritage and its relationship with cedar. It’s not cedar but designed to look like cedar.”

Crain commended COO Sam Davis and his team for helping the tribe focus on family and community and emphasizing the importance of supporting the Tribe’s growth and future. And with rental costs at an all-time high, building these apartments couldn’t come at a better time. 

Council Member Glen Gobin discussed the Tribe’s longstanding goal of constructing more homes and apartments, but that they often lacked the necessary infrastructure. With the availability of sewer and electrical services and adequate space, bringing in an apartment complex as big as this will help immensely. Gobin said, “It’s also a change in how we build homes and places for our young people and elders. We have other apartments, but none like these. These are meant to be homesites for people to come in and live for as long as they need. We hope it’s transitional, but if they end up being there for 20-30 years, then that’s where they are.”

Construction on Quil Creek Crossing will begin soon, and the complex is slated for completion in 2026.