BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) - A year after an American Indian woman’s body was found in a submerged truck, authorities still aren’t providing details on the cause of death.
The FBI’s refusal to release information in the case of Olivia Lone Bear has been frustrating for her family, and tribal and state officials, the Bismarck Tribune reported.
Thirty-two-year-old Lone Bear disappeared from the Fort Berthold Reservation in 2017. The Newtown mother of five was found July 31, 2018 in the pickup truck pulled from Lake Sakakawea.
Matt Lone Bear, her brother, is working on a missing persons protocol for tribes, which his family began drafting a year ago. He has expressed frustration about law enforcement’s late water searches and failure to release information.
FBI spokesman Kevin Smith declined to discuss the cause of Lone Bear’s death because the case is still being investigated.
“Because this case is ongoing, any comment about it could cause a chilling effect on future developments,” Smith said. “In addition, any details made public now could significantly inhibit the family’s pursuit of justice for Olivia,” Smith said.
North Dakota Indian Affairs Commission Executive says the Lone Bear case “has floundered,” which he says is common when the federal government investigates crimes in Indian Country.
Three Affiliated Tribes Chairman Mark Fox said he hopes to soon get “some answers to some degree.” But he wonders whether Lone Bear’s case would be treated differently if it occurred off the reservation.
“I think in Indian Country, that’s generally the thought that people have, that for whatever reason adjudication and justice and investigations don’t always seem to follow the same path in timeliness and effectiveness as they sometimes do off the reservation,” Fox said.
Smith conceded federal cases conducted by the FBI “are exhaustive in nature and do take a long time to complete.”
“Since the FBI became involved in the case - and acknowledging the significant violence against women on reservations - our office prioritized this investigative effort,” he said.
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Information from: Bismarck Tribune, http://www.bismarcktribune.com
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