RAPID CITY, S.D (AP) - Tribal police have taken over law enforcement duties from the Bureau of Indian Affairs on the Pine Ridge Reservation.
Tribal Police Chief Robert Ecoffey told the Rapid City Journal said the tribe wasn’t getting “enough resources in terms of manpower” from the BIA.
The move is allowed under the 1975 Indian Self Determination and Education Assistance Act, which allows tribes to manage federal programs that impact their communities.
Charles Addington, director of the BIA’s Office of Justice Services, said the agency supports the move.
Tribal officers will take control of the BIA’s $1.3-million budget, property, equipment and responsibilities, which include investigating higher-level crimes on the reservation, Addington said.
Ecoffey said the BIA allocates nine positions to the reservation and nine of his officers have now been promoted to detective. Two of them will focus exclusively on drug investigations and the department will maintain 53 officers in addition to the nine detectives.
Ecoffey said the BIA agents were good at their job, but there just weren’t enough of them. Recently, there have been just two agents as some have retired and the BIA hasn’t filled the open positions due to the transition.
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