Governor Mark Dayton has appointed key Mille Lacs Band Police leader to the Minnesota Board of Peace Officer Standards and Training.
Transcript
LEAH: The Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe 2018 State of the Band Address was held on January 9th. Chief Executive Melanie Benjamin acknowledged hardships the band has faced in the past year, including losing many to the drug epidemic and the revoked Mille Lacs County law enforcement agreement.
BENJAMIN: As a Band government, we made progress together in many areas in 2017. Still, this was a tough year for our Band community. We faced many challenges, but none so heartbreaking as losing so many people to the drug epidemic. (:17)
LEAH: In her speech, Benjamin reported that since Mille Lacs County revoked the law enforcement agreement that would provide public safety for band members in District 1, they have had more than 75 overdoses and 15 deaths, as compared to 2015 which saw 7 drug overdoses.
But Benjamin also talked about “A New Warriorism” and how more band members are stepping up to fight for a better future.
BENJAMIN: There is hope of a better day. Because the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe never gives up and never gives in – we are fighters who stand our ground, and that is why we are called the Non-Removables. (:13)
LEAH: The latest success is Governor Mark Dayton’s appointment of Mille Lacs Band Chief of Police and Band member, Sara Rice, to the Minnesota Board of Peace Officer Standards and Training, or POST.
According to the Mille Lacs Band’s press release, Rice is the first tribal police chief on the Minnesota POST Board. The board oversees peace officer licensing and can establish policies and standards for licensees state-wide.
During her speech, Benjamin updated Rice’s job title from Interim Chief of Police to the permanent Chief of Police of the Mille Lacs Band Tribal Police Department. Benjamin credited Rice as instrumental in gaining resources for the band from the Bureau of Indian Affairs and for being a great leader of the Mille Lacs Band police force during QUOTE “a time of great stress and uncertainty.”
For Minnesota Native News, I'm Leah Lemm.