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February 2, 2001
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Cheyenne River Reservation shuts
down family violence program
by Clara NiiSka
South Dakota-According to sources who asked to
remain anonymous,
disagreement over client confidentiality resulted in closing the Family
Violence Prevention Program on the Cheyenne River Reservation late last
week. Program staff were fired by the tribal council, then arrested and
jailed by tribal police.
The family Violence Prevention Program, in conjunction with the Sacred
Hearts women's shelter, funded by the Catholic Church, and the
tribally-funded Rural Domestic Violence and Child Victimization
program, provided services to the Cheyenne River Reservation, South
Dakota. Since the closure of the Tender Hearts program at Standing Rock
Reservation about three years ago, these programs have also served
women and children from Standing Rock.
The Family Violence Prevention Program was a tribally-run program,
funded by tribal set-aside funds. The program provided battered women
with financial assistance intended to help them in getting out of
abusive relationships, for example helping women with food, the costs
of changing locks, utility hookup deposits-whatever the woman needed at
that point to protect herself, including, when necessary, a bus ticket
out of the area.
The disagreement over client confidentiality came to a head when the
tribal administrative offer demanded to see the records of the clients
who had been served by the program. According to program staff, the
administrative officer wanted access to the client files to "see if the
women were double-dipping." Staff at the Family Violence Prevention
Program responded that the financial assistance they provided was
through "vendor payments" made by writing checks directly to service
providers, so "if any woman was double-dipping, it couldn't have been
by very much."
And, as one of the women arrested emphasized to this writer, the Family
Violence Prevention Program staff "knew that breach of confidentiality
was a meter of life and death" for some of the women who had been
served by the program. To stress the seriousness of staff concerns
about confidentiality, she cited recent incidents of abuse culminating
in the murder of three battered women at Standing Rock and Lower Brule
Reservations. The staff was, she said, particularly concerned about
confidential client records being removed from the Family Violence
Prevention Program office.
Last week, the program staff had "come to a mutual agreement" with
tribal council members. But, tribal chairman Gregg Bourland was out of
state when the agreement was reached, and on his return to Cheyenne
River, Chairman Bourland reportedly overturned the decision of the
seven council members with whom the Family Violence Prevention Program
staff had reached an agreement.
Thursday night, the staff stayed in the program office with the records
to "make sure that nobody came to take them." They were supported by
other women in the Cheyenne River Community, "women would come and
go...there were about eight women, sitting with the files, all night."
The tribal administrative officer reportedly ordered the tribal
maintenance men to change the lock on the building.
The next morning, Friday, January 26th the Family Violence Prevention
staff met with the tribal council members. The tribal council suspended
program staff members June Runs After and Georgia Taylor, and accepted
a "verbal resignation made in the heat of the moment-'I should just
quit," previously made by program director Janet Collins. The tribal
council then told the women who had been fired to vacate the building
by one o' clock that afternoon.
Some of the women remained in the
building to protect the files. Meanwhile, others obtained a "John Doe"
restraining order from the tribal court, reportedly intended to prevent
tribal administrative officer J.R. La Ponte, tribal administrative
officer J.R. La Ponte, tribal specialist Carol Elk Nation from
accessing the confidential client records, and to bar anyone from
removing client files from the program offices.
"At 4:45 p.m.," the tribal council told the women that if they did not
leave the building, they would be arrested, and told the suspended
employees that if they did not leave the building, they would be fired.
At seven o'clock on the evening of January 26th, the tribal police
entered the building and handed termination notices to all of the
Family Violence Prevention Program staff. Director Janet Collins,
advocates June Runs After and Georgia Taylor, and Willetta Dolphus and
Carmen White Horse Moran were arrested for "trespassing" and jailed.
The women were arraigned later Friday evening, and released after
posting bond.
The Family Violence Prevention Program is currently shut down, with all
of the staff terminated. On Monday, January 29th, the tribal council
held a special meeting with the summarily terminated program director
and the co-director of the South Dakota Coalition against Domestic
Violence, to "see what could be worked out," but no resolution was
reached.
Two days later, on January 31st, the tribal court rescinded the
restraining orders protecting the client records, and the tribal
council was reportedly working on appointing a new acting director to
oversee the Family Violence Prevention Program.
Trespassing charges against the terminated program staff and their
supporters are scheduled for tribal by the Cheyenne River Reservation
tribal court on February 15th. |
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