Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women Part 1

MMIW

In 2016, 5,712 cases of missing and murdered Indigenous women were reported in the United States. Only 116 of these reports were logged into the Department of Justice database. At the time this data was collected, it was widely believed that this number was below the actual number of cases. Now, seven years later, there’s no doubt that the number of missing and murdered indigenous women has increased significantly. During this same study, research was conducted to determine what the leading causes of death were for American Indian and Alaskan Native women and girls. The third leading cause of death wasn’t a natural cause. It was murder. 

This 2016 study was conducted by the Urban Indian Health Institute. The data was collected in 71 cities across 29 states. There were 506 cases of missing and murdered American Indian and Alaska Native females identified in this study. The ages of the victims varied greatly, from less than a year old to an 83-year-old woman. Of the 506 cases, 128 were found to be cases of missing Indigenous women. 280 were of murdered Indigenous women, with 98 having a status as “unknown”. Even more frightening is the fact that more than 95% of these cases were never covered by national or international media. The perception within most of law enforcement and news media coverage relied heavily on the causes of these women being murdered and going missing as being the result of sex work and domestic violence. This was proved to be untrue during the study. Overall, the media coverage, law enforcement response and investigation, as well as the ultimate lack of prosecution for the responsible individuals is grossly lacking. 

The study surmised that the tribal nations that these girls and women belong to, must have the ability to advocate for their people, similarly to when a country’s citizen is killed outside of their nation. It’s not very often that a tribal nation is given the respect and ability to advocate for their missing or murdered loved ones. 

All of these facts and data support the obvious: that American Indian and Alaskan Native Indigenous women and girls are going missing and being murdered at a frightening rate, leaving their families and tribes with no answers and little support from law enforcement in most cases. 

In the early 1800’s, the Bureau of Indian Affairs was formed to bridge the gap between the United States and tribes. They have an Office of Justice Services which holds jurisdiction over crimes committed within Indian Country. Indian Country is recognized as formal and informal reservations, dependent Indian communities, or where no congressional grant of jurisdiction to state government over the Indian country involved exists. They deal with major federal crimes and state crimes, with the authority to enforce laws. They have a specific unit within them that is dedicated to Missing and Murdered Indigenous people. 

Though much of the data regarding missing and murdered indigenous women is considered to be understated due to the fact that many of these females are mis-identified in their reports as Hispanic or Asian, the BIA estimates that there are about 4,200 cases of these missing and murdered indigenous people that have gone unsolved, which is absolutely unacceptable. 

Between the years of 1990 and 2016, specifically in the state of Minnesota, the homicide numbers for Native women was seven times the amount of white women. Though they only made up 1% of Minnesota’s population during those years, they made up 8% of all murdered women and girls in that state. Additionally, the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women in Minnesota found that somewhere between 27-54 Native American women went missing each month between those years. These numbers are shocking, but they aren’t alone; many other states, including Alaska, Montana, and Washington state, share the same statistics.

With these high numbers, it’s difficult to compile a significant amount of information on all of the cases, as many haven’t been investigated appropriately by law enforcement and haven’t been given the media coverage they deserve. However, the true crime community is set on bringing as much attention to these individuals as possible, whether it be telling an entire story or simply making sure their names are heard. 

Henny

Henny Scott lived in Big Horn County Montana on the Northern Cheyenne Reservation. She was 14-years-old when she disappeared in late December of 2018. She called her mother from a residence to let her mom know where she was. Her mother recognized the name on the caller ID as a residence that was a known party spot, that adults weren’t there. She told Henny that it was time for her to come home. The teenager never did.

Her family was immediately worried, especially as rumors began circulating that there had been older men at the party that night who were known to target young girls. Henny was the youngest one at the residence that night. When Henny’s stepfather went to the residence to look for her, he was told that she’d walked off that night. Knowing that her daughter wouldn’t have just walked off alone, her mother Paula filed a missing person’s report at the Northern Cheyenne Law Enforcement center. She immediately knew that Henny’s disappearance wouldn’t be taken seriously. Law enforcement asked if maybe Henny had a new boyfriend or might be out partying.

Law enforcement provided no assistance, so Henny’s friends and family began searching for the 14-year-old. 20 days later, on December 27th, a group found the body of Henny Scott. She was not far from the residence where she’d called her mother from, no more than 150 yards from it. She was wearing a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt was thrown beside her. Her mother said that neither of the pieces of clothing belonged to her. An autopsy performed by the Montana Chief Medical Examiner concluded that Henny’s cause of death was hypothermia and accidental, no foul play involved. It was also determined that Henny had alcohol in her system, which contributed to her death. The M.E. claimed that nothing indicated any trauma. Henny’s parents said that when they saw their daughter’s body, she appeared to have a broken nose, as well as bruises, scratches, and small burns on her skin. There was no investigation into her death past the medical examiner’s ruling. Henny’s family even had her body exhumed, against their tribe’s customs, to look for any evidence of foul play. None was found. Henny’s family and friends continue to believe that she was assaulted and the victim of homicide.

Montana is one of the most dangerous areas for Indigenous women, specifically in the areas of the Crow Indian Reservation and the Northern Cheyenne Reservation. Similarly to other reservations across the country, the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) and the FBI have jurisdiction. The BIA is intended to show up on scenes initially, then the FBI would be called. However, the BIA cannot exercise law enforcement over non-Indians on the tribal land. To find out exactly who has jurisdiction, law enforcement would need to know who the victim was, whether they were Indian or not, who the perpetrator was, whether they were Indian or not, and where did the crime take place, Indian land or not. This leaves a high occurrence of jurisdiction denying that they’re responsible for investigating these crimes. The land becomes almost lawless.

Kaysera

On August 24th, 2019, 18-year-old Kaysera Stops Pretty Places left her home on the Crow reservation, not far from Hardin, Montana to celebrate her recent birthday with friends. She and two of her friends planned to spend the night partying. Kaysera hadn’t had an easy childhood, growing up in a home with parents who heavily abused alcohol and drugs. She became the big protector of her siblings and loved them fiercely. She was loyal and giving and someone that her siblings and friends looked up to. 

On that August night, Kaysera disappeared. She was reported missing to the Big Horn County Sheriff’s Office, however no formal report appeared to have been taken. Her aunt and the rest of Kaysera’s family and friends waited for any news from law enforcement, despite the fact that there were no alerts sent out regarding her disappearance, no posters, no media coverage. 5 days after Kaysera disappeared, her aunt received a message from a co-worker telling her that a jogger had found the body of a deceased female in the backyard of a house in Hardin, just off the reservation. The house was on a corner on Mitchell Avenue, one of the main streets in the city. Kaysera’s family received no communication from law enforcement reporting that a body matching her description had been found. 

The body was transported to the state crime lab in Billings as a Jane Doe. She wasn’t identified until September 11th by using dental records. The body belonged to 18-year-old Kaysera Stops Pretty Places. Due to significant decomposition, no cause of death was able to be determined. Her body was returned to Hardin, where the Big Horn County Coroner cremated her, despite her family never requesting that. Kaysera’s family couldn’t understand what had happened and why they couldn’t get law enforcement to speak with them. When they finally did, they were told that law enforcement believed that Kaysera probably just walked into the backyard and died, then laid there for five days. There was absolutely no way that no one would’ve seen a body lying in that backyard. Additionally, Kaysera’s cell phone was found with her. Why didn’t they use her cell phone to identify her?

Some of Kaysera’s family felt that a recent social media post that she’d made could’ve affected the response to her death. A few weeks prior, during the annual Crow fair celebration, Kaysera filmed as a fight broke out, which ended in police being called. The responding officers began beating one of the boys who had instigated the fight. The boy was Kaysera’s brother. Police reports said the young man was acting aggressive and resisting arrest. One of the officers accused of beating him was with the Big Horn County Sheriff’s Office.

Though the ME couldn’t rule in foul play, he couldn’t rule it out either. He said that there were several options at play as to what caused Kaysera’s death, and some of those fell under the manner of homicide. Her toxicology report showed a high blood alcohol content of 0.149.

A report was released two years following Kaysera’s death, with witness statements from the friends that she’d been with the night she’d disappeared. She’d been with friends drinking at a house in Hardin. An argument between the three girls and the man who’d provided them with the alcohol escalated as they were outside around 3AM. There were two different accounts of what initially frightened the group, either a car alarm or a passing police cruiser, which caused them to flee in different directions. This was the last report of anyone seeing Kaysera alive. Her case is said to be active, however no further information has been released to the public in almost two years.

There exists a distrust of white men by Native Americans based on a violent history. Colonizers came into the land that belonged to Native Americans, taking whatever they wanted. There is a saying that refers to the tribe in Northern Cheyenne; “A nation is not defeated until the heart of its women are on the ground.” They believed that when the colonizers saw the position that the native women held, the respect they had from their tribes, they did everything they could to break that in order to kill their spirits. 

The history of distrust has led young Indigenous women to lose sight of their value, believing that they’re bound to have a short life, which will end in murder, assault, or abduction. With this mindset, they’re intent on enjoying their life and ultimately put themselves in dangerous situations.

Selena

16-year-old Selena Not Afraid was dropped off by her mother at a New Year’s Eve party in Billings on December 31st, 2019. A member of the Crow tribe, Selena lived on the reservation and loved playing volleyball, basketball, and horseback riding. She was creative and loved to sew and make beaded jewelry. 

The party she was at on Montana Avenue was serving alcohol to several underage attendees. Selena called her aunt the next morning around 9AM to tell her Happy New Year. Everything seemed normal to her aunt, she didn’t notice anything different in her niece’s voice. She did notice that there was music in the background and men’s voices. Concerned, she told Selena that it was time to come home. Selena told her that she was about to call her mother to pick her up, which she did. Her mother arrived at the home around 45 minutes after the phone call, but her daughter was nowhere to be found. 

Selena, along with five others who’d been at the house, had gotten into a van and began driving towards Hardin. A SnapChat video was posted, showing Selena and the others in the vehicle, some of them still drinking. Around 2PM, the van started to have mechanical problems, and the driver pulled into a rest stop along eastbound interstate 90 to fix the vehicle. Reportedly, Selena and one of the other girls walked off from the van. The other girl said that she sat down on a curb and Selena tried to get her to climb over a nearby fence and walk through a field towards the old highway. The girl said no and Selena climbed over the fence and disappeared. The van eventually left both girls at the rest stop. 

Selena’s family arrived at the rest stop to pick her up, but they couldn’t find her. Unlike most reports of missing Indigenous girls in the area, a police response was immediate. The BIA and the Big Horn County Sheriff’s Department arrived on scene, bringing search dogs, drones, people on ATVs and horseback to search the area for Selena, but nothing was found. Selena’s grandmother looked at the barbed wire fence and immediately knew that her granddaughter couldn’t have crossed that. 

On January 20th, Selena’s body was found during a grid search. Her body was lying in the open, just ¾ of a mile away from the rest stop. It was in an area that had supposedly been searched multiple times. Her body had been there for 20 days, but was still fully intact with no signs of animal scavenging. Her autopsy was performed, which revealed no alcohol in her system. The ME said that if she’d been walking around for hours, the alcohol could’ve been metabolized. Signs of dehydration and starvation were found, no indications of foul play. Selena’s death was ruled as accidental as a result of hypothermia. After this ruling, there was no further investigation. The deputy sheriff at the time, Eric Winburn, who only worked at the Big Horn County Sheriff’s Office for about 8 months, later said, “Working in Big Horn County, I don’t believe MMIW is real. I don’t believe the issue is real.” He said that Selena’s mother should’ve been charged for taking her daughter to the party where alcohol was present and that the driver of the van should’ve been charged for “abandoning” Selena. Winburn stated that if the facts didn’t fit their narrative, the family didn’t want to know about it.

After Winburn resigned, someone unexpected was appointed as the deputy sheriff: Leroy Not Afraid, Selena’s father. Leroy had full custody of Selena at one point, and she had recently made allegations of sexual assault against him and a protective order had been issued, requiring Leroy to stay away from Selena until she was 18 years old. Leroy said that the accusations were false. The rest of Selena’s family believe that she was abducted and that her body was disposed of in the field.

FOR PART TWO, CLICK HERE!