Data shows Native Americans face disproportionately higher deaths in encounters with police
A Lee Enterprises Public Service Journalism Team investigation examined deaths of Native Americans in encounters with law enforcement over the past 10 years. Interviews with dozens of surviving family members, law enforcement officers, attorneys and others – as well as reporting trips to Native American communities both on and off tribal land and the examination of lawsuits, police records and other documents and data – reveals new insight about the forces that have been fueling these deaths.
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The numbers are so high that a researcher initially had a hard time believing them. A Lee Enterprises investigation gives insight about the forces that have been fueling these deaths.
Having their elders sent to boarding school or suffering from addiction "likely contributes to the moment that an Indigenous person finds themself encountering the police,” one expert said.
Having their elders sent to boarding school or suffering from addiction "likely contributes to the moment that an Indigenous person finds themself encountering the police,” one expert said.
