Attorney General Bonta Joins Bipartisan Letter Supporting the Tribal Warrant Fairness Act

OAKLAND — California Attorney General Rob Bonta today joined a bipartisan coalition of 39 attorneys general in a letter to Congress supporting the Tribal Warrant Fairness Act (TWFA), which would level the public safety playing field by empowering tribes to work with the U.S. Marshals Service to combat the Missing and Murdered Indigenous People’s (MMIP) crisis. Indigenous communities are disproportionately at risk of violence, murder, and going missing. To combat this unacceptable crisis, it is critical to quickly deploy law enforcement resources where they are most needed. In the letter, the attorneys general support TWFA’s aim to further tackle this crisis by providing the assistance of the U.S. Marshals Service to tribal partners to protect children and increase public safety and offer suggestions on how to further strengthen TWFA.

“For too long, Tribal Nations have borne the brunt of violence, historical harms, and ongoing barriers when seeking answers, justice, and safety,” said Attorney General Bonta. “In order to alleviate this crisis, we need to not only listen, but to push forward meaningful structural change. I’m proud to join a bipartisan coalition of attorneys general in support of the Tribal Warrant Fairness Act, which is an important step to removing barriers to public safety for tribal communities. We're at our best when we work together, when we listen, and when we co-create solutions. At the California Department of Justice, we will continue to stand with our tribal and law enforcement partners to protect the safety and well-being of our tribal communities.” 

Should the act be enacted, the TWFA would allow federal law enforcement to be deployed at the request of tribal law enforcement to find missing children. This would increase the likelihood of a swift and safe recovery, especially within those vital first 48 hours after someone goes missing. Additionally, the TWFA would allow, at a tribe’s request, tribal law enforcement officers to join the U.S. Marshals Service elite Fugitive Apprehension Task Force, a multi-jurisdictional team that works together on the federal, state, and local level to find and arrest dangerous fugitives.

In the comment letter, the attorneys general:

• Strongly support the proposed legislation, which will facilitate both the search of missing children and the apprehension of dangerous fugitives.
• Provide suggestions to expand the criminalization of interstate flight with the intent of avoiding prosecution, testifying, or complying with lawful investigative processes to apply tribal proceedings.
• Applaud Congress’s efforts to increase tribal law enforcement agencies’ full access to federal public safety resources.  

In filing the letter, Attorney General Bonta joins the attorneys general of American Samoa, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Washington, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.