Task force: Native American children vulnerable to abuse
Red tape, a lack of leadership and problems attracting quality medical professionals have made Native American children vulnerable to sexual and physical abuse in the Indian Health System, a U. S. attorney from Oklahoma said Thursday at the White House.
The shortcomings in the service allowed a “monster” working as a pediatrician to prey on children, said Trent Shores, the U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Oklahoma.
Shores headed up a task force formed last year to determine how the pediatrician, Stanley Patrick Weber, was able to abuse children sexually for several years on reservations in Montana and South Dakota. Weber was convicted in both states and was given five consecutive life sentences, along with terms of 18 years and 45 years.
“What we found was that there were years, decades of systemic, institutional problems that led to an environment where a predatory pedophile could take advantage of government inefficiencies and confusion to sexually abuse children,” Shores told a meeting headed by First Lady Melania Trump.
Two other task force members from Oklahoma attended the meeting: Shannon Bears Cozzoni, tribal liaison and assistant U.S. attorney in the Northern District; and Bo Leach, assistant special agent in charge of the Oklahoma City Division of the Bureau of Indian Affairs Office of Justice Services.
Leach said the IHS was “operating on a different model” than any organization he'd ever seen.
“They actually were delegating the management responsibility to the absolute lowest level without training people at the lowest level,” he said, adding there were no national standards at the agency.
Shores said there were dedicated IHS employees frustrated by the red tape in reporting suspected child sexual and physical abuse. The IHS needs uniform policies on reporting and better and more frequent training so employees understand their obligation to report suspected abuse, he said.
Some officials have been reluctant to report suspicions for fear they will lose a doctor and won't be able to find a replacement, Shores said.
At the end of the meeting, the First Lady “shared her gratitude for the Cherokee Nation's invitation to travel to Tahlequah, Oklahoma, noting that she looks forward to visiting when it is feasible to do so,” according to the White House.
Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin, Jr., responded, “We welcome First Lady Melania Trump on her first visit to Cherokee Nation and we're excited to show her the advances tribal nations are making in the field of health care for Native people and children. We invite First Lady Melania Trump to tour our state- of- theart Outpatient Health Center and first medical school on tribal land in the nation, which is wrapping up construction in Tahlequah.
“Anytime we can showcase that tribal nations are thriving and strong, doing good work on behalf of children and our communities, we welcome the opportunity with open arms.”
The Nation said it would work with the White House to schedule the First Lady's visit.