Tribal Crime and Justice: Violence and Victimization
NIJ-funded research on the victimization of American Indian and Alaska Native American women has revealed the following:
- Ahtna ( Alaska Native) women report satisfaction with police response to intimate partner violence. This study examined violence against Ahtna women, including intimate partner violence. Despite the geographically remote area, subjects were more likely to report satisfaction with the police than with shelters or the available crisis hotline. Read an abstract and access the full report.
- Victim programs that provide comprehensive, long-term services successfully assist and ensure the safety of American Indian and Alaska Native women who have been abused or assaulted. An NIJ evaluation assessed the impact of the tribal Service, Training, Officers, and Prosecutors (STOP) programs funded under the Violence Against Women Act of 1994. All participating tribal communities reported that the program significantly enhanced safety for American Indian and Alaska Native women. Read an abstract and access the full report.
Ongoing Research on Tribal Violence and Victimization
Responding to violence against Native American women. NIJ is collaborating with the Office on Violence Against Women to examine violence against American Indian and Alaska Native women and the effectiveness of federal, state, local and tribal responses. Several types of victimization will be examined, including murder, stalking, dating violence, sexual assault and domestic violence.
Victim assistance program evaluation. An evaluation of two Tribal Victim Assistance programs that support
American Indian victims of crime — in the Passamaquoddy and Lummi Nations — will help determine whether each program meets its goals and is applicable for other tribal nations.
Sexual assaults in Alaska. NIJ-funded researchers are investigating the characteristics, case processing and case outcomes of reported sexual assaults in Alaska. They will collect and analyze Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners (SANE) evaluations, examine the geographical distribution of reported sexual assaults in Anchorage, examine how alcohol use is related to injuries, and describe the consequences of the time lapse between an assault and the consequent report.
Report on violence against Native American women. A forthcoming report will describe the current state of research, evaluation and knowledge on violence against American Indian and Alaska Native women. This report will include homicide, rape and sexual assault, physical assault and stalking. It will be available in 2008.
Sexual assaults by military personnel. Researchers are evaluating the nature and case processing of reported sexual assaults committed by civilians and military personnel in Anchorage, Alaska. The researchers will document whether offenders’ affiliation with the military changes the characteristics of sexual assaults and how these cases are processed by the judicial system.
