Tracy Toulou, the outgoing Director of the Office of Tribal Justice, stands in a hallway lined with flags of tribal nations at the Department of Justice, Thursday, March 14, 2024, in Washington. For more than two decades, Toulou has confronted the serious public safety challenges facing Indian Country by working to expand the power of tribal justice systems. Today, tribal law enforcement finally has a seat at the table when federal authorities coordinate with state and local police, according to the Justice Department’s point person on Native American tribes. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
WASHINGTON (AP) — A quarter-century ago, the Justice Department had few meaningful relationships with Native American tribes.
While the federal government worked with state and local police and courts, tribal justice systems did not have the same level of recognition, said Tracy Toulou, who oversaw the department’s Office of Tribal Justice from 2000 until his recent …