This report includes feedback from members of the Native American community involved with law enforcement. This includes data and anecdotes gleaned from personal stories to help you find out where systems are succeeding and where indigenous peoples are failing.

“More than 27 percent of the county’s population is indigenous, and the system as a whole must ensure that the needs of indigenous peoples are met, whether for cultural, linguistic or other reasons,” the detective said. said Mike Jackiewicz, director of the Judiciary Coordination Council (CJCC). .

The CJCC is designed as an information sharing and problem solving agency.

The Coconino County Superior Court Chief Justice, Flagstaff City Court Chief Judge, Coconino County Sheriff, Flagstaff Police Chief, Coconino County Attorney, and Flagstaff City Attorney are all members of the CJCC.

“They formally come together, share, collaborate, and work on ways to improve the justice system and make communities a better place,” Jackiewicz said. “The CJCC’s top priority is to ensure that members of the Indigenous community have systems in place to meet their needs.”

The CJCC was originally formed when the Coconino County Detention Facility realized the prison population was growing. The agency undertook a study of the judicial and criminal justice systems in northern Arizona to find out why more people are incarcerated and create policies to address the problem.

Today, they are not just focused on improving prisons. The CJCC is looking at ways to improve public safety and criminal justice as a whole.

Meanwhile, in 2016 and 2017, grassroots efforts were launched to encourage cities and counties to better address issues facing Indigenous peoples. Groups such as Flagstaff Indigenous Circles recommend creating a position to bridge the gap between the needs of Indigenous communities and official policies on health, public safety, criminal justice, etc. Appealed to the staff city council.

That’s how Rose Toehe’s work was born.

Currently, she is the coordinator of the City of Flagstaff’s Indigenous Peoples Initiative and chairs a subcommittee within the CJCC created to bring specific perspectives to the fore. As interest grew among county and city leaders in ensuring fairness for her members of her Native American community in the justice system, the idea of ​​a listening circle took shape.

The listening circles are designed to be culturally friendly, a fusion of Western listening sessions and Indigenous talk circles.

“Most indigenous people know what a talking circle is. “It’s a safe place to talk about your situation, whatever it is.”

A small team of facilitators, including Toehe and Jackiewicz, hosted listening circle sessions at Flagstaff’s Aquaplex, Tuba City’s St. Jude’s Church and Page’s Public Library.

“We wanted to hear directly from community members about their experiences and how we can both improve and reduce their experience with the justice system,” said Jackiewicz. “We were very intentional in trying to keep them away from judicial facilities. We didn’t want them locked up in prisons or courts or even county buildings.”

At all three locations, participants were encouraged to share their stories, describe how the system helped them, and critique them.

The ultimate goal of this project is to reduce crime by discovering why and how indigenous peoples end up in this system and how they are treated inside.

“Why are they trapped in the system? What is the reason? We are trying to uncover all of that and see how leadership hears about it and can respond to it.” said Toehe.

For the purposes of these listening circles, criminal justice involvement was a broad term. The facilitator wanted to hear from people who were pulled over during the stop or who were arrested, jailed, paroled or probated.

“We had a lot of families come and share powerful stories, people who are directly impacted by the justice system, either through themselves or through their relationships with family and friends,” Jackiewicz said. Told.

The information collected in the listening circles is designed to be shared with law enforcement agencies and especially those working “on the ground” in the court system. This is one of the reasons why the final report is submitted to her CJCC.

“My takeaway is that we need to hear more from the community. “I would like to make this a more regular activity to inform leaders who are making policies and running institutions. This was a great first step towards that, and we’re really looking forward to digging in as a committee, compiling the feedback, sending it to the CJCC, and finalizing the report for publication. “

The CJCC’s formal report is expected to be completed by mid-summer.

Jackiewicz said the team is working to bring out themes and identify shared experiences, saying, “Review your notes and accurately represent community members brave and vulnerable enough to share their stories.” Make sure you are there.”

Both Toehe and Jackiewicz say they want to share information from recent listening circles with leaders who can make changes within the system, but also want to report back to the community that shared their experiences in the first place. I’m here.

“We are in trouble. I told everyone I spoke to there that I would be back to discuss what is currently being done and what is not being done,” Jackiewicz said. “It’s important to us [at CJCC] It’s about getting information back It’s not just information gathering. It really comes into action. “

For the project to work properly, information sharing needs to be bi-directional, Toehe said.

“I think that has been a really good plus for people to hear. and share it,” she said.[That’s important] especially for indigenous peoples. People have gotten information and done research, but nothing has been reported as an update. “

Toehe said the first round of listening circles was just the starting point. She said it is likely that more listening circles will be fostered by the city and her CJCC in the future.