Navajo Police State?
No independent investigation into lieutenants’ issues

By Kathy Helms
Diné Bureau

WINDOW ROCK — Despite calls for an independent investigation into allegations raised in an April 4 letter by six police lieutenants, it appears that the Navajo Nation Division of Public Safety will police itself with an internal investigation.

Navajo Nation President Joe Shirley Jr. told the Public Safety Committee Monday that most of the issues raised in the letter are “inherited,” not new, and that the situation is “not the way it’s been shared with the news media. It’s out of protocol.”

Nevertheless, he said, “I think we need time to continue to look at the complaint that’s been put forward from the field, and we’ll try to be as diligent and as expeditious as we can to come to a resolution about what has been heard and what’s been shared with the public.”

Shirley came to the meeting at the request of Chairman Rex Lee Jim, who sent a letter to the President April 10 signed by himself and five other delegates — Leonard Tsosie, Dave Rico, Jerry Bodie, Sampson Begay and Lena Manheimer – asking the Executive Branch to give a report at Monday’s meeting.

In the letter, Jim said they were “troubled by the dismissal” of Police Chief Jim Benally and did not think the April 4 letter was sufficient reason. They also claimed that Public Safety Division Director Sampson Cowboy “may be proceeding to terminate the lieutenants” who raised concerns.

To date, no one has been dismissed. Cowboy reaffirmed Monday that Benally has been placed on administrative leave.

The delegates said that after the matter was covered in the newspaper, they tried to contact their respective police departments, “only to find out that no one can talk to us because of a ‘hush-hush’ memorandum from Mr. Cowboy to all the law enforcement personnel.”

They asked Shirley to order Cowboy “to not do any more employment dismissals” until the matter is discussed by PSC.

Shirley told the committee, “When we’ve completed all of our looking into matters and come up with a recommendation, we might come back by — I might come back by to let you know what that recommendation is going to be and why we’re taking that action that we are.

“As management, there has to be some decisions made for the betterment of all the police force, for the betterment of our government, for the betterment of the communities that are out there. We don’t need to be having problems with our law enforcement.”

PSC’s Edmund Yazzie said, “As Council delegates, we need to be careful. We need to stay out of it when it comes to personnel, unless there is a big safety issue.” He said he had sought legal advice and was told they need to stay out of it.

“I was really surprised to see this letter that’s been signed, with all due respect, by our chairperson as well. Before we start making an issue about this, we need to get to the facts.”

Raymond Joe of PSC asked how they could expect to get accurate information “when you’re using your own people” to investigate. “Actually, it’s intimidation,” he said.

“If you’re going to do a fair investigation, bring in an outside independent investigation. If you investigate yourself, you know what’s going to happen.” He said Cowboy is in charge of the Division and in charge of the internal investigation. “Mr. Cowboy and the chief, it looks like they’ve been bumping heads.”

Joe said the lieutenants put their jobs on the line when they wrote the letter, which alleged mismanagement by Cowboy. “It takes guts to file a complaint and to sign it,” Joe said.
“A lot of people out in the field, they’re working without overtime, working without equipment that is needed, they’re lacking training, their pay scale is not up to date, the general orders are not up to date, and their policies and procedures are way behind. ... But we can’t just blame one person for it.”

Jim, who was at the Navajo Nation Washington Office, sat in on the meeting via videoconference. He said Yazzie indicated he was wrong to write the letter. “I disagree with him on that.”

Jim said the more he looks at it, he thinks the matter is an institutional or an organizational issue. “We need to review the organization. We all agree that Mr. Cowboy inherited these problems, we agree that the chief of police inherited these problems, we agree that those who are in current leadership positions inherited these problems. And it’s been ongoing.

“If that is the case, and it’s not the people, then it has to be the system. We need to look at the system and I think this is an appropriate time.”

He agreed that the Executive Branch should be given time to do a proper investigation. “At the same time, I also agree with the delegates who have expressed concern that the investigation be fair. I do have a concern with Internal Affairs under the direct supervision of the Division Director to do the investigation. I believe we need to have an independent investigation.”

Delegate Leonard Tsosie said that when he saw the lieutenants’ letter, “I didn’t see Chief Benally’s name on there and so immediately it begs the question to me, ‘Why are they investigating Chief Benally if the lieutenants are the ones that signed it?’ ”

He said he thought Cowboy should have communicated with the committee and the Speaker regarding how they would proceed to look into the matters raised by these lieutenants. “A hush-hush memorandum, I believe, is not the way.”

Tsosie said dismissals come with legal proceedings and grievances. “I know of none that have been filed so far, but I don’t doubt that if these people are dismissed, it will go to ONLR (Office of Navajo Labor Relations), it will go to personnel, and we will be locked up in this for the next two or three years at the cost of Navajo Nation resources, and at the cost of not doing law enforcement out there.”

Delegate Pete Ken Atcitty, a PSC member on the 20th Council, said, “Based on the information that I’ve received, for myself, I think it’s premature to be talking about investigation at this time.” He said some of the issues brought up by the lieutenants “are borderline hearsay.”

“I think before they would go any further, they would have to have a little more documentation than this. I don’t think anybody was fired. I don’t think anybody was let go at this point in time. I just think there are some internal issues that need to be worked out.”

The committee then went into executive session at the request of Shirley to further discuss the matter.