Pubdate: Fri, 09 Jun 2006 Source: Casper Star-Tribune (WY) Copyright: 2006 Casper Star-Tribune Contact: http://www.casperstartribune.net/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/765 Author: Jared Miller, Star-Tribune staff writer Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/meth.htm (Methamphetamine) AGENCIES CLOSE DRUG ENFORCEMENT GAP ETHETE -- When Doug Noseep became chief of the Wind River Indian Reservation police in 2003, he knew his office was no match for the drug dealers. At 2.2 million acres, Wind River is the third largest reservation in the United States, and just 10 Bureau of Indian Affairs officers were assigned there. Meanwhile, a gang of Mexican nationals was trafficking a quarter-million dollars worth of methamphetamine a month on the reservation, recruiting tribal members to sell the drugs. Noseep, a member of the Eastern Shoshone Tribe, grew up in Fremont County, where most of the reservation is located. He earned a criminal justice degree in Nebraska and trained in BIA law enforcement in New Mexico before returning to Wind River in the mid-1990s to work as a cop. After he became chief, Noseep reached out to other law enforcement agencies to help fight meth. The effort marked a new chapter in the sometimes-strained relationships between reservation and off-reservation law enforcement agencies in central Wyoming. By the fall of 2004, the Wyoming Department of Criminal Investigation drug enforcement team in Riverton had welcomed a BIA officer as a permanent member. The partnership opened a critical link for intelligence sharing between reservation and off-reservation law enforcement in Fremont County. "It was unprecedented for us to be on the state task force," Noseep said. Leaders of the reservation's Northern Arapaho and Eastern Shoshone tribes also recognized the meth problem by then. In August 2005, they agreed to "cross-deputize" officers from the Fremont County Sheriff's Office and both Riverton and Lander police departments. It's now common for non-Indian officers to respond to reservation emergencies for preliminary assistance, Noseep said. "It brought more manpower to the reservation," said Ivan Posey, chairman of the Eastern Shoshone Business Council. Another important ally in the crackdown on meth came from U.S. Attorney for Wyoming Matthew Mead. "His willingness to prosecute has been very important," tribal Judge Richard Ferris said. Federal law forbids tribal courts from prosecuting non-Indians for crimes on the reservation. That's one reason authorities believe the Mexican drug dealers targeted Wind River. It also didn't help that relationships between the tribes and off-reservation law enforcement agencies haven't always been cordial. Posey said an informal agreement with off-reservation law enforcement took a turn for the worse in about 2000. That's when a former Fremont County sheriff tried to strong arm his way onto the reservation to pursue county warrants on tribal land, Posey said. Some tribal officials saw the move as an infringement on the tribes' status as sovereign nations. "We kind of put them on hold there," said Posey, referring to the agency agreements. By the time Noseep took over as chief, it clearly was time to reconnect with other area law enforcement, he said. "The only way you're ever going to fight this (meth) is to set the differences aside," Noseep said. "From there, it was just good, solid police work," Noseep said. In the last 18 months, law enforcement executed the two largest drug busts in Wyoming history on the reservation. The first resulted in more than 20 arrests, including a tribal judge who will serve five years in federal prison. More than 40 people were arrested in a second bust last month that netted 20 pounds of meth, 20 guns and $100,000. Noseep doesn't have any illusions about the bust; he said the crackdown will only temporarily cripple the source of meth on the reservation. But stronger drug enforcement and aggressive action by federal prosecutors should prevent another large-scale meth ring from taking root on the reservation, he said. "I couldn't be more pleased with the results," Noseep said. - --- MAP posted-by: Beth Wehrman