Native Village of Marshall passes resolution requesting State of Emergency declaration

Total lack of law enforcement cited

Concern for the continued health, safety, and welfare of their people has driven the Native Village of Marshall Traditional Council to pass a resolution requesting the Governor Bill Walker to declare a state of emergency for villages totally without law enforcement, which includes their village of Marshall.
Resolution 2018-05 was passed unanimously during the regular meeting of the council on the 8th of March.
“Every Alaskan community including small rural and remote villages are entitled to public safety under the State of Alaska’s Constitution,” states the resolution. “The state revenue allocation sharing system unfairly marginalizes small villages making it impossible to fund adequate village public safety programs; and violent crimes are on the rise and villages totally without law enforcement are subject to violent physical assaults, violence against women and children, homicide, suicide, elder abuse, gun violence, sexual assault, bootlegging, illegal drug trafficking,
and other lawlessness, and alcohol-related disorder.”
The resolution also states that a new generation of children are being born and raised in villages absent of law enforcement, and for their continued well-being, law and order must be restored.
The Native Village of Marshall is asking the State of Alaska to reinstate the Constable program and to place them in segments of rural Alaska totally without law enforcement to reestablish and maintain law and order.
The resolution further resolves that the Governor acknowledge this crisis and make progress reports available to the villages in need of law and order.
Certifying the resolution are Nicholai Duny, President of the Native Village of Marshall, and Marvin Parent, the Secretary.
The Napaskiak Tribal Council also passed a resolution on March 5th, 2018 requesting Governor Bill Walker to declare a disaster of emergency and to close the liquor store in Bethel due to numerous alcohol-related deaths in and around the surrounding villages near Bethel.