The Chief Judge of the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of Potawatomi Tribal Court was honored last week with an award from the American Judges Association for her work in domestic and sexual violence law.
"I'm the first tribal judge to receive an award from the AJA, which makes it just so humbling," Chief Judge Melissa Pope said.
"I'm just overwhelmed and appreciative of their recognition of tribal courts as justice systems that are doing the same work that they are, just in our own way."
Since she was first appointed in 2011, Pope has worked to address domestic and sexual violence in her community, including establishing the Victim Services Department within the Nottawaseppi tribal court.
The department provides counseling, child care and other resources to help victims safely recover and transition, but Pope said that when it was created, some community members doubted if the tribe really needed a full-time Domestic Violence Victim Advocate.
“There were some individuals who said, ‘Oh, this should be a part-time position. I can't imagine that there's going to be enough work for one person on a full-time level, and our Domestic Violence Victim Advocate had clients in her office the very first day it opened.”
Pope added that the resources the tribal court provides are especially important given the high rates of violence against indigenous people in the U.S.
"We have one of the highest rates of violence against indigenous peoples, with more than four out of five American Indian and Alaska Native women who have experienced violence in their lifetime," Pope said.
“As well as more than four out of five, although less than women, of American Indian men and Alaska Native men experiencing violence in their lifetime.”
In addition to victim services, Pope said the tribal court also offers services to offenders, while still holding them accountable, in order to address the causes of violence and stop the cycle from continuing.
"If they have not committed a murder that has been prosecuted by the Department of Justice, they will return to our community, and we want the violence to stop," Pope said.
"We don't want there to be a new victim, a new child that is traumatized by seeing their parent beaten. So we do offer that to them as well. And no, not every case is a success, but the ones that are are what keep me going."
Michael Symonds reports for WMUK through the Report for America national service program.
