Colorado Native Task Force Collecting Data on In-Custody Deaths

DENVER — The U.S. government does not know how many people die in law enforcement custody each year, according to a report by The Education Fund and the Project of Government Oversight.

While many people want to know how many people died, others want to know who.

“Absolutely,” said Daisy Bluestar, a member of the Colorado Missing and Murdered Indigenous Parents Task Force. “An individual asked us what we were doing because he believes his son was murdered in prison. I was grateful he asked that question.”

This question led to many others. Bluestar said the group contacted the Missing and Murdered Native Parent Liaison Office and the Colorado Division of Criminal Justice to obtain data on Native deaths in custody.

“What we find is that if they are [collecting Native American in-custody death data]it hasn't been disclosed to anyone,” she said. “So we're looking for this data and, to be honest, we're not getting any answers.”

According to the Colorado Division of Criminal Justice website, the law requires data on in-custody deaths to be submitted. There is even a form that includes a person's race or ethnicity.

Although some statistics on deaths in custody are available online, that person's race, ethnicity, gender, age, or even cause of death do not appear to be readily available on the custodial website. State.

“It’s very important to have data,” Bluestar said. “We want all our loved ones to get justice, no matter the situation.”

The task force is now asking the community for information on deaths of Native people while in custody at any Colorado prison. It is also difficult to obtain national figures. According to a report by the Education Fund and the Project on Government Oversight, data collected on deaths in custody is incomplete, inaccurate and unclear.

Bluestar hopes that with its push for more information, there will be a little more transparency.

“All that matters is respect across the board,” she said. “We’re going to do our best.”

9NEWS contacted the Missing and Murdered Native Parent Liaison Office and the Colorado Division of Criminal Justice about this data last week and has yet to receive a response. Bluestar said if they don't get anywhere with state agencies, they plan to start contacting local law enforcement to try to get numbers.

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