Full Transcript for Unsolved Midest - Episode 18 - The Murder of Mary Ellen Johnson-Davis

certain other state agencies? Which, when I did a dive into the relationship, it is disturbing. There is a system of extreme. Overreach, abuse, psychological, and generational trauma, an exploitation that has produced a prevailing cycle of limited resources, generational strongholds, and a mental health epidemic. And some additional key details and background. So for context, shortly before banishing, Mary had received a four hundred thousand dollar settlement. From this date, and that was in relation to the trauma that her and her sister had experienced in foster care, which by all accounts was later retained by her husband after her death. And her sister Nona and Jerry Davis have led relentless advocacy efforts to try to keep her case visible. And when her sisters were speaking at a meeting with their lawyer, Gabe Galanda, one of her sisters made a statement that really stuck out to me. And she just and as simple as it is, it really just Had so much weight to it, every life should have the same meaning. And I felt that in every like to my core, because every life should matter. And it made me think how many Indigenous women are missing and unaccounted for? So according to the FBI, 10,248, let me say that number again. 10,248 Indigenous people are currently missing or unaccounted for. And 5,614 of those are women and girls. Which is still questionable to me due to the lack of documentation and follow up by the authorities just in this story alone. So I can imagine the prevalent response from authorities when an indigenous woman or an indigenous person goes missing, period. And with that being, a majority of women and a big majority of that of women being under the age of eighteen. This is a this is why this is a cry for help. There should not be that many missing people, period, but that many missing children. There's no excuse for it. Advocacy groups and tribal leaders note that these numbers are still considered an undercount. And again, due to chronic underreporting, racial misclassification. That's another one. There are so many stories I listened to while doing research where there are. references to cases of women going missing and bodies being discovered and they're being misclassified as sometimes white, sometimes as a whole nother race. So there I'm like I lean more towards the school of thought that there is a disproportionate number that it's been reported. And then again, database limitations. One commentator discusses how prevalent rape Disappearances and murder is amongst the indigenous community and almost that it's been normalized. And she provided an account where her aunt was brutally raped by four men, left for dead, and that her life was never the same. And she was so brutalized when she was found that they couldn't recognize her face. Another contribution was provided by someone giving an account of her relative going missing and the gross lack of interest. By authorities or follow-up. Her body was later discovered in a residential area along the side of the road in a refrigerator. And a passerby was alerted by the smell of decomp and the police were reported to the scene. And it just makes me wonder if somebody would have taken her reporting seriously, because 48 hours are the critical hours. Could there have been a completely different outcome? Could she have been found safely? So there is a systemic struggle at play and it goes back to the American Indian boarding schools, which I'm so glad that they brought that thread of this story into the documentary. I feel like it was very important and it does loop everything together to why there are these generational struggles that are still being experienced to this day. So this is not discussed enough or taught. In my opinion, in schools. This is a major historic injustice in our nation's history, and its effects are still felt today. These facilities were created to force the native children to assimilate to white society. And the cycle was taking the children from their parents, not allowing them to communicate with their parents or family, remove them from their heritage and their culture, and remove their dialect. They were to only speak English, and that was it. And if you did not follow in line with any of these rules, it was not good for you. And quote, according to Richard Pratt, the founder of the Carlesel Indian Industrial School, he said, save the man, kill the Indian. The plan was not to raise scientists or doctors, but make farmers and domestic workers. And while the parents are dealing with the trauma of having their family ripped apart. The children are in state's custody and they're being raped, they're being beaten, and they're being forced to perform slave labor. And ultimately, in some cases, being murdered. In the documentary, there was a list of children that died in these boarding schools, but the presenter noted that there are mass unmarked graves amongst the reported deaths. And then parents that resisted were imprisoned. And some eventually gave in to avoid losing federal rations and supplies, some coping. By using substances and alcohol, as the case with Mary's mother, but the administrative body in her case being CPS that took her children away. These schools operated from 1890 to the 1970s with peak operations in the 19th and early 20th century. And with the passage of the Indian Child Warefare Act, this is what made them shudder. And officially, 3100 children have died in these schools, according to the Washington Post. But historians and research say that the numbers are much higher, but again, due to lack of reporting. Another layer to the missing, the sexual assaults and murder among the indigenous are the frequent traveling community of workers, predominantly male and living near or on the reservation. Resource extraction projects, temporary work is often called man or men camps, and they have a direct correlation to the increased rates of violence, sexual assault, and trafficking

against Indigenous women. And again, jurisdictional loopholes and frequent travelers make it difficult to contain a large number of the missing and the assaults. So they're working during the week and then they're there on the weekend and they're drinking or they're, see you see a woman walking by minding her own own business and they are being assaulted. And so while eyes are fixed on Mary's husband, I think there is a larger suspect pool at play here and it should be looked at. And in the documentary, Mary's sister was speaking to an unnamed woman who would get high with Mary. And she provided more facts. But this woman preferred to stay anonymous out of fear of retribution from the from their dealers and from the drug community as a whole. And Mary and her were trading sexual favors with true drug dealers in exchange for narcotics. And this is not judgmental at all. But this is for context that needs to be provided to give the full story and give as much information as I can provide in this episode. And additionally, I wonder if the dealers knew about Mary's settlement money and wanted to kill her or take the settlement money, but not realizing that her husband had total control of the funds. And her sister later found out that her husband put the money in an account and literally lorded the funds over Mary's head. And then another account given was the road Mary was walking on is definitely a route she would take to purchase narcotics. Is this a complete stranger encounter? And that's why this case is so cold. And what was Mary's true destination? Other accounts state that Mary was on her way to a church to meet a ride, and she texts almost there. And this is her last known text communication. Did she make it to the church and just ultimately met foul play? And then the last person of interest was in the documentary and it was a gentleman. And they didn't state what his name was, but they did show his image or showed his likeness. And he was, I put him as the roommate, but I don't necessarily think that she would call him that. Towards the end of her life, Mary was couch surfing because again she was trying to pull away from her husband. And this was one of the houses that she she slept on their couch. And the gentleman just gave me like not telling the whole story. So either he is trying to protect himself for some reason, or he is nervous that the investigation would hone in on him. And his account just wasn't clocking a hundred percent for me because he said she left for the church that morning and he never saw her again. But there were other things and physical cues that made me like wondering, hmm, are we getting the whole truth here? So this is the tough part of Mary's case because due to her struggles and the odds already stacked against her. There are so many obvious suspects. And then there's that pool of mystery anonymous suspects, making it harder to figure out what ultimately happened to Mary. And other suspects should be explored

because even in the documentary, the tunnel vision is on her husband in the beginning of it. But by the end, the siblings were questioning that too. So let's get into additional issues that are at play here. And the legal system on tribal on tribal lands operate through tribal sovereignty, meaning each of the five hundred and seventy-four federally recognized Native American tribes function as a domestic dependent nation with its own self-governing laws. Codes and courts. And the structures of the tribal government and the courts go like this. Three branch, there's a three branch system. So it's organized similarly to the federal government, featuring an executive, a chief, president, or governor, and a legislature, a tribal council, and an independent judicial branch, tribal courts. And their constitutions and codes, about 60% of the tribes operate under written constitutions, many established. Or modeled after the 1934 Indian Reorganization Act, while others operate under traditional customs, underwritten laws, or distinct codes, such as the Navajo Nation and the Pueblo Nation. And the courts, the tribal courts, there are roughly 400 tribal justice systems across the US, and they handle civil disputes, family law. Probate and criminal misdemeanors committed by tribal members or within reservation boundaries, and judges may be elected or appointed by the tribal council. And then as far as jurisdictions, who decides what? Jurisdictions in Indian country, reservations, dependent communities, and trust allotments are divided among tribal, federal, and state authorities depending on who committed the crime. And remember that part. Who committed the crime and what kind of crime it was? Tribal jurisdiction. Tribes have broad authority over civil matters on their land and criminal jurisdiction over Native Americans, including members of other federally recognized tribes. Tribal sentencing is generally limited by federal law. So, such as the Tribal Law Order Act, capping sentences up to three years per offense. For nine years total under certain circumstances or certain conditions. Federal jurisdiction, major federal crimes like murder, rape, or major felonies committed by Native Americans in Indian country are handled in US federal federal court under the Major Crimes Act. But non-indigenous and crimes, historically, tribal courts lack criminal jurisdiction over non-natives, though. Federal legislation has restored tribal authority over specific crimes like domestic violence involving non-natives. Crimes committed by non-natives against non-natives or non-natives against natives typically fall to state or federal jurisdiction. Now public law two eighty in certain states, such as California, Wisconsin, Oregon, and parts of others. Congress transferred certain criminal and civil jurisdiction in Indian country over to state governments, though this does not ease a tribe's inherent sovereignty. The U.S. Constitution Bill of Rights does not directly apply to tribal governments. Instead, Congress passed the Indian Civil Rights Act. ICRA in nineteen sixty-eight, which applies similar due process and equal protection rights to individuals appearing before tribal courts. Now the systemic challenges, jurisdictional fragmentation between tribal, local, and state federal law enforcement continues to complicate investigations. Furthermore, reports from lawmakers and advocacy groups highlight that funding cuts and resource limitations for violence against Women's Act, the VAWA and Tribal Victim Services have strained safe housing, counseling, and legal support for survivors. And then the systemic limitations of tribal authorities by federal law has directly fuels an ongoing epidemic of violence against Indigenous women by stripping tribal nations of inherent power to police their own lands and prosecute non-native offenders. And that's the biggest part, the stru the struggle and the stronghold and who's responsible for what. It does create this gymnastics that makes it it almost gives a permission structure for someone who wants to go in and harm a native woman. It you're you're telling them that it's okay because they're not going to face consequences. And if they do, it's going to be minimal. So historic and contemporary legal frameworks have created a complex jurisdictional maze that allows perpetrators to commit violence with crimes with near little impunity. And over the past two centuries, federal legislation and Supreme Court rulings have systemically eroded the sovereignty of tribal courts and law enforcement. So Oliphant versus Squamish Indian tribe of 1978 in this landmark decision, the US Supreme Court ruled that tribal nations completely lack inherent and criminal jurisdiction over non-native individuals, even for crimes committed directly on tribal reservations against tribal members. And then the Major Crimes Act of eighteen eighty-five. This congressional act stripped tribal courts of their jurisdiction over serious felonies such as murder, manslaughter, and rape committed on tribal land, giving exclusive jurisdiction to federal courts. This left tribal authorities severely under resource and unable to prosecute major crimes themselves. And the reason why I say all these stats is please be patient with me. It it does tie to something because this system has failed. miss the missing and the murdered indigenous women for years. And that is why there are so many unsolved cases and this population is being unserved by the government that is supposed to protect us. And that is a huge problem. A huge, huge problem. Now, the one good out of this, the impact and legacy of Mary's death and disappearance. Her disappearance helped fuel a major movement to spotlight missing and murdered indigenous women, and her story directly inspired Washington state legislation signed at the end. In 2022, establishing support services and for missing indigenous persons alert system, and it's similar to the Amber

Alert System. And recent data and reports on missing and murdered indigenous women and relatives highlight an ongoing crisis across the United States and North America. With violence and high homicide rates, over 84% of American, Indian, and Alaskan Native women experience some. Form of violence in their lifetime compared to 71% of white women. Native women are murdered at a rate of 10 times the national average in many regions and reservations. And homicides remain a leading cause of death for young indigenous women and girls. And then regarding the perpetrator demographic research from organizations like the National Congress of American Indians, NCAI. Shows that the vast majority of violence against Indigenous women, including 96% of sexual violence and 89% of stalking cases, involve non-Indigenous perpetrators. And the top states, as far as the highest rates of American Indian, and Alaskan Native missing person cases, include Alaska, Arizona, Oklahoma, Washington, New York, or not New York, apologies, New Mexico. California, Montana, North Carolina, South Dakota, and Texas. And sorry for all the stats, but I feel like this is very important to provide context to this episode that this is a crisis and it needs to be eradicated because these numbers are terrifying and very st it's it's just it's disturbing. But if you take away anything from today's show, please remember this three in five native women will be sexually assaulted. So as of today, 16 indigenous women or girls will be assaulted today. Not if, not could, will be. Two in five will be trafficked. Not could be, will be. And then the murder rate is 10 times the national average. So if you know anything about Mary's story or any crime of or violence, of course, please report it. The system has continued to fail Mary since she was a child. And despite her troubles, she had a family that wants to know what happened to her. She was beginning to move on with her life and it was cut way too short. She mattered. And like her sister said, every life should have the same meaning. So if you know something, say something. The smallest clue could solve this case. And if you're watching on YouTube, please stay tuned for the slideshow of indigenous men and women that are missing or were murdered. And if you're streaming via audio, I will be saying their names. I will be donating to the National Indigenous Women's Resource Center NIWRC. And I will link their site in the show notes. And then there is a reward up to $60,000, $10,000 from the FBI and $50,000 from the Tulip Tribe. And if this is available for any information leading to an arrest or conviction, and tips can be directed to the Tulip Tribe Police Department at Caseline. This is her case line, 360-716-5918, or the tip line 360-716-5990. And her case number is 2003063, or you can contact the FBI Seattle Field Office at 206-622-0460. And credits for today's show will be The Partnership with Native Americans, Tulip Police Department, FBI.gov, People.com, KUOW, IndianAffairs.gov, Amnesty International, The American College, Library of Congress, The University of Alaska Fairbanks, and Missing from Fire Trail Road, a documentary that streamed on Hulu, and People.com. And for today's peak of the week. Scientists in Japan have developed a plant-based plastic that dissolves in water within hours, leaving microplasti leaving no microplastics behind. And it completely degrades within eight to ten days. And it is called CMCSP, carboc carboxymethyl cellulose supramolecular plastic. And the team is comprises of Takuzo Ada and the Riken Center for Emergent Matter Science, C E S for short, in collaboration with the University, University of Tokyo. And I think that's wonderful. I'm so tired of seeing these videos of these poor animals with straw sticking out of their nose or the soda can wrappers stuck to like a fin or you know obstructing some type of part of their body. So that is a great, great bit of news. And that today's episode. And don't forget to submit your peak of the week on Instagram. And please stay tuned for the slideshow. Benita Long Brett Wolf. Delilah white dress? Khadesia Rose Britain. Leo Wagner, Linda Grover, Robert Alkaya. Shekya Harding, Victoria Eagleman, Violet Rose. Warren William Thomas Foltz. William Lauren Jackman and that's all for the rest of this episode. Bye.