Charges in two high-profile cases of missing and murdered Indigenous women on Yakama Reservation bring hope

YAKIMA — In the nearly five years since her younger sister disappeared in the fall of 2018, Cissy Strong Reyes experienced frustrating situations familiar to so many others with missing and murdered Indigenous loved ones.

When she went to police to report her sister missing, they told her Rosenda Sophia Strong was “probably out partying” and would show up, Reyes recalled in December 2021. They also brought up Strong’s criminal record, Reyes has said, and told her there was a waiting period to file a missing person report.

Strong, who was Umatilla and Yakama, was 31 when she disappeared, and a mother of four. Reyes made missing person flyers, held vigils for her sister and conducted her own searches as she considered which rumors might be based in truth.

After Strong was found shot to death in an abandoned freezer outside Toppenish on July 4, 2019, Reyes couldn’t bury her quickly, as traditional practice dictates, due to the ongoing investigation by the FBI and Yakama Nation Police Department.

Reyes wanted faster responses and better communication from law enforcement. She wanted compassion and respect. She wanted justice. As she continued to share her sister’s story and raise awareness about missing and murdered Indigenous people, those situations improved.

Arrests in the murder of Strong and another high-profile case of missing and murdered Indigenous women on the Yakama Reservation — the December 2017 homicide of Destiny Lloyd — have brought hope not only to their family and friends, but also to the many others awaiting justice for their loved ones.

As Indigenous people have suffered disproportionate levels of violence over centuries, their loved ones have hoped that justice would be served one day. But countless cases have grown cold with scant or no publicity, a lack of concern by authorities due at times to their lifestyles and little or no communication with families.

Some resolution

Six people have been indicted in connection with the death of Strong and her accused killer on the Yakama Reservation, with one arraigned in U.S. District Court in Yakima on June 23 and five others making court appearances in the last two weeks.

Two people are accused in connection with Lloyd’s death, with one suspect arraigned June 20. The 23-year-old Harrah woman was last seen on Christmas Day 2017. Her body was found Dec. 29, 2017, just off Marion Drain Road near the intersection with Harrah Road south of Harrah. An autopsy determined that she died from a skull fracture as the result of a blunt force trauma.

And in another highly publicized case of a missing and murdered Indigenous woman, Charles Becker was sentenced Friday in a King County court to 34 years in prison for the June 2022 homicide of Mavis “Boots” Kindness Nelson of Seattle. The 56-year-old Yakama woman was a mother of three and had many family and friends on the Yakama Reservation and the Umatilla Reservation in Oregon.

The cases involving the homicides of Lloyd and Strong aren’t connected. And though several people are charged, the cases aren’t closed. The years-long investigations by federal and tribal authorities continue as more people are believed to have been involved in both deaths.

Ne’Sha Jackson, a longtime tribal court judge for the Yakama Nation and advocate for missing and murdered Indigenous people, has spoken at many vigils honoring and remembering Strong, Lloyd and the dozens of missing and murdered Indigenous people in the region.

“Justice may be slow, but it’s moving,” she said.

Raising awareness

The FBI is tasked with investigating serious crimes on nearly 200 reservations of federally recognized tribes. In the last several years, federal authorities have investigated and prosecuted three other high-profile cases of missing and murdered Indigenous women on the Yakama Reservation. They were Felina Blanch Metsker, who was killed sometime between March 23 and April 1, 2016; Allilia “Lala” Minthorn, who was reported missing and found shot to death in May 2019; and Catherine Eneas, who was among five people found shot to death at a trailer in a remote area of the reservation on June 8, 2019.

Theirs are among dozens of cases of missing and murdered Indigenous women and people on the reservation. As of June 26, the Washington State Patrol reported 37 missing Indigenous people in Yakima County and within the boundaries of the Yakama Nation, the most in the state. Many of the homicides and mysterious deaths on the reservation over decades are unsolved.

Along with court dates for suspects in the deaths of Lloyd and Strong, trials have been set for suspects in the homicides of Gail Teo, who was found murdered in her White Swan home on Aug. 7, 2019; and Anita Lucei, who was shot to death outside a home in Toppenish on April 13, 2022. The trial for the man accused of killing Teo, a beloved Yakama elder, has been continued several times.

And Edward Charles Robinson Jr., who is charged in federal court in the April 9, 2020, stabbing deaths of Maria Martinez and Shante Barney near Brownstown, faces a competency hearing July 21. The women were his mother and sister-in-law.

Some family and friends of Indigenous people who have gone missing and have been found murdered or dead on the Yakama Reservation say they are not taken seriously or are treated disrespectfully because of their missing loved one’s lifestyle or struggles with addiction or mental health issues.

Reyes has always been open about her sister’s personal struggles. But she kept pushing law enforcement for justice because, as she has always said, her sister didn’t deserve what happened to her.

“We weren’t going to give up,” Reyes said after court appearances by two suspects on Wednesday. “It’s been a roller coaster, but we’re finally here in the courtroom.”

Reyes has been outspoken in the media and on social media about her sister, sharing her name and photos and calling out those with information to come forward. Traditional practice dictates that those with a relative or friend who died not say or write the person’s full name and not share photos of the person for a year, or until a memorial is held. But Reyes wanted to keep her sister’s name and face in the public eye.

“Keep them visible,” Reyes advised others with missing and murdered Indigenous loved ones. “Keep doing what I’m doing.”

“I don’t want them to lose hope,” she said.

Moving forward

On June 22, Ernestine Morning Owl met with Seattle Police Department Detective Josh Rurey, representatives of the King County Prosecutor’s Office and a few others gathered at the Yakama Nation Agency in Toppenish. Morning Owl was getting updates in the case against the man accused of killing her sister, Mavis “Boots” Kindness Nelson.

Nelson was a kind and generous person and Morning Owl wants to remember her sister for the good things. But at the June 22 meeting, as with the first time Morning Owl met with Rurey in early October, she and the others heard the terrible details of how Nelson was stabbed to death, kept for a time inside an apartment and then placed in a wooded area on the University of Washington campus last June.

Becker pleaded guilty to Nelson’s homicide, along with other charges, and was sentenced Friday. The recent meeting was to prepare Nelson’s family and friends for what they might hear in court. They didn’t know how long it would take for the case to be resolved, Morning Owl said.

Both meetings were extremely emotional, but she appreciated the information and the hard work by Rurey and prosecutors. “He’s done a fantastic job,” she said of Rurey. “The prosecutors, they all did an excellent job.”

As with Rosenda Strong’s remains, Nelson’s body stayed with authorities until necessary tests and other investigative efforts were complete. Morning Owl respects traditional practices but talked with her family about that and sharing her sister’s name and photos.

“If we want to get these guys off the street and stop killing … let them do their investigation. Let them keep the body,” she said. “This being a murder charge, I wanted him caught. I wanted to mention her name. I told my family I’m not going to apologize for it.”

Morning Owl would like to see every state have the most updated forensic technology so investigators can solve cases faster. Investigations will still take months or years, but she is pleased and hopeful to see more attention and efforts to solve current and cold cases of missing and murdered Indigenous people.

“Don’t give up. Things are changing,” she said.