The calls for help have reached the state Capitol, where lawmakers participated in a series of events last week to learn about the crisis and what solutions they can pass into law.

We also need resources for the healing of our community,” said Randall Britton, who is a relative of Montelongo and Khadijah Britton. “We’re not only seeking resources for more law enforcement. The emergency declaration aims to raise awareness on the violence plaguing California’s tribes, especially those in the northern half of the state, and bring attention to the lack of resources they have to solve it. Round Valley Indian Tribes President Randall Britton said the killings highlight the urgent need for greater investment in youth services and programs to better safeguard young members. The nonprofit Sovereign Bodies Institute recorded 183 cases of missing or slain Indigenous women and girls in California, according to a 2021 report, though experts say that’s probably a significant undercount. Women and girls are disproportionately affected because they’re frequently targeted for human trafficking or are victims of domestic violence.

Incomplete data make it difficult to pinpoint the number of Native people who’ve gone missing or been killed, but federal officials estimate some 4,200 cases have gone unsolved across the country.

The declaration followed a similar one issued by the Yurok in Del Norte and Humboldt counties in December 2021 after the disappearance of Emmilee Risling, a 32-year-old mother of two who was last seen along the Klamath River in a densely forested area not far from the Oregon border. The two slayings prompted Round Valley Indian Tribes to declare a state of emergency on April 16, just one day after Montelongo was found dead and less than a month after Whipple was killed.

Brutal Youth by Anthony Breznican