Window Rock, Ariz. • The Navajo Nation says it is working with Congress to fund the tribe’s proposed Department of Medical Examiners.
The Gallup Independent reports Navajo Law and Order Committee Chairwoman Eugenia Charles-Newton says the panel is seeking full funding amid overworked criminal investigators.
Navajo criminal investigators have been handling deaths on the sprawling Navajo Nation that is located in three states.
Navajo criminal investigators have been devoting about 40% of their time to serve as coroners. This has also created a problem when it comes to recruiting criminal investigators because they turn down the job discouraged by the extra duty of coroner.