KNOW YOUR CHILDCARE CUSTODY RIGHTS
If you or a member of your family is contacted by the Utah Division of Child and Family Services (DCFS), Child Protective Services (CPS), or any related state agency, it is extremely important that you immediately notify the caseworker that you are a member of the Paiute Indian Tribe of Utah or that your child is eligible for tribal membership.
You should request that the worker immediately contact the Paiute Tribe’s Puow’wan Program staff, Tamra Borchardt-Slayton or Stacy Halladay, along with the Tribe’s attorney, Alana Martin, at (435) 586-1112. Tribal members and their children who are descendants of the Tribe are protected under tribal law and the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA). The Tribe has the legal right to intervene in child custody proceedings involving Indian children in order to protect Indian families, preserve tribal identity, and prevent the unnecessary breakup of Indian homes.
Under the Indian Child Welfare Act, 25 U.S.C. § 1911(c), “the Indian custodian of the child and the Indian child’s tribe shall have a right to intervene at any point in the proceeding.” ICWA was enacted by Congress because of the high number of Native children being separated from their families and tribes through state child welfare systems. The law requires state agencies and courts to actively involve the child’s Tribe in cases involving Native children and to make active efforts to keep Indian families together whenever possible. Even if your case is already ongoing, you still have the right to notify the court and DCFS of your tribal membership and request tribal intervention and support under ICWA protections.