State Quietly Disbands MMIWR Task Force

11.24.23 –This week on New Mexico in Focus, we discuss Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham’s decision to quietly shut down the state’s Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Relatives Task Force. In October, reporter Bella Davis (Yurok) broke that story at New Mexico In Depth. This week, she sits down in our studio with Darlene Gomez, a member of the disbanded task force, and Vangie Randall-Shorty (Diné), a mother whose son was murdered. Three years after his death, she’s still waiting for answers from investigators. 

Correspondent: Bella Davis (Yurok) 

Guests: Vangie Randall-Shorty (Diné), Mother of Zachariah Juwaun Shorty  
Darlene Gomez, attorney, former member of the New Mexico MMIWR Task Force 

For More Information: 

New Mexico pulls plug on missing and murdered Indigenous people task force – New Mexico In Depth