Roses for Abbey Steele

RAPID CITY – A large group of allies’ weathered frigid temperatures in the evening hours of Tuesday, Dec. 6 to attend a candlelight vigil for Abbey Lynn Steele where hundreds of roses were placed in front of her memorial picture.

The vigil took place across the street from the Pennington County Jail where Steele, 20, was detained on November 16 before being transferred to Monument Health, where she later died.

Following is a statement released by Tribal, Community Organizations and Concerned Individuals in regard to Steele’s death; “On Friday, December 2, 2022, 20-year-old Abbey Lynn Steele of Rapid City, South Dakota died at Monument Hospital after arriving unconscious and not breathing from the Pennington County Jail on November 16.”

According to the statement Steele had given birth on November 11, via C-section, just five days before her arrest on a warrant. Maria Steele, sister of Abbey, recorded the arrest which shows a police officer violently arresting Abbey. Natalie Stites-Means, a community activist and organizer calls the video “disturbing, triggering and traumatizing.”

“Abbey was arrested, on an outstanding warrant, by a Rapid City Police Department officer who had arrested her 3 times previously. Video footage shows this police officer chasing and forcing a distraught Abbey into handcuffs while she was postpartum, post-surgery, and highly medically vulnerable.,” Stites-Means said in the statement.

“The jail and police would not respond to Abbey Lynn Steele’s mother’s questions as to her whereabouts and did not disclose her being admitted to the hospital or that she was not only unconscious, but not breathing. Abbey’s mother, Amy Steele, next called the hospital directly, in a desperate attempt to find her daughter. The hospital disclosed that Abbey was a patient in their care and on a ventilator,” the statement continues.

According to Stites-Means, “Over fifty community organizations and citizens, representing thousands of supporters and in solidarity with the family of the late Abbey Lynne Steele, 20, of Rapid City are mobilizing to demand support and accountability around the suspicious death of this young Lakota mother.”

Maria Steele, older sister to Abbey, speaking on behalf of her grieving family states, “My sister went to jail on the 16 of November and we didn’t expect that to be the last time we saw Abbey. She asked for help and she didn’t receive it. My sister deserves justice and our family deserves peace. She’s not here to let her voice be heard so I will gladly be her voice and call out the police and others responsible for her death. As Native Americans we are always unheard and we as a community need to address this situation. How many Natives need to die in these systems before we are heard?”

Stites-Means states that the inconsistency of information is “highly suspect” and “given the historical mistreatment, discrimination, and grossly negligent behavior towards Indigenous Peoples by Pennington County, we have no reason to trust any narrative coming from institutions that continue to violate our people. We have reasons to believe that the administrators of the Pennington County Jail and adjacent agencies are likely to coordinate manipulation of the public to shift blame and escape accountability; Abbey Lynn Steele died while in their care and custody.”

The following are a list of demands that the community is calling for;

Immediate release of Abbey back to her family. There are constitutionally protected Lakota religious and spiritual beliefs that must be respected. 

An independent investigation and autopsy by expert parties outside of South Dakota must be funded. 

Release of video and detail to the family regarding Abbey’s detention. They have a right to know what took place in her final hours of consciousness.

Develop a protocol for notifying family members and support systems when loved ones are transferred from the jail to the hospital. We now have multiple accounts of community members being transferred unconscious, from the jail to the hospital, because of injuries sustained within the jail without any notification to their families. Community members who are unable to contact their support systems during such a time should not be alone; their loved ones should not be in the dark regarding their location and health status.

Expunge or provide amnesty for non-violent warrants and re-direct warrant processes towards safer practices. Warrants create a dangerous situation for vulnerable people because of the tremendous violence that takes place at the time of arrest. Cities like Denver have deployed healthcare professionals for certain populations and situations, instead of law enforcement. Protocols like this would have preserved Abbey’s life. 

Develop specific protocol about how law enforcement and correction officers engage with those who may be pregnant, post-partum, and otherwise medically vulnerable. Announce this protocol publicly and provide regular public reports on how it was followed.

Require attendance of all Pennington County law enforcement, hospital and jail staff at training on de-escalation and implicit bias.

The public is encouraged to come forward if they have similar stories. Visit Justice For Abbey Steele Facebook

As the vigil was taking place, Pennington County jail inmates offered support the only way they knew how, by rattling their cups against their windows and flashing their lights on and off, sending a clear message that they too know all too well the injustices that take place in their community.

(Contact Ernestine Anunkasan Hupa at anunkasanhupa@gmail.com)

The post Roses for Abbey Steele first appeared on Native Sun News Today.

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