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Roy Clyde, city parks worker in Riverton, shot dead one member of the Northern Arapaho tribe and wounded another
A fatal shooting of one member of the Northern Arapaho tribe and the wounding of another in the Center of Hope detox center prompted federal authorities to intervene.
The Riverton event took place after in 2013, another shooting took the life of a woman belonging also to the Northern Arapaho tribe.
The tribe leaders decided to call upon federal authorities on Tuesday in order to register hate crime charges against the man who shot dead 29 year old Stallone Trosper and wounded James Goggles, now in serious condition at the Casper Hospital.
According to Dean Goggles, who is the chairman of the Northern Arapaho Business Council:
“The trend of violence against Indian people in and around Riverton is alarming. It’s our responsibility as tribal leaders to do everything we can to try and stop these crimes of hate”.
The man charged with the murder of Stallone Trosper is Roy Clyde, worker in the city parks. His motive, according to the statement, was being unnerved by homeless people who are taking to the parks to drink and then relieve themselves on the parks’ grounds.
Notting nothing of hate-incensed crimes, the 32 year-old has been already charged with attempted murder in the case of James Goggles, cousin of Dean Goggles, and murder in the case of Trosper.
Riverton is not a large community, counting only approximately 11,000 residents. Surrounding Riverton is the Wind River Indian Reservation. Here, the Eastern Shoshone tribe and the Northern Arapaho tribe still have a home.
Yet, members of the Northern Arapaho are saying hate crimes are threatening their existence here. Next week, the leaders of the tribe will take to Washington to discuss the matter with federal authorities.
John Powell, from the U.S. attorney’s office in Cheyenne stated that the office is keeping close contact with Riverton authorities and an eye of the investigation. And, according to the mayor of Riverton, the fatal shooting and the wounding of another Northern Arapaho member are saddening events for the Riverton community at large.
Here, Mayor John Baker insists, racial sensitivity is held in great regards. And many efforts are being made for good understanding and cohabiting in Riverton. In the mayor’s words:
“If the Department of Justice feels that they have to prosecute that as a hate crime, I don’t think they’ll find an awful lot of opposition”.
The Center of Hope detox center was opened also to address the issue of homeless people on the streets. Operating with the city’s full support, the detox center has been immensely helpful in taking people off the streets and offering long-term treatment that would allow them to return to the community.
Photo Credits usnews.com
