David Rogers (Nez Perce) is a 30 year criminal justice professional with 16 years in law enforcement serving in positions that included Captain, Under-Sheriff and Chief of Police of both Tribal and Non-Tribal Police Agencies. He served as Chief of Police for the Makah Nation in northwestern Washington and as the first Chief of Enforcement for the Columbia River Inter-Tribal Enforcement unit which provided service to the four Treaty-Tribes (Nez Perce, Yakama, Warm Springs and Umatilla Tribes) on the Columbia River which included two states and eight county jurisdictions. Dave also served nine years as a Probation Officer and Court Commissioner for the District Courts of Clark County in Vancouver, Washington. During this time he managed the Electronic Home Monitoring program as well as providing field probation services. For four years he was the Program Manager for the Western Community Policing Center providing Community Policing Training for the CIRCLE Project and the Tribal Resource Grant Program (TRGP) to over 250 tribes in 32 states on behalf of the COPS Office initiatives for Indian Country. Dave Rogers is the Tribal Law Enforcement Programs Specialist for Fox Valley Technical College Criminal Justice Center for Innovation in Neenah, Wisconsin. Dave is also the Director of the National Indian Youth Police Academy, which has gained international attention for its work with Indian youth and is entering its 8th year of operation.
Kelly Benjamin is a graduate from Drake Law School, has been a practicing attorney for over 14 years and is a former Assistant District Attorney for Portage County, Wisconsin, where she held her position for over 10 years until April 2005. While working for Portage County, she was head attorney for domestic violence cases for 9 years, and also prosecuted sexual assault and child abuse cases among other misdemeanor’s and felony’s. She is a certified trainer through the Wisconsin Office of Justice Assistance on domestic violence and sexual assault as well as a certified trainer through the Wisconsin Department of Justice, Law Enforcement Standards Board, on investigations, sensitive crimes, interviewing, report writing, juvenile and victim issues. While at the DA’s office, she drafted protocols for the Portage County DA Office on Domestic Violence and the Portage County Child Abuse/Neglect Multi-Disciplinary Team, which she coordinated. She was a member of the Domestic Abuse and Sexual Assault Community Response Teams and she was nominated Prosecutor of the year in 1999. Kelly has provided Domestic Violence training in Indian Country for the Menominee Nation in Wisconsin and the National Indian Youth Police Academy.
Gene Fenton (Salish Kootenai) is a member of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes of Montana. He has over 15 years of Military and Law Enforcement service. Currently, Gene is assigned to the Colville Confederated Tribes of Washington as he pursues his interest and focus on Education and Training. Gene has recently developed an awareness program for all ages focusing on Meth in Indian Country, Community Crime Prevention, School Safety and Security, as well as Gang Safety and Awareness. Gene has served Indian Country Law Enforcement in the States of Washington, Idaho, Montana and New Mexico as a Patrolman, Patrol Supervisor, Field Training Officer, Narcotics Investigator, Instructor, Lieutenant and Captain. Gene is a State certified Peace Officer in Montana and Washington and has served as an assessor for the Western Regional Institute for Community Policing and is a Senior Counselor for the National Indian Youth Police Academy.
Gary A. Chavez (Tohono O’odham) is a member of the Chukut Kuk District of the Tohono O’odham Nation. He has over 13 years of experience working in the criminal justice field in areas involving juvenile and adult probation and parole. Mr. Chavez’s career in Criminal Justice began as an Intervention Resource Officer with the Tohono O’odham Nation’s Children’s Program. Currently Mr. Chavez is the Chief Probation Officer for the Pascua Yaqui Tribe’s, Office of Probation and Parole. Mr. Chavez has been involved in training probation officers in the areas of criminal gangs, sex offender management, and probation officer tactical training. Mr. Chavez holds certifications as a training instructor for Tactics for Officer Safety & Survival (T.O.S.S.) and Taser M26 Advanced Taser & Taser X26. Mr. Chavez recently graduated from the Tribal Probation Academy conducted by Fox Valley Technical College. Currently Mr. Chavez is certified to practice law within the Pascua Yaqui Tribal Courts. He is also expected to earn his bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice from Prescott College in the Spring of 2009.Please note: guest instructors and field experts may be invited for specialized topics.