Government-Politics
HELENA – The Montana Department of Justice launched a new statewide public service announcement to raise awareness of missing Indigenous persons and help bring them home.
The 30-second spot shines a light on the impact those disappearing from Montana’s Indigenous communities has on friends and families and highlights four Indigenous persons still missing in Montana: Ashley Mariah Loring Heavyrunner, James Douglas Limberhand, Shacaiah Blue Harding, and Leo Wagner.
“Behind every missing person is a family at home waiting for answers. This tragedy has had a devastating impact on our tribal communities, and the Montana Department of Justice is committed to being part of the solution,” Attorney General Knudsen said. “I encourage every Montanan to visit our missing persons database to familiarize yourself with the faces of those who are missing. One tip to law enforcement could help bring someone’s loved one home.”
You can watch the PSA at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d_rpE59qWgw.
In Montana, Indigenous persons go missing at a disproportionately higher rate. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, American Indian and Alaskan Natives make up 6.4 percent of the Montana population. Last year, Indigenous persons made up 31 percent of missing persons in the state. In 2025, 618 Indigenous persons were reported missing in Montana. According to the Montana Missing Persons Database, as of July 27th, 35 Indigenous persons are currently missing in Montana; eight have been missing for less than one year, and 27 others have been missing for more than a year.
To combat the issue, the Montana Department of Justice, under the direction of Attorney General Knudsen, launched an improved missing persons database to provide information to the public on missing persons, including Indigenous persons, reported by local law enforcement.
During the 2025 Legislative Session, the Legislature passed House Bill 545, sponsored by Tyson Running Wolf, supported by Attorney General Knudsen, and signed into law by Governor Greg Gianforte. The bill establishes the Montana Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons Advisory Council (MMIPAC), a council administered by the Montana Department of Justice (MTDOJ), with a special revenue account to allow the group to receive donations from any legal source. This will enable the council to fund projects to find missing Indigenous persons. Subsequently, the MMIPAC sponsored a specialty license plate, which is currently available for Montanans to purchase to help fund those projects.
Attorney General Knudsen also relaunched Montana’s existing human trafficking hotline earlier this year, which allows Montanans to report suspected human trafficking online. The platform, Simply Report, makes it easy for the public to report suspected cases and improve law enforcement response times following reports. The platform provides the Montana Department of Justice’s Human Trafficking Unit access to reports of human trafficking made via the hotline at 1-833-406-STOP, simplyreport.com, or the Simply Report mobile application in real time. Through a dashboard, agents can monitor tips and dispatch law enforcement officers to the scene to investigate more quickly.