SEATTLE, Wash.-A Chief Investigator has been hired for the Washington Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and People Cold Case Unit.
Brian George, an enrolled member of the Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribe and a 27-year veteran of law enforcement, will oversee the unit according to Attorney General Bob Ferguson.
“Hiring a leader for my office’s new cold case unit is an important step as we pursue justice and accountability in these cases,” Ferguson said.
George began his career as a member of the Suquamish Tribal Police Department and has served in the State Patrol for over 25 years, according to a press release on his hire from the AG’s Office.
“This is meaningful, important work supporting law enforcement in bringing closure to families who have been waiting too long,” said George. “I’m eager to get started.”
The Cold Case Unit will be part of the Attorney General’s Criminal Justice Division and will include investigators and a case navigator, whose primary function is to work with and maintain regular, consistent communication with families of missing and murdered Indigenous women and people according to today’s press release on George’s hire.
Washington’s Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and People Cold Case Unit is the first-of-its-kind in the nation and has been in the works since 2021.
The Attorney General’s Office convened a MMIWP Task Force in 2021 that recommended the creation of a cold case unit in 2022. A bill creating the unit passed through the state legislature in 2023 and was signed into law by Governor Jay Inslee.