Season Finale of Stolen: The Search For Jermain

 The season finale of “Stolen: The Search for Jermain,” was just released. In the final episode, host and investigative journalist Connie Walker speaks with the one person whom law enforcement say was involved in the disappearance of missing Indigenous mother Jermain Charlo, and whom we haven’t yet directly heard from on the podcast.

 You can listen to the finale HERE.

 In episode eight, Walker talks with investigators and family members, reflecting on this ongoing case and questioning reasons why movement on it has been delayed. Throughout the series, Connie has reported on Jermain’s life on the Flathead Reservation, her abusive relationship with former boyfriend Michael, and all the trauma that led up to the night she went missing. 

 

While members of Jermain’s family think the answer is clear, they can’t help but wonder: why did it take months for a thorough investigation of Michael’s property to be conducted, and would it have taken as long if the victim weren’t an Indigenous woman?  

In the final episode, we hear from Michael as Connie attempts to get his side of the story. Connie also joins another search party for Jermain and an awareness walk for missing and murdered Indigenous women as we continue to hear from Jermain’s loved ones. 

 Since the podcast premiered in early March, host Connie Walker has investigated Jermain’s disappearance speaking with her friends, family, law enforcement and bystanders, uncovering inconsistencies in her case, sharing what life was like for Jermain at home on the Flathead Reservation in Montana, and the larger issue of domestic violence against Indigenous women in the U.S.

According to U.S. crime statistics, Native American women are more than twice as likely to experience violence than any other demographic. One in three Native women is sexually assaulted during her life, and 67 percent of these assaults are perpetrated by non-Natives.

Currently, the federal laws surrounding violent crimes create difficulties in dealing with non-Native perpetrators on native lands.

Podcast host Connie Walker, who is Cree from Okanese First Nation in Canada, has made it her life’s work as a journalist to tell the stories of missing and murdered Indigenous women. “Stolen: The Search for Jermain,” marks not only her first story with Gimlet Media but also the first U.S. case of a missing Indigenous woman that she’s investigated. 

  The podcast, “Stolen: The Search for Jermain,” is the first release since her acclaimed series “Missing and Murdered.”

Two weeks ago, an announcement by U.S. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland about the creation of an investigative unit  to probe cases of missing and murdered Native Americans felt like a major win for the Gimlet / Spotify podcast
“Stolen: The Search for Jermain."

The federal government formed a task force on the issue in 2019 to pursue such cases. Haaland said the new unit will expand on that work and establish a unit chief position to develop policy for the unit. The unit will review unsolved cases and work with tribal, BIA and FBI investigators on active cases as well, according to the department.

“Violence against Indigenous peoples is a crisis that has been underfunded for decades. Far too often, murders and missing persons cases in Indian country go unsolved and unaddressed, leaving families and communities devastated,” Haaland said in a statement. “The new unit will provide the resources and leadership to prioritize these cases and coordinate resources to hold people accountable, keep our communities safe, and provide closure for families.”