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Surrounded by about 30 U.S. Attorneys from the U.S. Department of Justice, Grant Weston prayed in his native Lakota language Wednesday that they would use their power and authority to "watch over and protect" his people on reservations across South Dakota.

Weston's prayer, and a traditional shawl dance by Rosebud Sioux Tribe Police Chief Grace Her Many Horses, were part of Wednesday's opening ceremonies for the Attorney General's Advisory Committee and the Native American Issues Subcommittee meetings in Rapid City.

U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, along with about 30 other U.S. Attorneys who work with tribal governments, were in Rapid City Wednesday for the listening session. Holder will also attend a listening session on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation on Thursday, where he'll lay a wreath at the Wounded Knee Memorial site.

The morning sessions included comments from tribal leaders of each of South Dakota's nine reservations. Lower Brule Tribal Chairman Michael Jandreau prefaced his blunt-spoken remarks with an apology for any perceived rudeness by DOJ staffers, before telling them that "beautiful ideals flow out of the mouths of people in a position to make a difference ... but no difference is made."

Among his small tribe that occupies a 265,000-acre reservation in central South Dakota, "there is no belief that justice is real," Jandreau said. "Justice must be real, fair and unpolitical," he said. "I find all those factors are grossly violated on our reservation," Jandreau said.

After 32 years as tribal chairman of Lower Brule, Jandreau said the reality of the criminal justice systems on South Dakota reservations is still inadequate funding, lack of contract support services and a fragmented approach to the court system.

The reality is that improvement doesn't happen because of a lack of oversight, budget loopholes and funding, staff and resources that never arrive as promised, he said.

In a "nation to nation" discussion, Associate Attorney General Thomas J. Perrelli announced new DOJ efforts to deal with the "scourge of domestic violence" that he said often overwhelms reservation law enforcement agencies. The proposed legislation builds on the Tribal Law and Order Act passed in July 2010, he said. It would close three legal gaps that often prevent tribal police from arresting a perpetrator, including providing for criminal jurisdiction over both Native and non-Native offenders in domestic assault cases that occur on a reservation. Under current federal law, a non-Indian cannot be prosecuted in tribal courts. It would also strengthen criminal sentences for certain acts of domestic assault. Perrelli said the proposed legislation would give tribal police more authority to stop domestic violence when and where it occurs.

Perelli also called for "institutionalization" of tribal justice improvements being made to date at both the federal and tribal levels so that "progress isn't lost ... no matter who sits in these chairs."

Check back later for more on Attorney General Holder's comments.