The federal government recently finalized an $18 million settlement with 12 people who were sexually abused by an Indian Health Service doctor in Montana and South Dakota. IHS is responsible for providing health care to members of federally recognized tribes. Dr. Stanley Patrick Weber worked on the Blackfeet and Pine Ridge reservations. He is serving life in prison for sexually abusing young boys. An investigation found several IHS leaders were aware of Weber’s suspicious behaviors, but failed to take action. The recent settlement is the latest in a string of lawsuits related to Weber. An attorney says at least $32.5 million has been recovered for 20 total people who brought claims against Weber.
MISSOULA, Mont. (AP) — The federal government recently finalized an $18 million settlement with a group of 12 people who were abused by an Indian Health Service doctor in Montana and South Dakota.
Indian Health Service (IHS) is the federal entity responsible for providing health care to members of federally recognized tribes. The agency is chronically underfunded and has long been criticized for the quality of care it provides.
Dr. Stanley Patrick Weber served as a physician on the Blackfeet Reservation from 1992 to 1995 and worked at IHS on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota from 1995 to 2016. In 2018, Weber was convicted of abusing young Native American boys in Montana, and in 2019 he was convicted of the same crimes against young boys in South Dakota. He’s now serving multiple life sentences in federal prison.
Weber’s abuse and IHS leaders’ failure to stop it is well-documented. A 161-page independent report commissioned by IHS in 2020 revealed that several IHS leaders were aware of Weber’s suspicious behaviors, yet failed to take action.
“As would happen throughout his career, Weber’s accusers were targeted by management and his position protected,” the report reads.
Despite suspicions of pedophilia on the Blackfeet Reservation, Weber was transferred to an IHS facility on the Pine Ridge Reservation, where he worked for nearly 21 years, according to the report.
“Leadership failed because it wanted the warnings about Weber to be untrue because if they were true, they would have to take steps that would be awkward, arduous, inconvenient, messy and embarrassing,” the report found.
The recent settlement is the latest in a string of lawsuits brought against the federal government related to Weber. Peter Janci, whose law firm Crew Janci LLP represented the victims in the recent settlement, said at least $32.5 million has been recovered for 20 total people who brought claims against Weber.
“These are some of the most egregious violations of trust that I think we’ve dealt with,” Janci said in an interview Thursday, adding that the law firm specializes in sexual abuse cases. “Here, we had some of the most vulnerable people being exploited by someone who was in one of the most sacred positions of trust. And to make it worse, he was actively enabled by government superiors who were well aware of the danger that he posed.”
Blackfeet Tribal Councilmember Lyle Rutherford said the consequences of Weber’s actions reverberate in the community today. Some people who survived his abuse, Rutherford said, experience mental health challenges. Others lost trust in IHS.
“This whole Weber issue is still here,” he told Montana Free Press on Thursday. “I have constituents who are still worried for their children being serviced by IHS. They think, ‘This is going to happen again. How do we avoid this?’ The big issue is why didn’t IHS report this when they knew it was happening?”
IHS’s handling of the Weber case has been a point of contention for the Blackfeet Nation. Blackfeet leaders have alleged that a former IHS director in 2019 promised the tribe a wellness center to rectify the harm caused by Weber, though IHS has not weighed in publicly on the matter. In June 2023, the tribe turned down a visit from then-National IHS Director Roselyn Tso, saying there had been little progress on the wellness center and the “visit would be hollow.” The conflict escalated in November 2023, when the tribal council called for the removal of several IHS leaders, saying they failed to support the tribe.
Rutherford told MTFP on Thursday that the dispute remains unresolved. He said the tribe is considering using American Rescue Plan Act funds for a wellness center.
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This story was originally published by the Montana Free Press and distributed through a partnership with The Associated Press.