2 Year Old Minnesota Native American Child Killed in White Foster Home – Biological Family Outraged

Local media in Minnesota is reporting that a 2 year old Native American child originally from the Fond du Lac Reservation was found dead in her foster home last month (June 2016). The foster father has been charged with two counts of second-degree manslaughter, and has a previous criminal record. "This didn't have to happen. This little girl didn't have to die. She should be right here with her parents at this time," said Patti Larsen, a family spokesperson. Larsen, who serves as the Sacred Hoop Coalition Director, was shepherding 2-year-old Kira Friedman's case through the St. Louis County Court system on behalf of the little girl's family, and believes her death was preventable. "The maternal grandmother identified numerous people who would be potential placements for the child," she said. Larsen wanted to ensure Kira was placed in a Native American home. Therefore, she says the County let this child down when they removed her from a Native foster home, and placed her with a white foster family in Duluth.