California Department of Justice prosecutors will examine the Sacramento County District Attorney’s decision not to press murder charges in the case of a Native American man bludgeoned to death over 22 years ago.
Allan Olvera, a strong advocate for indigenous people, passed away in October 2001. At 50 years old, he was deeply involved in the Sacramento Native American Caucus and helped establish California’s first accredited tribal college. The lack of resources to address and solve crimes against Native Americans has made it incredibly challenging for his family to seek justice.
The Sacramento County Chief Deputy District Attorney, supported by two prosecutors in the homicide unit, concluded that there was insufficient evidence to prove Olvera’s case beyond a reasonable doubt, despite reviewing the case twice. Consequently, the California Attorney General’s Office has offered to re-evaluate the evidence at the family’s request.
Olvera did not show up for the California Indian Conference at Sacramento State in 2001, raising concern. His family discovered his battered body in his Elk Grove home. Autopsy reports revealed that he was beaten to death with an unknown object and that his home was ransacked.
Olvera had a profound impact on the American Indian community, teaching students about their culture and caring for elders. If this case were to be solved, it would provide closure to his family and highlight the prevalence of unsolved missing and murdered indigenous cases.
The family remains hopeful that future evidence or the re-evaluation by the California Attorney General’s Office will lead to an arrest in Olvera’s case. However, their faith in the justice system’s ability to solve these cases has been shaken.
