Presidential task force on missing Natives charts path

A presidential task force charged with coming up with ways to address cases of missing and slain Native Americans has met for the first time.

The seven federal officials will work with tribes over two years to respond to what has been an epidemic in Indian Country.

No one knows how many Natives are missing or have been killed, and no single federal database tracks the number.

The task force announced Wednesday it will hold the first in a series of listening sessions with tribes at a February gathering of the National Congress of American Indians in Washington.