Colorado Police Searching For Woman Who Went Missing After Her First Night In Denver

Christine Tail, a 32-year-old Indigenous woman, moved from South Dakota to Denver with high hopes of building a good life there with her girlfriend Tanya Lance. However, on June 14, 2023, which was her first night in the city after the big move, Tail disappeared.

Lance’s mother, Carol Red Bird, told CNN that the couple were exploring downtown Denver when Tail wandered off. After Lance searched for Tail all night, she reached out to her family in South Dakota for help finding her girlfriend.

Red Bird explained that this behavior was unusual for Tail who is typically active on social media but hasn’t posted in several days. It’s also not like her to be out of contact with them. She shared with CNN, “Christine just sticks very close to my daughter.”

The Missing & Murdered Indigenous Relatives Taskforce of Colorado joined Tail’s girlfriend and family in the search for her. They’ve passed out flyers with a photo and information about Tail, and they searched the downtown area where she was last seen.

“This is literally a life-or-death situation, especially when it’s some of our young relatives that go missing. They are at such high risk of trafficking situations that it’s terrifying to think where Christine might be,” Monycka Snowbird, a member of the task force, told CNN.

Four days after Tail, who is a member of the Oglala Sioux Tribe, was last seen and three days after she was reported missing, there was a Missing Indigenous Person Alert issued for her. CNN reported that the woman’s loved ones are worried that the delay may have hurt the search for her. The Denver Police Department issued a statement explaining that an internal misunderstanding caused the delays and that they are reviewing their procedures.

According to the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, Tail was last seen near the 1400 Block of Champa Street in downtown Denver around 7 p.m. that evening. The Missing Indigenous Person Alert issued by CBI shared that Tail has brown eyes and bleach blonde hair with pink tips. She is 5 feet tall and 130 pounds. She was last seen wearing a white T-shirt with a gay pride logo, blue shorts, and white tennis shoes.

Look for Me, a non-profit organization with a focus on the crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous women, shared that Tail has a tattoo of stars on her neck. She was last seen carrying a black backpack that displayed the words Army and James.

If you have any information about Tail, please contact the Denver Police Department at 720-913-3200 or dial 911.