Trent Shores, a former United States Attorney, is a shareholder at GableGotwals where he advises clients regarding complex litigation, Native American law and policy, cybersecurity, and high-stakes government and corporate investigations. He represents clients in state, federal, and tribal courts at all stages in the litigation process, including at trial and on appeal.
He was recently named a Tribal Supreme Court Justice for the Kaw Nation and a member of the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition’s Oklahoma Advisory Committee.
Prior to joining the Firm, Trent spent nearly 18 years in public service at the United States Department of Justice, most recently as the United States Attorney for the Northern District of Oklahoma. Trent was nationally recognized for his efforts to develop and implement strategic responses to Native American policy, violent crime, the opioid epidemic, and economic espionage and trade secret theft; and his work has been featured in national media outlets including the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Real Clear Politics, and the Associated Press.
As the chief federal law enforcement officer in Northern Oklahoma, he was responsible for all federal criminal prosecutions and civil litigation in his district, an area covering 11 counties with a total population of more than one million people, including 13 federally recognized Indian tribes. Trent, a citizen of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma, served as Chair of the Native American Issues Subcommittee charged with developing and guiding national policy for Indian Country justice and related matters. In that capacity, he established a national initiative to address the crisis of missing and murdered indigenous persons, and led a presidential task force investigating the Indian Health Service. He also served on the Attorney General’s Advisory Committee where he represented all U.S. Attorneys in the Tenth Circuit and provided counsel and advice on national policy matters and the operations of the Justice Department.
Throughout his career, including during his tenure as U.S. Attorney, Trent personally tried complex cases in federal district court and argued before the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit. He has also testified before the United States Senate Committee on Indian Affairs and United States Sentencing Commission.
As an Assistant U.S. Attorney, Trent served as a National Security Cyber Specialist, a role in which he worked closely with the Joint Terrorism Task Force to investigate and prosecute cybercrime linked to international organized crime, complex white collar conspiracies, and domestic terrorism. He also previously worked as the Tribal Liaison for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, ensuring the Justice Department upheld its federal trust responsibility to federally recognized tribes and leading investigations into public corruption, embezzlement from tribal gaming operations, and a variety of violent crime violations. He has also represented the United States at the United Nations and Organization of American States arguing for the recognition of basic human rights for indigenous peoples worldwide.
Publications
- Native American justice is a personal and professional mission, Tulsa World (October 4, 2020)
- Law enforcement is a noble and necessary profession, Tulsa World (July 12, 2020)
- Remembering the Oklahoma City Bombing on 25th Anniversary, RealClear Politics (April 19, 2020)
- Beware of coronavirus fraud; state and federal law enforcement are on the case, Tulsa World (April 6, 2020)
- The Leadership Council Model, United States Attorney’s Bulletin, Published by the Executive Office of the United States Attorneys, United States Department of Justice (January 2020)
- 3 Ways DOJ is Working to Improve Justice in Indian County, Law360 (September 15, 2019)
- Congress should fix the Armed Career Criminal Act, Tulsa World (August 12, 2018)
- The real Justice League is out to deal with violent crime and the scourge of opioids, Tulsa World (May 4, 2018)
- Conspiracies in Indian Country, United States Attorney’s Bulletin, Published by the Executive Office of the United States Attorneys, United States Department of Justice (July 2013)
- Lessons from Indian County, The Sooner Lawyer (Spring/Summer 2007)