- He was the National Chairman of the American Indian Movement from 1973 to 1979; he resigned the position after the deaths of his wife, Tina Manning Trudell, their three children, and Tina's mother Leah Manning, in a suspicious fire on their reservation in Nevada. However, he remained the Movement's national spokesman for many years afterward.
- His father was a Santee Dakota (Sioux) American Indian, and his mother was of Mexican Indian descent.
- Children, with Tina: Ricarda Star (March 8, 1973 - February 12, 1979), Sunshine Karma (December 16, 1975 - February 12, 1979), Eli Changing Sun (November 21, 1977 - February 12, 1979). Tina was also pregnant at the time of her death, with a boy who was to be named Josiah Hawk. Josiah's name is included beneath Tina's on her tombstone.
- He had been in a relationship with actress Marcheline Bertrand for several years at the time of her death in 2007; Bertrand was an executive producer of the 2005 documentary about his life, Trudell (2005) .
- He was a close friend of Kris Kristofferson, who wrote the 1995 song "Johnny Lobo" about Trudell.
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