TRIBAL JUSTICE NEWS
WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 15, 2010

Contact: Jessica Smith, Office of Public Affairs: (202) 514-2007

Department Awards $127 Million to Improve Tribal Public Safety and Criminal Justice (PAO)
Hundreds of American Indian and Alaskan Native communities will receive almost $127 million to enhance law enforcement, bolster justice systems, prevent youth substance abuse, serve sexual assault and elder victims, and support other efforts to combat crime.  These grants are the first under the Coordinated Tribal Assistance Solicitation (CTAS), a new effort combining 10 different Department of Justice grant programs into a single solicitation.

www.justice.gov/opa/pr/2010/September/10-opa-1029.html

Arizona Man Sentenced to 78 Months in Federal Prison for Manslaughter (U.S. Attorney for the District of Arizona)
U.S. Attorney Dennis K. Burke announced on Sept. 14, 2010, Timmy David Ward, 20, of Peridot, Ariz., a member of the San Carlos Apache Tribe, has been sentenced to 78 months in federal prison by U.S. District Judge Frederick J. Martone.  Ward pleaded guilty on June 23, 2010, to voluntary manslaughter.  On April 15, 2009, Ward and the 18-year old victim engaged in a verbal argument while consuming alcohol on the San Carlos Apache Indian Community.  During the argument, the victim struck Ward in the head with a pellet gun. Ward, using a board, then struck the victim in the head and body. The injuries to the victim’s head resulted in his death.

www.justice.gov/usao/az/press_releases/index.html

Nebraska Man Sentenced for Abusive Sexual Contact of a Minor (U.S. Attorney for the District of South Dakota)
U.S. Attorney Brendan V. Johnson announced that Sylvester Long Soldier, age 51, of Gordon, Neb., appeared before U.S. District Judge Jeffrey L. Viken on Sept. 14, 2010, and pled guilty to a one count indictment that charged him with abusive sexual contact of a minor.  Long Soldier pleaded guilty to intentionally touching a 12-year old girl with the intent to gratify his own sexual desire. 

www.justice.gov/usao/sd/Media.html

South Dakota Man Sentenced for Second Degree Murder (U.S. Attorney for the District of South Dakota)
U.S. Attorney Brendan V. Johnson announced that a Rosebud, S.D., man charged with second degree murder was sentenced on Sept. 13, 2010, by U.S. District Judge Roberto A. Lange.  Bryan Austin Boneshirt, 18, was sentenced to 48 years in prison, five years of supervised release and a $100 special assessment.  The charge relates to Boneshirt killing 19-year-old Marquita Walking Eagle by choking her to death on Nov. 1, 2009, in an abandoned house in St. Francis, S.D., on the Rosebud Indian Reservation.  Despite the fact that the two had been friends, Boneshirt beat Walking Eagle, bound her hands behind her back and also held her down before he choked her to death.

www.justice.gov/usao/sd/Media.html

Anthony David Gallagher Horn Sentenced in U.S. District Court (U.S. Attorney for the District of Montana)
U.S. Attorney Michael W. Cotter announced that during a federal court session in Great Falls, Mont., on Sept. 13, 2010, before U.S. District Judge Sam E. Haddon, Anthony David Gallagher Horn was sentenced to 37 months in prison, three years supervised release and a $100 special Assessment.  Horn was sentenced in connection with his guilty plea to involuntary manslaughter.  In an Offer of Proof the government stated it would have proved at trial that on Dec. 16, 2009, at approximately 8:20 p.m., Horn was driving an extended-cab pickup on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation, when he drove off the road, hit the edge of a bridge and flipped the pickup.  There were four other occupants in the pickup.  One of the occupants, “SFL”, who was riding in the extended-cab behind the passenger seat, was pronounced dead at the scene.  Horn had been drinking prior to the wreck. 

www.justice.gov/usao/mt/pressreleases/last20.html

Tribal Cigarette Wholesaler Pleads Guilty to Obstruction of Justice (U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Washington)
U.S. Attorney Jenny Durkan announced on Sept. 13, 2010, that a Perrysburg, N.Y., company pleaded guilty and was sentenced last week in U.S. District Court in Seattle to obstruction of justice.  The plea resolves criminal charges brought against the owner, Arthur Montour, and an agent, Peter Montour, of Native Wholesale Supply (NWS), a New York based cigarette supplier, in connection with a contraband cigarette scheme in the Western District of Washington. 
       
www.justice.gov/usao/waw/press/index.html

South Dakota Man Sentenced for Trafficking in Archaeological Resources (U.S. Attorney for the District of South Dakota)
U.S. Attorney Brendan V. Johnson announced that a Fort Pierre, S.D., man charged with trafficking in archaeological resources was sentenced on Sept. 13, 2010, by U.S. District Judge William R. Wilson, Jr.  Scott A. Matteson, 61, was sentenced to eight months in prison, three years of supervised release and a $125 special assessment.  Matteson was indicted by a federal grand jury on Dec. 11, 2008, for trafficking in archaeological and Native American cultural resources.  In the plea agreement, Matteson agreed to forfeit all interest in numerous archaeological resource items including a stone discoidal game piece, a stone atlatl weight, stone tools, stone knives, stone points, a clay trade pipe and cannon balls.

www.justice.gov/usao/sd/Media.html

Sacramento Man Pleads Guilty to Stealing Money While Servicing ATMs at Red Hawk Casino (U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of California)
U.S. Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced on Sept. 13. 2010, that Eduardo Ursua Fontillas, 51, of Sacramento, Calif., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Court Judge Garland E. Burrell Jr. to felony theft and embezzlement from a casino operated by an Indian Tribe.  According to court documents, Fontillas stole more than $125,000 in $1,000 to $1,500 increments from ATMs at the Red Hawk Casino, in Placerville, Calif., while servicing the ATMs. The loss was suffered by the Shingle Springs Band of Miwok Indian Tribe, the Indian Tribal Organization that owns and operates the Red Hawk Casino.

www.justice.gov/usao/cae/press_releases/index.html

South Dakota Man Pleads Guilty to Involuntary Manslaughter (U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of South Dakota)
U.S. Attorney Brendan V. Johnson announced that Denny Spotted Eagle, age 22, of Kyle, S.D., appeared before U.S. District Judge Jeffrey L. Viken on Sept. 10, 2010, and pleaded guilty to an indictment that charged him with involuntary manslaughter.  Spotted Eagle admitted that, while intoxicated, he drove his vehicle in an unsafe manner on Nov. 7, 2009, causing it to roll over.  As a result of the crash, a passenger in the vehicle was killed.  Spotted Eagle’s blood alcohol content at the time he drove the vehicle was approximately .167 (approximately twice the legal limit). 

www.justice.gov/usao/sd/Media.html

Carlson Indicted for Embezzlement from Tribe (U.S. Attorney for the District of North Dakota)
U.S. Attorney Timothy Q. Purdon announced that on Sept. 8, 2010, Kimberly A. Carlson, 42, of Devils Lake, N.D., made an initial appearance in U.S. District Court on two counts of embezzlement and theft from an Indian tribal organization.  The indictment alleges that Carlson, while employed with the Spirit Lake Office of Victim Assistance, misapplied funds and property belonging to the Spirit Lake Sioux Tribe.

www.justice.gov/usao/nd/pressreleases/index.html

Arizona Woman Sentenced to 45 Months in Federal Prison for Child Abuse (U.S. Attorney for the District of Arizona)
U.S. Attorney Dennis K. Burke announced that Tamara Kay Vest, 43, of Mesa, Ariz., a member of the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Tribe, was sentenced on Sept. 8, 2010 to 45 months in federal prison by U.S. District Judge Roslyn O. Silver.  Vest pleaded guilty on March 8, 2010, to child abuse.  Between July, 2007, and September 2008, Vest physically abused three victims under the age of 12, while they resided at Vest’s home on the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community.   Another person who also resided at Vest’s home and had witnessed these and other incidents of abuse, reported the incidents to the Salt River Police Department. During the ensuing Salt River Police investigation, Vest admitted the abuse.

www.justice.gov/usao/az/press_releases/index.html

South Dakota Man Sentenced for Sexual Abuse (U.S. Attorney for the District of South Dakota)
U.S. Attorney Brendan V. Johnson announced that an Eagle Butte, S.D., man convicted of sexual abuse by a federal jury on March 12, 2010, was sentenced on Sept. 8, 2010,  by U.S. District Judge Roberto A. Lange.  Jeffrey Betone, 25, was sentenced to 151 months in custody, five years of supervised release and a $200 special assessment to the Victim Assistance Fund.  Betone was indicted for sexual abuse by a federal grand jury in February 2009.  The charges alleged that Betone had sexual contact with two different victims on different occasions, on March 9, 2005, and on May 4, 2008.  During one offense, Betone sexually abused a victim that was intoxicated and asleep.  During the other offense, Betone sexually abused a different victim by threatening and causing the victim to be in fear.

www.justice.gov/usao/sd/Media.html

Arizona Woman Convicted of Leaving the Scene of a Fatal Accident (U.S. Attorney for the District of Arizona)
U.S. Attorney Dennis K. Burke announced on Sept. 7, 2010, that Victoria Flockhart, 64, of Chandler, Ariz., has been found guilty of leaving the scene of a fatal accident by a federal jury in Phoenix.  The case was tried before U.S. District Court Judge James A. Teilborg.  Evidence at trial showed that on March 21, 2007, at about 1:30 a.m., Flockhart, drove a vehicle that struck and killed the 34 year-old Native American victim as the victim attempted to cross East McKellips Road on the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Reservation.  Flockhart failed to stop at the accident scene as required by law.
       
www.justice.gov/usao/az/press_releases/index.html