November 26, 2010

NEW MEXICO MAN SENTENCED TO PRISON FOR ASSAULT ON A FEDERAL OFFICER

            DENVER – Ronald Romero, of Gallup, New Mexico, and a member of the Nambe Pueblo Tribe, was sentenced this past Tuesday to serve 51 months (over 4 years) in federal prison for assaulting a federal officer.  The prison sentence was handed down by U.S. District Court Judge Philip A. Brimmer.  Romero appeared at the hearing in custody, and was remanded immediately afterwards.
            Ronald Romero was indicted by a federal grand jury in Denver on October 6, 2009.  He was found guilty of assaulting a federal officer on September 2, 2010, following a three day jury trial, which was held in Durango, Colorado.  The jury deliberated for just under two hours.  Romero was sentenced on November 23, 2010.
            According to the indictment, and other publicly filed documents, Romero did intentionally and forcibly assault a Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) officer.  Specifically, on November 28, 2008, at the Ute Mountain Ute jail facility in Towaoc, Colorado, Romero grabbed the face of a BIA officer, gouging at the officer’s eye.  The officer’s right cornea was scratched in the assault.
            “Federal agents, officers and correctional workers put their lives on the line on a daily basis to make our communities safer,” said U.S. Attorney John Walsh.  “When a federal officer, agent or worker is assaulted, the United States will prosecute those responsible to the fullest extent of the law.”
            This case was investigated by the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA).
            Romero was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Dondi Osborne and Todd Norvell.

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