Enrolled member of Mescalero Apache Tribe pleads guilty to assault causing serious bodily injury

           ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. - Kylee Mee-Shell Martinez, 27, of Mescalero, New Mexico, pleaded guilty in federal court in Las Cruces, New Mexico on June 1 to assault resulting in serious bodily injury.

           According to Martinez’s plea agreement and other public court records, Martinez got into an argument with another woman at a house party on the Mescalero Apache Reservation on Oct. 6, 2019.  Martinez punched the victim in the face and body and backed the victim into a pole on the front porch.  The victim’s head slammed against the pole causing a two-inch laceration.  The victim lost consciousness.  She later needed eight staples at the hospital to repair the wound. 

           Martinez is currently out of custody pending sentencing.  She faces up to 10 years in prison. 

           The Las Cruces office of the FBI investigated this case.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Matilda McCarthy Villalobos is prosecuting the case.