WEEK OF OCT. 20, 2009

Department of Justice Commemorates Domestic Violence Awareness Month (AG)
On Oct. 19, Attorney General Eric Holder, Deputy Attorney General David W. Ogden, Associate Attorney General Tom Perrelli and Acting Director of the Office on Violence Against Women Catherine Pierce delivered remarks at a ceremony to commemorate Domestic Violence Awareness Month.  They discussed the devastating effects that domestic violence can have on individuals, families and communities, and pledged that the Department of Justice will do all it can to end sexual and dating violence in America.  Specifically, Deputy Attorney General Ogden discussed the situation in Indian Country, noting the high rates of violence against women on Indian reservations and promised that ending domestic violence would be a top priority at a listening conference later this month with Department leadership and Tribal leaders.

http://blogs.usdoj.gov/blog/archives/211

Richard Charles Morsette Sentenced in U.S. District Court (U.S. Attorney for the District of Montana)
Bill Mercer, U.S. Attorney for the District of Montana, announced that during a federal court session in Great Falls, on Oct. 19, 2009, before U.S. District Judge Sam E. Haddon, Richard Charles Morsette, a 65-year-old resident of Box Elder, Mont., was sentenced to a term of 12 months in prison after having been found guilty of two counts of simple assault at a home within the exterior boundaries of the Rocky Boy’s Indian Reservation.

http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/mt/pressreleases/last20.html

Jason X. Dennis Sentenced in U.S. District Court (U.S. Attorney for the District of Montana)
Bill Mercer, U.S. Attorney for the District of Montana, announced that during a federal court session in Great Falls, on Oct. 19, 2009, before U.S. District Judge Sam E. Haddon, Jason X. Dennis, a 39-year-old resident of Wapato, Wash., was sentenced to a term of 37 months in prison followed by six years of supervised release.  He was sentenced in connection with his guilty plea to possession with the intent to distribute cocaine and distribution of cocaine in public housing.  On Sept. 2, 2006, a confidential informant for the Blackfeet Safe Trails Task Force purchased cocaine from Dennis a residence in the Glacier Heights neighborhood in Browning, which is in or within 1,000 feet of a Housing and Urban Development community, within the exterior boundaries of the Blackfeet Indian Reservation.       

http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/mt/pressreleases/last20.html       

Northern Arizona Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Involuntary Manslaughter (U.S. Attorney for the District of Arizona)

Brooksby Lamar Yazzie, 27, of Rough Rock, Ariz., was sentenced on Oct. 19, 2009 by U.S. District Judge G. Murray Snow to 31 months in prison for killing a 22-year-old member of the Navajo Nation in 2008.  On Aug. 3, 2009, Yazzie pleaded guilty in federal court to involuntary manslaughter.  On Jan. 12, 2008, Yazzie was driving a vehicle on Navajo Route 59 in Rough Rock when he lost control of the vehicle.  According to witnesses, Yazzie drove in a reckless manner and started speeding when the vehicle slid sideways and flipped onto its side. The victim, a passenger in the vehicle, died of blunt force trauma injuries at the scene.  Yazzie’s blood alcohol level was in excess of .20 at the time of the crash.

http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/az/press_releases/index.html

Whiteriver Man Found Guilty of Stabbing (U.S. Attorney for the District of Arizona)
Nathan Brooks Manuelito, 29, of Whiteriver, Ariz., was found guilty of assault resulting in serious bodily injury by a federal jury in Prescott, Ariz.  The case was tried before U.S. District Judge Paul G. Rosenblatt between October 14 and 16, 2009.  Manuelito remained in custody after the verdict.  Sentencing is set before Judge Rosenblatt on Jan. 11, 2010.  The evidence at trial showed that on April 22, 2009, both the defendant and the victim, as well as two other individuals, were standing around talking in the front yard at a friend’s house.  According to the victim and two of the witnesses, Manuelito pulled out a knife and stabbed the victim three times in the right side, right abdomen and right back.  The victim’s life threatening injuries included a liver laceration and a collapsed lung.  He also had a right rib fracture.  A conviction carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison, a $250,000 fine, or both.

http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/az/press_releases/index.html

R-Lynn Dean Littledog Pleads Guilty in U.S. Federal Court (U.S. Attorney for the District of Montana)
Bill Mercer, U.S. Attorney for the District of Montana, announced that during a federal court session in Great Falls on Oct. 16, 2009, before U.S. District Judge Sam E. Haddon, R-Lynn Dean Littledog, a 22-year-old resident of Browning, pled guilty to abusive sexual contact.  Sentencing is set for Jan. 11, 2010.  On June 13, 2008, a five-year-old victim and the victim’s mother reported that the child had been sexually abused by Littledog. On Dec. 17, 2008, following a polygraph exam, Littledog admitted to rubbing with his hand the five-year-old victim’s genitalia (over the victim’s clothes), and that he did this in a sexual manner.  The incident took place at Littledog’s mother’s residence in Browning, which is within the exterior boundaries of the Blackfeet Indian Reservation.

http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/mt/pressreleases/20091019101443.html

Rodney George Plenty Hawk Jr. Pleads Guilty in U.S. Federal Court (U.S. Attorney for the District of Montana)
Bill Mercer, U.S. Attorney for the District of Montana, announced that during a federal court session in Billings on Oct. 16, 2009, before Chief U.S. District Judge Richard F. Cebull, Rodney George Plenty Hawk Jr., a 31-year-old resident of Crow Agency, pled guilty to being a felon-in-possession of a firearm.  Sentencing is set for Jan. 14, 2010.  On Dec. 29, 2008, a Big Horn County deputy performed a traffic stop on a car on the Crow Indian Reservation.  During the stop, the officer smelled alcohol on the breath of the driver and saw beer cans in the car.  After removing the occupants from the car, a Talon .380 caliber pistol was found in a map pocket on the back of the driver’s seat, directly in front of where Plenty Hawk had been sitting.

http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/mt/pressreleases/20091016140816.html

Leon Messerly Sentenced in U.S. District Court (U.S. Attorney for the District of Montana)
Bill Mercer, U.S. Attorney for the District of Montana, announced that during a federal court session in Missoula, on Oct. 15, 2009, before U.S. District Judge Sam E. Haddon, Leon Messerly, a 48-year-old resident of Harlem, was sentenced to a term of 50 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release.  Messerly was sentenced after having been found guilty at trial of assault with a dangerous weapon within the exterior boundaries of the Fort Belknap Indian Reservation.       

http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/mt/pressreleases/20091015095907.html

Brian James Day Rider Pleads Guilty In U.S. Federal Court (U.S. Attorney for the District of Montana)
Bill Mercer, U.S. Attorney for the District of Montana, announced that during a federal court session in Great Falls on Oct. 14, 2009, before U.S. District Judge Sam E. Haddon, Brian James Day Rider, a 20-year-old resident of Heart Butte, pleaded guilty to assault resulting in serious bodily injury.  Sentencing is set for Jan. 7, 2010.  On May 2, 2008, Day Rider and the victim were drinking at another individual’s residence in Heart Butte.  At some point during the evening, Day Rider and the victim got into an argument.  Day Rider pushed the victim to the ground and repeatedly kicked him in the head.  The victim was taken by ambulance to the Indian Health Services (IHS) Hospital in Browning and was treated for his injuries, which included several fractured bones in his face.

http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/mt/pressreleases/20091015100603.html