Sky Miguel Little Coyote Sentenced in U.S. District Court
| U.S. Attorney’s Office July 14, 2010 |
The United States Attorney's Office announced that during a federal court session in Billings, on July 14, 2010, before Senior U.S. District Judge Jack D. Shanstrom, SKY MIGUEL LITTLE COYOTE, an 18-year-old resident of Ashland, appeared for sentencing. LITTLE COYOTE was sentenced to a term of:
- Prison: 36 months
- Special Assessment: $100
- Supervised Release: three years
LITTLE COYOTE was sentenced in connection with his guilty plea to assault of a federal officer.
In an Offer of Proof filed by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lori Harper Suek, the government stated it would have proved at trial the following:
On the night of November 26, 2009, Bureau of Indian Affairs law enforcement was called about a fight outside of the LITTLE COYOTE residence in Ashland. The initial report was that LITTLE COYOTE was drunk, he was kicking a door in, and he had assaulted his girlfriend.
An officer responded to the house and was told by LITTLE COYOTE's mother that her son had kicked in the door and then ran off in the direction of the river with a rifle. The officer drove to where LITTLE COYOTE had last been seen. Another officer also responded. The first officer caught up with LITTLE COYOTE first. He was still in his police car as he approached LITTLE COYOTE. LITTLE COYOTE pointed the rifle at him. The officer drew his gun and leaned down in his vehicle while notifying dispatch. Meanwhile, the other officer was on the opposite side of LITTLE COYOTE and saw LITTLE COYOTE pointing the rifle at the officer. He told LITTLE COYOTE to drop the rifle several times. LITTLE COYOTE ignored his commands and then turned and pointed the rifle at the officer. The officer told LITTLE COYOTE to drop the rifle or he would shoot LITTLE COYOTE. Finally, LITTLE COYOTE threw the rifle down and was taken into custody.
Both the officers were on duty and in their uniforms and police vehicles.
Because there is no parole in the federal system, the "truth in sentencing" guidelines mandate that LITTLE COYOTE will likely serve all of the time imposed by the court. In the federal system, LITTLE COYOTE does have the opportunity to earn a sentence reduction for "good behavior." However, this reduction will not exceed 15 precent of the overall sentence.
The investigation was a cooperative effort between the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.