Navajo Man from Red Mesa, Utah, Pleads Guilty to Federal Involuntary Manslaughter Charge in New Mexico

ALBUQUERQUE – Lelander Mays, 31, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation who resides in Red Mesa, Utah, pled guilty today in federal court in Albuquerque, N.M., to an involuntary manslaughter charge.

Mays was arrested in Dec. 2016, on a criminal complaint charging him with involuntary manslaughter. According to the complaint, Mays killed a man when Mays crashed his vehicle on Dec. 6, 2016, on the Navajo Indian Reservation in San Juan County, N.M. At the time of the crash, Mays was driving under the influence of alcohol and the victim, who was a passenger in Mays’ vehicle, was thrown from the vehicle.

Mays was subsequently indicted on Dec. 20, 2016, and charged with involuntary manslaughter.

During today’s proceedings, Mays pled guilty to the indictment without the benefit of a plea agreement. At sentencing, Mays faces a maximum penalty of eight years in federal prison. A sentencing hearing has yet to be scheduled.

This case was investigated by the Farmington office of the FBI, the Navajo Nation Division of Public Safety and the New Mexico State Police. Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Marshall is prosecuting the case.