Spirit Lake Man Found Guilty of 2nd Degree Murder

FARGO - US Attorney Christopher C. Myers announced that on October 26, 2016, Dallas Wayne Thundershield, 36, Fort Totten, ND, was found guilty following a six-day trial on a four-count Indictment charging him with 2nd Degree Murder, Assault with Intent to Commit Murder, Assault with a Dangerous Weapon, and Assault Resulting in Substantial Bodily Injury.

On April 9, 2016, Thundershield and Priscilla Bear were walking in Fort Totten, ND, when Elvis Demarce and Richard Demarce pulled up to them in Elvis’s pickup and offered them a ride in exchange for gas money. Thundershield, who was seated behind Priscilla as she drove the group around the Spirit Lake Reservation, began poking her with a knife and hitting her. In response, Elvis instructed Priscilla to pull over. As Elvis exited the vehicle, Thundershield followed and began attacking Elvis with his knife, while at the same time Richard proceeded to get out of the vehicle to defend Elvis. Thundershield stabbed Elvis multiple times before turning to beat Richard Demarce. As Bear called the Fort Totten police, Thundershield left Elvis Demarce in the ditch alongside BIA-6 with life-threatening injuries. Thundershield directed Bear to get into the pickup and they drove away; within minutes Thundershield turned the vehicle around to go back and kill Richard. Upon Thundershield reaching Richard, Thundershield jumped out of the pickup, ran to Richard Demarce, and inflicted a stab wound to Richard Demarce’s chest which directly pierced his heart, killing him.

Thundershield left the bodies on the side of the road and drove Elvis Demarce’s vehicle to a residence near Hamar, ND, where he had been staying. In the early morning hours of April 10, 2016, while at the same residence, Thundershield assaulted Priscilla Bear; as a result of that assault, Priscilla received substantial bodily injury. Police were called to that residence and Thundershield was arrested without further incident.

US District Judge Ralph R. Erickson has scheduled sentencing to take place on January 24, 2017, at 1:30 PM, at the US District Court located in Fargo, ND.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Bureau of Indian Affairs-Fort Totten, and the North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation.

Assistant US Attorneys Janice Morley and Matthew Greenley prosecuted the case.