Fort Yates Man Sentenced for Assault on Federal Officer

BISMARCK—United States Attorney Timothy Q. Purdon announced that on October 17, 2011, Tator Bendickson-Claymore, 26, of Fort Yates, North Dakota, pleaded guilty and was sentenced by United States District Court Judge Daniel L. Hovland on a charge of assaulting and resisting a federal officer.

Judge Hovland sentenced Bendickson-Claymore to three years of probation and ordered a $100 special assessment to the Crime Victim’s Fund. Bendickson-Claymore is currently serving a two-year jail sentence on tribal court charges related to this same conduct. The federal offense is a felony conviction.

On March 2, 2011, Bendickson-Claymore’s mother called law enforcement to advise her son was at home fighting with other family members. A Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) officer responded to the home, but Bendickson-Claymore had already left. The BIA officer located Bendickson-Claymore in the Fort Yates community and arrested him on local offenses. After Bendickson-Claymore arrived at the jail, Bendickson- Claymore became resistant, refusing to follow directions for booking. Bendickson-Claymore then became aggressive. The BIA officer and a corrections officer grabbed Bendickson-Claymore’s arms, but Bendickson-Claymore jerked away and pushed the BIA officer into a wall. Bendickson-Claymore then grabbed the BIA officer around the neck and started to choke him. With the officer using a Taser, Bendickson-Claymore was subdued.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Bureau of Indian Affairs.

Assistant United States Attorney Rick Volk prosecuted the case.