Lisa Lone Eagle, Kerosene Attack, South Dakota 2016

Two half-sisters from Eagle Butte, South Dakota, are headed to federal prison after a savage, kerosene-soaked attack on a man they lived with left him bleeding, unconscious, and left for dead. Lisa Lone Eagle, 36, and Kendra Belt a/k/a Kendra Counting, 41, were sentenced on November 7, 2016, by U.S. District Judge Roberto A. Lange after pleading guilty to federal assault charges stemming from the September 5, 2015, beating.

Lone Eagle was handed 63 months in federal custody, while Belt received 37 months. Both women will serve three years of supervised release upon their return to society and must each pay a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund. Restitution was left open for 30 days, pending further determination of the victim’s medical and recovery costs.

The assault unfolded after Lone Eagle, who had lived at the victim’s residence for about 18 months, returned to the home with Belt following a drinking session. After an argument, Lone Eagle flew into a rage—punching the victim at least eight times, pulling down shelves, and escalating into full-blown violence. Belt joined in, kicking the man while he was on the floor and attempting to strangle him.

Wearing cowboy boots, Lone Eagle stomped and kicked the victim in the head, neck, face, and torso. She also struck him with the head of a sledgehammer. The assault was so brutal the women believed he was dead. They tried to stuff his body into the crawlspace, failed, then draped a blanket over him, doused it in kerosene, and attempted to set him on fire. The fire never took.

The victim, regaining consciousness, managed to get up and collapse in another part of the home. Lone Eagle followed and struck him five or six more times. Eventually, he escaped the residence before collapsing outside, where a neighbor found him and called for help. The case was investigated by the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe Law Enforcement Services.

Lone Eagle had pleaded guilty to Assault With a Dangerous Weapon on August 4, 2016; Belt admitted to Assault Resulting in Serious Bodily Injury on August 8, 2016. Both women were indicted in September 2015 on additional charges, including Assault With Intent to Commit Murder. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jay Miller prosecuted the case. Immediately after sentencing, both were remanded into the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.