In a disturbing case of violence against Native American women, Shayliss Ellsworth, a 24-year-old enrolled member of the Navajo Nation from Crownpoint, New Mexico, pleaded guilty to assault charges in federal court in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
Ellsworth faces a prison sentence ranging from 70 to 87 months, followed by a term of supervised release to be determined by the court. He remains in custody pending a sentencing hearing, which has yet to be scheduled.
The crimes took place on June 17, 2017, on the Navajo Indian Reservation in McKinley County, New Mexico. Ellsworth was arrested on June 21, 2017, on a criminal complaint charging him with stabbing two Navajo women with a knife.
The first victim suffered a cut across her face through her mouth, stab wounds on her left side and right breast, and a cut and stab wound to her left arm, which cut her artery and caused profuse bleeding. She underwent multiple surgeries, including a surgery to amputate her left arm as a result of the assault.
The second victim suffered cuts on her neck and finger and a stab wound on her right arm. Ellsworth has admitted to assaulting the two women with a knife, causing serious bodily injury to both.
The case was investigated by the Farmington office of the FBI and the Navajo Nation Division of Public Safety. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jennifer M. Rozzoni and Niki Tapia-Brito are prosecuting the case as part of the Tribal Special Assistant U.S. Attorney (Tribal SAUSA) Pilot Project in the District of New Mexico, which is sponsored by the Justice Department’s Office on Violence Against Women.
The Tribal SAUSA Pilot Project seeks to train tribal prosecutors in federal law, procedure, and investigative techniques to increase the likelihood that every viable violent offense against Native women is prosecuted in either federal court or tribal court, or both.
Key Facts
- State: New Mexico
- Category: Violent Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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