Joel Malcom Salt, 29, of Umatilla, Oregon, was sentenced today to time served—22 months in federal custody—plus three years of supervised release after pleading guilty to assaulting and strangling his intimate partner in front of their four children. The attack, which unfolded April 12, 2017, on the Umatilla Indian Reservation, left the victim unconscious multiple times as Salt pinned her to the floor, punched her, and cut off her air supply.
Salt, a Navajo Indian, violated a tribal protective order when he barged into the victim’s home that day. The woman, an enrolled member of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, was with their children when Salt grabbed her by the hair, threw her to the ground, and dragged her into a bedroom. In court documents, prosecutors detailed how Salt escalated the assault, choking her until she blacked out, all while their children were in the home.
The victim managed to survive by tricking Salt. Fearing for her life, she told him their children had likely run next door to alert her father. Distracted, Salt released her and left the room to investigate. She seized the moment, crawling out a window and sprinting to her father’s house. He rescued the children and called law enforcement. Salt fled before police arrived but was later apprehended.
On June 13, 2017, a federal grand jury in Portland indicted Salt on one count of assault by strangulation, a felony under federal law. He pleaded guilty on November 27, 2018. At sentencing, U.S. District Court Judge Anna J. Brown imposed conditions that include mandatory enrollment in an intensive batterer’s intervention program, as well as substance abuse and mental health counseling.
As a condition of his supervised release, Salt is banned from entering the Umatilla Indian Reservation and is prohibited from contacting the victim or their children without prior approval from his probation officer and notification to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. The court emphasized the severity of committing violence in front of minors and the long-term trauma such acts inflict.
The case was investigated by the Umatilla Tribal Police Department and the FBI Portland’s Safe Trails Task Force, a multi-agency unit dedicated to reducing violent crime in Indian Country. Jennifer Martin, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon, prosecuted the case. The Safe Trails Task Force continues to target domestic violence, gangs, and drug-related offenses through coordinated federal, tribal, and local efforts.
RELATED: Reservation Brawl Turns Deadly: Man Sentenced
RELATED: Bar Brawl to Brutal Kidnapping: Barahona Admits All
Related Federal Cases
- Oregon Man Convicted in Jan. 6 Capitol Riot · Washington
- Capitol Rioter From Washington State Nabbed · Oregon
- Idaho Dams Targeted: Man Indicted in Power Station Shootings · Washington
- Portland Cold Case: $15K Reward for Perdomo Killer · Oregon
- Oregon Man Trapped His Lost Home, Injured FBI Agent · Washington
Key Facts
- State: Oregon
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Violent Crime
- Source: Official Source ↗
🔒 Get the grimiest stories delivered weekly. Subscribe free →
Browse More
MORE FEDERAL CRIME NEWS
Violent CrimeViolent CrimeViolent CrimeViolent Crime