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Nathan Chasing Horse, a Native American born on the Rosebud Indian Reservation in South Dakota, became a common household name after he played a role in “Dances with Wolves”. After his appearance, he not only became well recognized throughout the nation but also an extremely powerful figure on reservations as a representative of his culture.
After the film, Nathan Chasing Horse became a spiritual leader and self-proclaimed Lakota medicine man. For decades, he reportedly continued to gain followers and started his own cult called “The Circle.”
He would reportedly travel across the country to perform healing ceremonies. By 2010, a handful of indigenous women claimed that Nathan had sexually abused them, which ultimately led to human trafficking accusations. Under tribal law, these accusations resulted in his banishment from the Fort Peck Indian Reservation in Montana in 2015.
Tribal women claimed that Nathan abused spiritual traditions and Native belief systems as a tool to strategically sexually assault young girls and women. Tragically, authorities have uncovered that some of Nathan’s victims were “gifted” to him as wives when they were as young as 15.
Since legal matters on Indian Reservations are handled completely separately from criminal matters on non-native land, no official criminal charges against Nathan ever arose until January of 2023. At that time, the police arrested Nathan on suspicion of sexually abusing at least six different victims across multiple states, including South Dakota, Montana, and Nevada.
Since official charges have been laid out, prosecutors have faced significant resistance. The initial indictment was dismissed back in 2024 after the Nevada Supreme Court argued that prosecutors abused the grand jury process by defining “grooming” without expert testimony. Later, those charges were refiled. Currently, he’s facing 21 charges, including sexual assault and sexually abusing a minor under the age of 14.
Now, a week before his trial is set to begin, Nathan is making another scene by demanding that he be allowed to fire his current defense attorney. At this stage, hiring a new defense attorney would inevitably delay proceedings further.
The Judge in this case, Judge Jessica Peterson, has ordered that his jury trial continue as planned. When Nathan attempted to speak over the presiding judge, he was removed from court.
While prosecutors might believe Nathan’s trial has been plagued with setback after setback, every accused individual has the right to legal representation as guaranteed by the Sixth Amendment of the Constitution. What’s more, accused individuals generally have the right to fire their legal representative. To enforce this right, though, a judge must approve the motion, and you will have to show good cause for the appointed counsel to be fired.
Are you looking for a good criminal defense attorney in Las Vegas? Schedule a free call with our legal team now by leaving your contact details on our online form to see if we’re a good fit to represent you.
