Las Vegas judge sentences Chasing Horse to decades in prison for sexual assault case

Siera Begaye told a judge on Monday that Nathan Chasing Horse robbed her of her innocence.

“Instead of being allowed to grow into my own person, he tried to shape me into something for his own desire and control,” she said in a packed Las Vegas courtroom.

District Judge Jessica Peterson gave “Dances with Wolves” actor Nathan Chasing Horse a prison sentence of 37 years to life after jurors in January found him guilty of sexually assaulting Begaye and another victim.

Chasing Horse, who played Smiles a Lot in the 1990 movie, promoted himself as a “medicine man” and committed crimes in the U.S. and Canada while running The Circle, a cult with up to 350 followers at its height, according to authorities.

Jurors found Chasing Horse, 49, guilty on 13 counts and not guilty on eight other counts.

Multiple victims testified during the trial that Chasing Horse used their spiritual traditions to victimize them. At the sentencing hearing, they stood just feet away from him and spoke of the harm he had caused.

‘Epstein of Indian Country’

Begaye said she became depressed, suffered from suicidal thoughts and struggled to exist. Chasing Horse took away her sense of safety, she told the judge.

“The happiest moments I experience will still sometimes be interrupted by memories of what he did to me,” she said. “The trauma has forced me to fight harder than many of my peers just to build a normal life.”

The Las Vegas Review-Journal does not typically identify victims of sexual assault without their consent, but is doing so because Begaye gave the news organization permission.

Lynnette Adams, the mother of Begaye, said she had a long, trusting friendship with Chasing Horse.

“When spiritual authority is used to harm instead instead of protect, it not only wounds the body, it wounds the spirit,” she said.

She added: “Justice cannot undo what has happened, but it can protect the future.”

Corena Leone-LaCroix was the basis for most of the counts Chasing Horse faced and was sexually assaulted by him as a child. She testified at trial that Chasing Horse said she needed to give up her virginity to cure her mother’s cancer.

She told Peterson on Monday of the toll the legal process had taken.

“For me, this whole ordeal has been a reoccurring nightmare, a constant reopening of scars I thought had finally begun to heal,” she said.

Leone-LaCroix has also given the Review-Journal permission to use her name.

She said Chasing Horse’s grasp on her still lingers.

The faithful, trusting little girl she once was “ceased to exist the day he wrenched control over my body,” and over the last few years, she has had to speak for her past self, “who still remains broken,” she said.

Her mother, Melissa Leone, described Chasing Horse as “the Epstein of Indian Country.”

“He turned our sacred Lakota ceremonies into crime scenes,” she said.

Defendant still denies guilt

Chasing Horse denied his guilt in a brief statement.

“This is a miscarriage of justice,” he said.

Defense attorney Craig Mueller described the victims as disgruntled. He asked for the minimum sentence, 25 years to life.

“You’ve got a few very unhappy young women, but the reality is he’s very widely admired,” he said.

Leone-LaCroix said Chasing Horse’s stance indicated that his behavior would continue if left unchecked.

His lack of remorse “only reaffirms my fear: that if given the chance he would victimize more, because he still stands in this room believing he did nothing wrong,” she said.

Peterson said she was struck by Chasing Horse’s insistence that he was not guilty.

“You preyed on these women’s trusts and their spirituality and you manipulated them for your own personal gratification,” said the judge.

She said she hoped the message sent by her sentence would allow the victims and their supporters to feel peace and move forward. She said she would refer to them as “brave women and brave men” so as not to put them in the box of being victims or survivors.

“I hope that you all, when you leave here, can take back your life,” she said.

‘I am still here’

The jury returned a guilty verdict on at least one count for each of the three victims who were the basis for the charges he faced.

Jurors found him guilty of multiple counts of sexual assault of a minor under 16, a count of open and gross lewdness, a count of sexual assault and a child sexual abuse material count. But they returned not guilty verdicts on other child sexual abuse material and sexual assault counts as well as a count of kidnapping of a minor.

Besides Begaye and Leone-LaCroix, the third victim whose allegations were prosecuted at trial was tied to the child sexual abuse material count.

Chief Deputy District Attorney Billy Rowles had asked Peterson to impose the sentence that she ordered, which included separate prison time related to each victim.

Begaye said Chasing Horse’s incarceration will ensure he cannot harm others. She also spoke of resilience.

“I am still here,” she told the judge. “For a long time, I stayed silent. Today, I’m speaking for myself and for those who deserve protection. The trauma Nathan caused will stay with me for the rest of my life, but will not define the rest of my life.”

If you’re thinking about suicide, or are worried about a friend or loved one, help is available 24/7 by calling or texting the Lifeline network at 988. Live chat is available at 988lifeline.org.