Red Fawn Fallis,
a citizen of the
Oglala
Sioux Tribe, will remain jailed while she awaits sentencing in connection with a non-fatal gun shooting incident during the #NoDAPL standoff in North Dakota.
Fallis asked to be released to a halfway house but a judge declined the request. An
order issued on Friday noted that she had gone missing for an entire day during a prior stay at the facility and was less than truthful about the situation.
"In other words, Fallis was unaccounted for the entire day; she made a conscious decision
to thwart efforts to locate her by phone; she was less than forthright when confronted about her whereabouts upon her return to Centre, Inc.; and she refused to answer any questions as to where she had been," Judge Daniel Hovland wrote. "Based on the totality of the circumstances, the violations of the conditions of pretrial release, and the defendant’s lack of candor, the court in the exercise of its broad discretion denies the motion for release."
Fallis was accused of firing a gun during a clash with law enforcement on October 27, 2016. No one was injured although hostile authorities in North Dakota had at one point accused her of attempted murder. That charge was eventually dropped in state court.
In federal court last month, Fallis pleaded guilty to one count of civil disorder and one count of possession of a firearm and ammunition by a convicted felon. A count of discharge of a
firearm will be dismissed under a
plea agreement
with federal prosecutors.
Fallis is due to be sentenced on May 31. The plea agreement recommends a sentence of seven years, though it will be up to a judge to decide her punishment.
The sentencing comes almost a year to the day on which oil started flowing through the
Dakota Access
Pipeline. It was made possible after the Trump administration approved the final portion in North Dakota without consulting the affected tribes.
A federal judge later ruled that the
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers failed to take into account treaty rights, water resources and other issues raised by the
Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and the
Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe. A revised decision is pending.
Read More on the Story:
Dakota Access protester who fired gun to remain jailed
(The Associated Press February 5, 2018)
Red Fawn Fallis Will Not Be Released From Jail Before Sentencing
(KVRR February 5, 2018)
Judge denies Fallis' release
(The Bismarck Tribune February 5, 2018)
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