BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) - A man accused of stabbing the Bureau of Indian Affairs superintendent in the back on South Dakota’s Crow Creek Indian Reservation has pleaded guilty to attempted murder under a deal with prosecutors.
In return for Brian Iron Boulder’s guilty plea last week, federal prosecutors dropped two assault charges. Iron Boulder could have faced 50 years in prison if convicted on all three counts he faced. Court documents indicate he now will face between 15 ½ and 19 ½ years in prison when sentenced Sept. 14 in U.S. District Court in Pierre, South Dakota.
Authorities alleged that Iron Boulder, a member of the Standing Rock Sioux tribe in the Dakotas, stabbed Patrick F. Duffy in the back with a knife on March 25, penetrating Duffy’s chest wall. Duffy was in critical condition for a time at a Sioux Falls hospital, where he underwent two surgeries. He survived and returned to work about two months after being stabbed.
Duffy has asked for privacy and declined comment on the incident.
Iron Boulder, who is in his early 50s, was to stand trial later this month. His attorney, Douglas A. Abraham, on Wednesday declined to say why his client had accepted a plea deal rather than take the case to trial. Abraham said he does not comment on active cases.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Meghan Dilges did not immediately respond to a request for comment on why the government decided to settle.
Duffy oversees BIA facilities in Fort Thompson and manages tribal land in his role as superintendent. Court documents allege that Iron Boulder had spoken with Duffy at his office more than once about land holdings of Iron Boulder’s girlfriend, but the documents do not indicate a motive for the stabbing.
BIA special Agent Tino Lopez said in an affidavit that a witness told him the stabbing occurred while Iron Boulder and Duffy were walking and “talking in conversational tones.” Court documents say Iron Boulder used a pocket knife with a 4-inch blade.
U.S. District Judge Roberto Lange ordered Iron Boulder to remain in custody until sentencing. The judge also ordered a presentence investigation.
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This story has been corrected to show that the maximum likely sentence is 19 ½ years, not 20 ½ years.
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