Defendant Prosecuted as Part of Federal Initiative to Address the Epidemic Incidence of Violence Against Native Women
ALBUQUERQUE - Warren Chewiwi, 42, a member of Isleta Pueblo who resides in Bosque Farms, N.M., was sentenced today in federal court in Albuquerque, N.M., to 23 months in prison for his domestic assault by a habitual offender conviction. He will be on supervised release for three years after completing his prison sentence.
Chewiwi was arrested on Aug. 12, 2015, on an indictment charging him with domestic assault of an intimate partner by a habitual offender on Sept. 8, 2013, in Isleta Pueblo in Valencia County, N.M. According to the indictment, Chewiwi was charged as a habitual offender based on his two prior domestic violence convictions in Isleta Pueblo Tribal Court. Isleta Tribal Pueblo Court records reflect that Chewiwi’s prior convictions occurred in 2010 and 2013.
On Dec. 1, 2015, Chewiwi pled guilty to the indictment and admitted that on Sept. 8, 2013, he assaulted the victim, his intimate partner, by grabbing her by the hair, jerking her around the room and hitting her with an open hand while he was under the influence of alcohol. He also acknowledged his two prior tribal court convictions.
This case was investigated by the Southern Pueblos Agency of the BIA’s Office of Justice Services and the Pueblo of Isleta Tribal Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney David Adams pursuant to the Tribal Special Assistant U.S. Attorney (Tribal SAUSA) Pilot Project in the District of New Mexico which is sponsored by the Justice Department’s Office on Violence Against Women under a grant administered by the Pueblo of Laguna. The Tribal SAUSA Pilot Project seeks to train tribal prosecutors in federal law, procedure and investigative techniques to increase the likelihood that every viable violent offense against Native women is prosecuted in either federal court or tribal court, or both. The Tribal SAUSA Pilot Project was largely driven by input gathered from annual tribal consultations on violence against women, and is another step in the Justice Department's on-going efforts to increase engagement, coordination and action on public safety in tribal communities.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
