LAS VEGAS (AP) 鈥� The Nevada Supreme Court has ordered the dismissal of a sprawling sex abuse indictment against Nathan Chasing Horse, while leaving open the possibility of charges being refiled in a case that sent shockwaves throughout Indian Country and led to more criminal charges in the U.S. and Canada.
The full seven-member court's decision, issued Thursday, reverses earlier rulings by a three-member panel of the high court and a state judge. Proceedings in the have been at a standstill for more than a year while the former 鈥淒ances with Wolves鈥� actor challenged it.
Kristy Holston, the deputy public defender representing Chasing Horse, had argued that some evidence presented to the grand jury, including an improper definition of grooming that was presented without expert testimony, had tainted the state鈥檚 case. Holston said prosecutors also failed to provide the grand jury with exculpatory evidence, including inconsistent statements made by one of the victims.
The high court agreed.
鈥淭he combination of these two clear errors undermines our confidence in the grand jury proceedings and created intolerable damage to the independent function of the grand jury process,鈥� the court said in its scathing order.
Holston declined to comment further. Prosecutor Stacy Kollins did not immediately respond to emails seeking comment.
The ruling directs the judge overseeing the case in Clark County District Court to dismiss the indictment without prejudice, meaning the charges can be refiled.
鈥淭he allegations against Chasing Horse are indisputably serious, and we express no opinion about Chasing Horse鈥檚 guilt or innocence,鈥� the order says.
Chasing Horse鈥檚 lawyer had also had argued that the case should be dismissed because, the former actor said, the sexual encounters were consensual. One of his accusers was younger than 16, the age of consent in Nevada, when the alleged abuse began, authorities said.
The 48-year-old has been in custody since his near the North Las Vegas home he is said to have shared with five wives. He also faces criminal sexual abuse charges in at least four , including U.S. District Court in Nevada and on the Fort Perk Indian Reservation in Montana.
Chasing Horse is best known for portraying Smiles A Lot in the 1990 film 鈥淒ances with Wolves.鈥� But in the decades since starring in the Oscar-winning movie, authorities said, he built a reputation as self-proclaimed medicine man among tribes and traveled around North America to perform healing ceremonies.
He is accused of using that position to gain access to vulnerable girls and women starting in the early 2000s.
Las Vegas police in January 2023. The arrest helped law enforcement agencies in two countries against the former actor.
Rio Yamat, The Associated Press
