Neopit, Wisconsin Man Sentenced for Assault of a Federal Officer While Eluding Menominee Tribal Police

U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of Wisconsin
April 6, 2011

James L. Santelle, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, announced that on April 1, 2011, United States District Judge William C. Griesbach sentenced Jerry B. Nahwahquaw (age 18) of Neopit, Wisconsin to 36 months in prison for assaulting a Menominee Tribal Police officer. Judge Griesbach also ordered Nahwahquaw to pay $2,283.65 in restitution for damage he caused to a Menominee Tribal Police squad car, to pay a $100 special assessment, and to serve three years on supervised release following his prison term.

According to court records, the charge stems from an October 31, 2010 incident on the Menominee Indian Reservation. During the incident, Nahwahquaw eluded Menominee Tribal Police and Menominee County Sheriff officers for approximately 26 miles and at speeds approaching 90 mph. During the course of the chase, Nahwahquaw drove towards a Menominee Tribal Police officer at a high rate of speed, thereby assaulting the officer and causing him to take evasive action. The officer was not injured in the incident. Nahwahquaw had several individuals in his vehicle at the time when eluding officers and had been drinking alcohol prior to the incident.

According to United States Attorney James L. Santelle, “this case serves as a reminder to our community that significant consequences follow those who fail to stop at the request of law enforcement. Nahwahquaw needlessly endangered himself, his passengers, law enforcement, and the community by his actions in this case.”

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For Additional Information Contact:
Assistant United States Attorney William Roach (920) 884-1066
Public Information Officer Dean Puschnig (414) 297-1700