He weaponized his reputation as a Lakota medicine man to prey on vulnerable women.
In a Las Vegas courtroom, a jury found actor Nathan Chasing Horse guilty on 13 of 21 sexual assault charges, closing one chapter of a case that spans nearly two decades and multiple jurisdictions. Known to the world through a celebrated film, Chasing Horse allegedly turned the sacred language of spiritual authority into an instrument of predation against Indigenous women and girls. The verdict arrives at a moment when the broader culture is reckoning with the long silence surrounding violence against Native women — a silence enforced not only by fear, but by the very systems of belief meant to protect them.
- A man who played a symbol of cross-cultural dignity on screen stood convicted Friday of using Indigenous spiritual tradition as a weapon against the most vulnerable in his community.
- The primary victim was just 14 years old when the abuse began, manipulated through false claims that spirits demanded her compliance to save her dying mother — a psychological trap that held for years.
- Three women testified over an 11-day trial, their accounts ultimately persuading a jury despite a defense that challenged their credibility and pointed to the absence of physical evidence.
- Chasing Horse faces a minimum of 25 years in prison at his March sentencing, with additional charges still pending in other U.S. states and Canada.
- Outside the courtroom, survivors and supporters wept and embraced, wearing yellow ribbons — a moment of fragile relief in a crisis of violence against Native women that remains vastly underreported.
- Prosecutors and the district attorney framed the conviction as a signal: that no public persona or claim of sacred authority shields anyone from accountability.
Nathan Chasing Horse, the 49-year-old actor known for his role in the 1990 film "Dances with Wolves," was convicted Friday in Las Vegas on 13 of 21 sexual assault charges involving three Indigenous women and girls. The jury found him guilty of abuses spanning nearly two decades, with the most serious charges involving a girl who was only 14 when the assault began.
Prosecutors described a pattern of calculated manipulation rooted in spiritual deception. Chasing Horse, born on the Rosebud Reservation and recognized in his community as a Lakota medicine man, allegedly told his primary victim that spirits required her to surrender her virginity to save her mother, who had cancer. The abuse continued for years, prosecutors argued, enforced by threats that her mother would die if she ever spoke out. Deputy District Attorney Bianca Pucci called it a web of psychological control built from cultural and spiritual belief.
The trial lasted 11 days. The defense challenged the accusers' credibility and cited a lack of physical evidence, with attorney Craig Mueller saying he intended to seek a new trial. But the jury sided with the women who testified. Outside the courtroom, survivors and supporters embraced, many wearing yellow ribbons.
Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson called the verdict a message that no public persona or claim of spiritual authority places anyone above accountability. Chasing Horse faces a minimum of 25 years in prison, with sentencing set for March 11. He also faces additional sex crime charges in other U.S. states and in Canada, where British Columbia prosecutors said they would determine next steps after his Nevada sentencing and any appeals are resolved.
The case has drawn attention to the chronic underreporting of violence against Native women — a crisis long acknowledged by law enforcement but rarely prosecuted with this visibility. What the trial ultimately revealed was a man who turned the trust of his community into a mechanism of control, preying on those least positioned to resist or be believed.
Nathan Chasing Horse stood silent in a Las Vegas courtroom on Friday as a jury delivered its verdict: guilty on 13 of 21 sexual assault charges. The 49-year-old actor, known to millions for his role in Kevin Costner's 1990 film "Dances with Wolves," had been accused of systematically abusing Indigenous women and girls over nearly two decades. The jury found him culpable in assaults involving three separate victims, with the most serious charges centered on a girl who was just 14 years old when the abuse began.
Prosecutors painted a portrait of calculated predation. They alleged that Chasing Horse, who was born on the Rosebud Reservation in South Dakota and identifies as Lakota, weaponized his spiritual authority to trap vulnerable women. In the case of his primary accuser, prosecutors said he told the teenager that spirits demanded she surrender her virginity to save her mother, who had been diagnosed with cancer. The assaults continued for years, the prosecution argued, sustained by threats that her mother would die if she spoke to anyone. Deputy District Attorney Bianca Pucci described it as a web of abuse that held its victims captive through psychological manipulation rooted in cultural and spiritual beliefs.
The trial lasted 11 days. Three women testified about their experiences with Chasing Horse, recounting assaults that occurred while some were still children. The jury ultimately sided with their accounts, though it acquitted Chasing Horse on several charges related to a later period when one victim was older and living with him. The convictions carry serious consequences: he faces a minimum of 25 years in prison, with sentencing scheduled for March 11.
Chasing Horse's defense attorney, Craig Mueller, argued the case lacked physical evidence and eyewitness corroboration. He challenged the credibility of the main accuser, characterizing her as a scorned woman, and said he would pursue a new trial. Mueller told the Associated Press he was confused by the jury's decision, citing what he called meaningful doubts about the sincerity of the accusations. But the jury had heard enough. Outside the courtroom, victims and their supporters wept and embraced, many wearing yellow ribbons.
The conviction arrives amid growing national attention to violence against Native women, a category of crime that law enforcement has long acknowledged goes vastly underreported and under-prosecuted. Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson framed the verdict as a statement beyond this single case. "Today's verdict sends a clear message that exploitation and abuse will not be tolerated, regardless of the defendant's public persona or claims of spiritual authority," he said. Chief Deputy District Attorney William Rowles centered the moment on those who came forward. "I just hope that the people who came forward over the years and made complaints against Nathan Chasing Horse can find some peace in this."
Chasing Horse's legal troubles extend beyond Nevada. He faces additional sex crime charges in other states and in Canada. British Columbia prosecutors said Friday they will decide how to proceed after his sentencing and any appeals in the United States are resolved. The case, which began with his arrest and indictment in 2023, has sent reverberations through communities that knew him as an actor and spiritual figure. What emerged through the trial was a different portrait entirely: a man who used cultural authority and spiritual language as tools of control, preying on those least able to resist or report what was happening to them.
Notable Quotes
Today's verdict sends a clear message that exploitation and abuse will not be tolerated, regardless of the defendant's public persona or claims of spiritual authority.— Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson
I just hope that the people who came forward over the years and made complaints against Nathan Chasing Horse can find some peace in this.— Clark County Chief Deputy District Attorney William Rowles
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
How did someone with his public profile manage to operate undetected for so long?
He used the very thing that gave him credibility—his identity as a Lakota medicine man, his connection to spiritual traditions. When he told a 14-year-old girl that spirits demanded something of her, she was hearing it from someone her community might have respected. That's not a small thing. It's a perversion of trust.
The defense argued there was no physical evidence. Why did the jury believe the women?
Because testimony is evidence. Three separate women told consistent stories about how he operated—the manipulation, the spiritual language, the threats. The jury heard them directly. Sometimes the most damaging evidence is a person's own account of what happened to them.
What strikes you most about the prosecutor's framing?
That he "weaponized" his reputation. That word choice matters. It's not accidental abuse or a misunderstanding. It's deliberate use of cultural authority as a weapon. He knew what he was doing.
The main victim was 14. How does someone recover from that?
That's the question no verdict answers. She declined to comment outside the courtroom. The conviction might bring some closure, but it doesn't undo years of being told her mother would die if she spoke. That's a wound that doesn't have a simple timeline.
What does this case say about Native communities?
It says they're not immune to predators—and that predators sometimes hide inside the very institutions meant to protect people. It also says that when women come forward, they can be believed. That matters enormously for a community where violence has been chronically ignored.