‘Dances with Wolves’ actor Nathan Chasing Horse disrupts court week before sex abuse trial
LAS VEGAS (AP) — Nathan Chasing Horse, former “Dances With Wolves” actor accused of sexual abuseHe was temporarily kicked out of court on Monday after disrupting the proceedings by demanding that he be allowed to fire his defense lawyer a week before the hearing.
Judge Jessica Peterson in Las Vegas ordered the jury trial to proceed as scheduled next week.
Chasing Horse has denied 21 charges, including allegations that he sexually assaulted women and girls and filmed himself sexually abusing a girl under 14. Prosecutors allege he used his reputation as a spiritual leader and healer to take advantage of Native American women and girls for two decades.
Peterson ordered her removed from court on Monday for trying to talk about her. He argued that his lawyer, Craig Mueller, did not come to visit him and did not apply on time. He wanted a public defender who had previously represented him to become a lawyer.
Mueller, the special defense attorney, told the court his client was present and told the judge privately that one of his investigators had visited with Chasing Horse. He declined to comment to The Associated Press.
Chasing Horse, best known for his portrayal of the character Smiles Too in the 1990 film “Dances with Wolves,” was born on the Rosebud Reservation in South Dakota, home of the Sicangu Sioux, one of the seven tribes of the Lakota nation.
After starring in the Oscar-winning film, Chasing Horse began posing as a Lakota healer while traveling across North America to perform healing ceremonies, according to prosecutors. when was that Arrested in 2023He lived in a North Las Vegas home with his five wives, according to prosecutors.
The case sent shockwaves across Indian Country. The original indictment was dismissed in 2024. Nevada Supreme Court ruled Prosecutors abused the grand jury process when they introduced a description of the grooming into evidence without any expert testimony. However, the court left open the possibility of re-filing the charges, and a new indictment was prepared later that year.
Prosecutors allege Chasing Horse led a cult called The Circle and that his followers believed he could talk to spirits. His victims went to him for medical help, according to the transcript from the grand jury hearing.
Prosecutors expect the trial to last three weeks. It is scheduled to start on Monday.
