A jury on Tuesday convicted former Ute Mountain Ute councilman Lyndreth Wall on 15 of 20 counts of sexual assault and abusive sexual contact after he allegedly used his reputation as a spiritual healer to abuse multiple women.
The verdict in U.S. District Court in Durango concluded a weeks-long trial.
Jurors found Wall guilty on the first eight counts involving a woman who testified that he assaulted her as a child and teen, as well as a second woman’s testimony about incidents in Wall’s home.
He was acquitted on five counts tied to the second woman’s allegations of incidents after a night at a bar and at his father’s trailer.
Jurors also returned guilty verdicts on charges involving three other women who said Wall used spiritual ceremonies to facilitate the assaults.
In all, jurors convicted Wall on five counts of sexual abuse, two counts of abusive sexual contact involving women incapable of appraising the conduct, and eight counts of sexual contact without permission. He was acquitted on counts nine through 13.
The verdict followed hours of technical legal instructions from U.S. District Judge Gordon Gallagher, who explained that prosecutors had to prove not only the abusive act or contact, but also that Wall acted “knowingly.” They had to show that the women were either incapable of understanding the conduct or had not given permission. Prosecutors also had to show each offense occurred within the boundaries of the Ute Mountain Ute Reservation and that Wall is a registered Native American.
Jurors deliberated for about four hours under a requirement to reach unanimous agreement on each of the 20 counts.
Gallagher thanked the jurors for their service during the trial’s 12 days and stated that it had been his longest trial on the federal bench so far and possibly the longest in the district this year.
Wall, who did not testify, was taken into custody following the verdict. Sentencing has not yet been scheduled. Wall was serving a third term as Ute Mountain Ute councilman when January 2024, and he previously served as a member of the Montezuma-Cortez RE-1 Board of Education.
This article will be updated as information becomes available.
