A Nevada jury on Friday convicted Dances With Wolves actor Nathan Chasing Horse of sexually assaulting Indigenous women and girls, a case that sent shock waves through Indian Country.

The Las Vegas jury found Chasing Horse guilty on 13 of 21 charges, mostly involving a victim who was 14 when the abuse began. He was acquitted on some charges relating to an older victim described as a wife. Chasing Horse, 49, faces a minimum of 25 years in prison, with sentencing set for March 11.

Prosecutors said Chasing Horse exploited his status as a Lakota medicine man to prey on Indigenous women and girls. The verdict came after a years-long effort to hold him accountable, following his 2023 arrest and indictment.

As the verdict was read, Chasing Horse remained quiet, while victims and supporters embraced in the hallway, wearing yellow ribbons.

open image in gallery

William Rowles, the Clark County chief deputy district attorney, thanked the women who had accused Chasing Horse of assault for testifying.

“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,” he said.

Defense attorney Craig Mueller said he will file a motion for a new trial and told The Associated Press he was confused and disappointed in the jury’s verdict. He said he had some “meaningful doubts about the sincerity of the accusations.”

Dances With Wolves was one of the most prominent films featuring Native American actors when it premiered in 1990. After Chasing Horse appeared in the Oscar-winning film, he traveled across North America and performed healing ceremonies.

His trial came as authorities have responded more in recent years to an epidemic of violence against Native women.

During the three-week trial, jurors heard from three women who say Chasing Horse sexually assaulted them, some of whom were underage at the time. The jury returned guilty verdicts on some charges related to all three.

Deputy District Attorney Bianca Pucci said in her closing statements Wednesday that for almost 20 years, Chasing Horse “spun a web of abuse” that caught many women.

Mueller said in his closing statements that there was no evidence, including eyewitnesses. He questioned the main accuser’s credibility, describing her as a “scorned woman.”

Prosecutors said sexual assault cases rarely have eyewitnesses and often happen behind closed doors.

The main accuser was 14 years old in 2012 when Chasing Horse allegedly told her the spirits wanted her to give up her virginity to save her mother, who was diagnosed with cancer. He then sexually assaulted her and told her that if she told anyone, her mother would die, Pucci said during opening statements.