Acoma Pueblo Man Pleads Guilty to Assaulting his Intimate Partner

ALBUQUERQUE – Randy P. Shutiva, 53, a member of the Acoma Pueblo who resides in San Fidel, N.M., pleaded guilty in federal court in Albuquerque, N.M., to an assault charge.

Shutiva was arrested on Dec. 19, 2014, on a criminal complaint charging him with assaulting an Acoma Pueblo woman who was his intimate partner by punching her in the face and head and kicking her body.  The criminal complaint alleged that Shutiva committed the assault on Dec. 6, 2014, in Acoma Pueblo within Cibola County, N.M.  The victim lost the hearing in one ear and sustained other injuries as a result of the assault.

During today’s proceedings, Shutiva pled guilty to a misdemeanor information charging him with assault by striking, beating or wounding.  In entering his plea, Shutiva admitted striking the victim on the head and face and kicking her body on Dec. 6, 2014.  He also acknowledged that the victim suffered multiple injuries and temporary hearing loss in one ear as a result of the attack.

At sentencing, Shutiva faces a statutory maximum penalty of one year in prison followed by a maximum of one year of supervised release.

This case was investigated by the Laguna/Acoma Agency of the BIA’s Office of Justice Services and the Pueblo of Acoma Tribal Police Department.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys Raquel Ruiz-Velez and Elaine Ramirez are prosecuting this case.

The case was brought pursuant to the Tribal Special Assistant U.S. Attorney (Tribal SAUSA) Pilot Project in the District of New Mexico which is sponsored by the Justice Department’s Office on Violence Against Women under a grant administered by the Pueblo of Laguna.  The Tribal SAUSA Pilot Project seeks to train tribal prosecutors in federal law, procedure and investigative techniques to increase the likelihood that every viable violent offense against Native women is prosecuted in either federal court or tribal court, or both.  The Tribal SAUSA Pilot Project was largely driven by input gathered from annual tribal consultations on violence against women, and is another step in the Justice Department's on-going efforts to increase engagement, coordination and action on public safety in tribal communities.