On Dec. 4, 2020, a Tulsa woman admitted in federal court to assaulting her intimate partner during an argument in 2016 and to using force to steal a vehicle in 2019, announced U.S. Attorney Trent Shores.
Lakota Ray Scott, 33, pleaded guilty to domestic assault by strangulation in Indian Country and to robbery in Indian Country before U.S. District Gregory K. Frizzell.
“Domestic violence survivors are one of the most resilient groups of victims I’ve ever seen. I’m so thankful that the victim in this case spoke up so that we could help her. The abuser, Lakota Scott, acted recklessly and endangered the lives of others, beyond just her partner, during the two separate incidents to which she pleaded guilty. Thankfully all of the victims have recovered,” said U.S. Attorney Trent Shores.
During Friday’s hearing, Scott explained that on March 16, 2016, she had a verbal argument with her girlfriend then took off in her girlfriend’s car without permission. Her girlfriend called police to report the car stolen. When Scott returned to the apartment, a second argument ensued. When the victim tried to leave, Scott blocked the front door then slapped the victim’s phone out of her hand as she attempted to call 911. As the victim tried to flee the apartment, Scott tackled her in the living room and started strangling the victim. She then grabbed a flat screen television and smashed it over the victim’s head twice. Then as Scott ran to the bedroom, the victim fled the home where she was met by arriving police officers.
Scott further admitted to stealing a pick-up truck that was idling while the owner was just a few feet away on Jan. 31, 2019. When the owner saw the defendant in his truck, Scott locked the doors and put the vehicle in drive. The owner jumped into the bed of the truck and Scott drove off erratically and in a dangerous manner. The victim was thrown around in the truck bed during the ride and believed that Scott was trying to intentionally throw him out of the bed of the truck. The victim’s hands, legs, chest and head were injured. Scott then crashed the truck into a fence and ran away. She was eventually found in a parking garage, hiding from authorities.
As part of the plea agreement, the defendant and the United States agreed to a sentence of three years in federal prison. The government will also ask that the defendant take part in a drug and alcohol treatment program while imprisoned. U.S. District Judge Frizzell will make the final sentencing determination at a hearing set for March 9, 2021.
The FBI and Tulsa Police Department conducted the investigations. Assistant U.S. Attorney Gina S. Gilmore is prosecuting the case. Ms. Gilmore is a prosecutor from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Western District of Texas. She volunteered to assist prosecution efforts here in the Northern District of Oklahoma due to the increased volume of cases since the Supreme Court’s ruling which stated the Creek Nation Reservation has never been officially disestablished by Congress. The United States and the Muscogee (Creek) Nation have jurisdiction of all cases that occur on the reservation involving Native American victims or defendants.