BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — A federal judge has sentenced a man to 10 years in prison in connection with a death on the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation.
The Bismarck Tribune reported Friday that Edward Finley Jr. pleaded guilty in September to voluntary manslaughter. U.S. District Judge Daniel Traynor sentenced him Wednesday. A charge of second-degree murder was dismissed.
According to an FBI affidavit, Finely and Kenneth Grady caused the death of Valentino White Jr. in October 2021 by punching and kicking him at a residence in New Town, a city of about 2,700 on the reservation. The affidavit said Finley and Grady are members of the Three Affiliated Tribes, which is located on the reservation.
White at one point allegedly was upset with another man and pulled a knife, according to the affidavit. Later Finley allegedly punched White and knocked him off a chair and when White tried to fight back witnesses said Finley and Grady punched and kicked him in the head during the altercation,
Grady pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter in September and got 10 years in prison as well, the newspaper reported.
