Wetsit Changes Plea For Manslaughter
Dillon DeMery Wetsit changed his plea to guilty for voluntary manslaughter during a hearing in U.S. District Court in Great Falls on Tuesday, June 23.
Sentencing is set for Oct. 15, at 2:30 p.m. in Great Falls.
The offense carries a maximum penalty of 15 years of imprisonment, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release. In pleading guilty, the defendant acknowledges that first, someone else committed else the offense of voluntary manslaughter: second, that the defendant aided, counseled, commanded, induced or procured that person with respect to at least one element of voluntary manslaughter; third, the defendant acted with the intent to facilitate the offense; fourth, the defendant acted before the crime was completed; fifth, the defendant is an Indian person; and sixth, the offense took place within the exterior boundaries of the Fort Peck Indian Reservation.
Wetsit, Abrianne Deserly and Calvin Lester Jr. were each charged for second degree murder.
The indictment alleges that on Feb. 26, 2025, near Wolf Point, the defendants unlawfully and with malice aforethought, that is recklessly with extreme disregard for human life, killed John Doe, and aided and abetted the same.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Fort Peck Tribes Department of Law & Justice and Roosevelt County Sheriff ’s Office conducted the investigation.
