Free the Carson 10!

Emergency Update: Mobilize Now!

The racist jury found the 1st defendant guilty!
Rocky Boice Jr. is innocent! He will be sentenced on December 19, 2002 at 9 AM in Carson City and all freedom loving people must be at the court house to protest this travesty of justice!

Rocky Boice Jr. (pictured below), is the first defendant to go to trial. The state severed the other defendents and Rocky stood alone as a result of Rocky's refusal to talk about deals and for maintaining his absolute innocence. His mother and father support him, lead up the Carson 10 Defense Committee, and refuse to be intimidated by the Carson City Sheriff's Department or the District Attorney's office. They are fighting the good fight and need your support now more than ever!
Please send letters of support to Rocky at:
Rocky Boice Jr., #74159
NSP
P.O. Box 607
Carson City, NV 89702

Rocky was not given a fair trial and was tried by an all-white jury. During the trial, he was made out to be a vindictive monster who went on a random killing spree. Nothing could be further from the truth! He was attempting to protect his cousin, Jessica Evans, who had been recently assaulted and whom the police refused to protect. This police neglect combined with charging the defendants with crimes for attempting to defend her is an endorsement of violence against Indigenous women. By refusing to allow Jessica and the Native community to act in self-defense, the state of Nevada is continuing colonialism's legacy of perpetrating violence against Native women as part of its genocidal agenda. Jessica's attacker, who later admitted his crime to police, was never charged. Instead, the state moved quickly to railroad ten Native youth.

This experience is nothing new to Indigenous people here in the United States. The US government have never honored any of the treaties they have entered into with Native peoples and in fact have committed genocide against Indigenous people for hundreds of years in thier greedy quest for land and resources. The US government has done everything it could to break the spirit and culture of Native families and again they try and break apart another strong Native family. At Rocky's most recent court date, he requested new counsel. The judge in the case, Michael Griffin, questioned "What right does he have to choose his own attorney?... What right does he have to tell his attorney what to do?" in an attempt to deny him appropriate legal counsel. His new attorney however fought the judge and won and will now fight, along with the people, to overturn Rocky's conviction on appeal.


Rocky issued this statement from prison after the all-white jury, sobbing hypocritically, announced their verdict:

"To the People,
My name is Rocky Boice Jr. I am from the Hopi and Paiute tribe, a member of the Sun clan. I have been railroaded through the system. They have done a grave injustice and they're going to do it again, again, and again, until they hang 10 Native youth. What I am asking is that the people stand up and fight for the rest of the brothers and sisters. I'm already locked down, but they are not. Please bring the people together to stop what's going on. There's a lot of talk about taking action, but very few do. Stand up! Don't allow the rest of the brothers and sisters to wind up like me. Don't let the system make more kids Daddyless and Mommyless. It is time to stand for what you believe in and it needs to happen quickly. If not, I will watch the rest of the brothers and sisters walk through the prison gates like I did. The people can win. The people need to stop letting this happen. I am the people, I'm part of the people and I stood my ground, and fought my fight. Now it's your turn. Now it's your turn to look the enemy in the eye and say we're not going anywhere. We are tired of the system taking and killing our youth. We will stand for our children and in the end we will win.

Thank you, Rocky Boice Jr, now a political prisoner


Who are the Carson 10?

The Carson 10 are ten Native American youth from 8 different tribes accused of the murder of Samuel B. "Sammy" Resendez, who died on August 23, 1998. At the time of the arrests, 6 out of 10 defendants were juveniles, three were under 21, and the oldest was 24 years old. Information on the defendants and thier age at the time of the incident is as follows:
Mike Kizer		14	Lakota Sioux/Washo
Clint Malone		15	Miwuk/Paiute/Washo
Elvin Fred		15	Washo/Pomo/Paiute
Julian Contreras	15	Hopi/Washo	(Julian sold out and made a deal with the state)
Jaron Malone		17	Miwuk/Paiute/Washo
Sylvia Fred		17	Washo/Pomo/Paiute
Freddie Fred		18	Washo/Pomo/Paiute
Rocky Boice, Jr.	19	Hopi/Paiute/Seminole
Jessica Evans		20	Hopi/Washo/Creek
Lew Dutchy		24	Washo/Chippewa

This is a complex case and this website will provide you with information about some of the history and facts surrounding it. We provide links to some of the relevant media coverage. We also encourage you to get involved with the Carson 10 Defense Committee and give you information on how to do so. Please get informed and work for the truth to be revealed so that justice can prevail and healing can occur. We have removed the picture of the defendants because 2 have sold out their brothers and sisters and cut a deal with the prosecution in exchange for lighter sentencing. The elders remind us that some Native people rode with Custer against other Native people. In the same way that the colonial system has attempted to use this case to divide the Latino and Native communities, they are attempting to turn the defendants against each other to break thier collective strength. The American system of injustice will never be able to destroy the anti-colonial struggle for liberation of all Indeginous peoples!


How to Help
Join the Carson 10 Defense Committee Read media coverage of the case Letter writing/Pressure Campaign Make a Donation
click image to join the Carson 10 Defense Committee click image to read media on the case click image to learn where to send letters of protest click image to make donations to the Carson 10 Defense Committee

About the Case

Carson City, Nevada is a town of 53,923 (U.S. Census Bureau). It is the capital of Nevada and the median family income in 1997 was $40,712. The population break-down is 85% white and 15% people of color. The city is named after "Kit" Carson, well-known settler and Indian-killer.

The Boice family live in Carson City and are members of the Hopi/Paiute tribe. They are very proud of their family and heritage. They are outspoken members of their community and work hard to improve it. For years, the community has experienced harassment from gang members, about which they informed the police. Terry, the mother in the family, wrote to Sheriff Rod Banister in 1995 and pleaded with him for help. Unfortunately, she was provided with neither assistance nor protection. Click here to read the original 1995 letter.

What Happened on August 22, 1998


During the evening of August 22, 1998, Jessica Evans, a young Native American woman was assaulted by an individual in Carson City while attending a party at a local motel. Evans notified the Carson City Sheriff's Deputies, but they refused to take action despite visible injuries to her face as well as bloodstains on her sweatshirt.

This inaction by the police reflects a long history of negligence in conflicts that not only affect the Native American community but also the Latino Community. Unfortunately, when conflicts between these two groups exist, it seems as though police prefer to do nothing or to pit one group against the other.

After she was assaulted, police allege that Jessica returned home where several of her family members and friends allegedly decided to return to confront the attacker at the motel. Local police arrived at the hotel room where Sammy was staying, early in the morning of August 23, 1998. According to the police reports, Samuel B. "Sammy" Resendez was still alive when the police arrived. The reporting officer stated that Sammy struggled against medical help. He later died from severe head injuries. Evans, her family members, and her friends who police allege returned to the motel are now being charged with the murder of Resendez. The district attorney in Carson City has threatened the defendants with a sentence of 2 consecutive life terms, and minimum 40 year sentences.

Facts Complicating the Case


Samuel B. "Sammy" Resendez dies from head injuries at 2:00PM (12 hours after the alleged incident) on August 23, 1998, at a Reno Hospital.

Katherine Raven, the forensic pathologist who testified at the preliminary hearing, stated that the cerebral contusions, or bruising of the brain, were significant enough that Resendez would not have been able to get up and walk into a bathroom 12 to 20 feet away as was reported by the first officer on the scene. This would suggest that Resendez was brutalized after the police arrived on the scene. She also reported that he had a fractured Hyoid bone in his neck, possibly caused by a compression of the neck. According to the police report, Resendez was restrained.

Resendez was taken to the Carson-Tahoe hospital by ambulance where he was then transported by helicopter to the Washoe Medical Center. There was an 18-minute delay at the first hospital.

The attending emergency room physician is currently facing charges of kidnapping and drugging his ex-wife and is being questioned regarding murders in Arkansas.

There is no physical evidence to link any of the defendants to the crime.

Carolee Simpson, the State's key witness, told the first officer at the scene that she did not know any of the suspects. She also claimed she did not get a good look at their faces. A Washo Tribal Police officer supplied Simpson with the names of the suspects. Based on the names supplied to this witness, the police sought the defendants along with many other youth.

The Sheriff's Department and the District Attorney's Office have consistently said in newspapers that the defendants are members of a gang, making tribal unities an indictable offense. This is untrue, as is their portrayal of a Native American vs. Latino racial conflict, rather it is a tactic used to produce negative pretrial publicity.

Sheriff Rod Banister of the Carson City Sheriff's Department said speaking of the Latino and Native American communities on Channel 2 News, Carson City, N.V., during August 1998, "They feel like they're getting discriminated against, oh well, I don't care. Quite frankly, I don't have any use for either of these groups."

The Carson City Sheriff's Department has been having problems for some time now. In fact due to a citizen's complaint on another case, a Special Grand Jury Report was released that stated:

"Based on the testimony given by the Carson City District Attorney and the Carson City Sheriff, both demonstrated an alarming lack of knowledge of the statutes which form the basis of the laws that are supposed to be enforcing. There should be some process in place to ensure these officers are properly aware of and have a basic understanding of the NRS." (Nevada Revised Appeal) Quote taken from the Nevada Appeal article entitled "Corrected Special Grand Jury Report", published August 9, 2002.

The article further stated, "Based on all the testimony presented to the Grand Jury, the Carson City Sheriff's Department, in particular the detective division, demonstrated a marked lack of competence..." Yet this the same department we are supposed to trust in regards to the investigation of the incident on August 23, 1998. Click here to read the full report.


On many occasions the District Attorneys' Office has repeatedly failed to take action against members of the Eastside Toker gang when they have committed crimes against Native Americans, Latinos, and other citizens of Carson City. The individual who battered Evans was never charged.

Prior to this case, Boice Jr. and his family filed complaints against members of the Sheriff's Department for wrongdoing. The department ignored these complaints and continuously harassed Boice Jr.

Work for the truth and join the campaign!



"The families of the Native American youth who are currently awaiting trial wish to extend their more heartfelt sympathy to the family and friends of Samuel B. "Sammy" Resendez. The incident was a tragic event and we cannot change what happened. We want to ensure that nothing else happens to cause more pain for all of our families...

"All of us are very emotional right now... As family members, we have an obligation to our children to support them and to help see them through the legal process. We pray for the family and friends of Mr. Resendez and we pray for our children." a statement by families of the Native Americans charged in the case in August 1998 when the incident occurred.


Please click on the daisy to read Prayers for Peace from many religions.

Click here to go to the Carson 10 Defense Committee page.

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