(Kinnear, WY) – Kinnear man Matthew Smith was detained today, January 3 following a detention hearing held before the Honorable Judge R. Michael Shickich in the U.S. District Court of Casper, in regards to an assault resulting in serious bodily injury felony charge.
Federal court documents state that on December 5, 2024, FBI agents were contacted by the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) Wind River Police Department (WRPD) around 2:08 AM, regarding an assault incident.
The victim reported that they were assaulted by a family member, Smith, at their residence in Kinnear.
Upon arrival, responding officers noted that the victim had significant bruising and swelling of their face, and they were soon transported for medical treatment.
The victim later told FBI investigators they had been drinking with Smith and another friend earlier in the night, and that when that friend left, Smith came into the victim’s room and began arguing with them, the complaint document states.
Smith then “put (the victim) in a chokehold with his arm around (their) neck and caused (them) to lose consciousness.”
The victim then told investigators that when they regained consciousness, they were crawling toward their bedroom door, and Smith grabbed them by their hair and threw them toward the back door, the complaint continues.
Despite trying to fight back, Smith pinned the victim to the floor by sitting on them, and “repeatedly pressed his forearm against (their) throat until (they) could not breathe,” while asking the victim if they wanted to “die.”
The victim tried to tell Smith that they couldn’t breathe, the complaint continues, and Smith “just laughed” before strangling the victim until they lost consciousness once more.
When the victim regained consciousness the second time, Smith was still sitting on them and striking them with his fists while the victim’s dog was biting him.
The victim was ultimately able to get away after kicking Smith hard enough that they believed they broke their toe, the victim later told investigators, and was able to get to a neighbor’s house to call law enforcement.
When agents later responded to the victim’s residence, they located Smith inside and, after noting that he “appeared to have blood on his hands,” he was taken into Tribal custody.
Medical staff later advised agents that the victim suffered non-displaced rib fractures, a fractured toe, and damaged cartilage in their neck, as well as soft tissue swelling on their face.
A federal warrant was issued for Smith’s arrest on December 20, and his Detention Hearing/Preliminary Examination was set for today, January 3, after his initial appearance hearing on December 30, 2024.
Smith was detained at today’s hearing, and the preliminary examination was waived.
At this time, the dates for future hearings are not publicly available.
An assault resulting in serious bodily injury felony charge holds a maximum sentence of 10 years imprisonment, up to a $250,000 fine, three years of supervised release, and a $100 special assessment fee.
County 10 will provide updates on the case as they become available, which can be viewed here.