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Lame Deer GOP state House candidate charged with sexual abuse

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A Republican state House candidate from Lame Deer has been accused in federal court of sexually abusing three males, including one case dating back 15 years on the Northern Cheyenne reservation.

Dean Allen Wallowing Bull, 45, was charged in federal court in Billings on Aug. 7 with two counts of sexual abuse and one count of attempted sexual abuse. In each case, the victim was physically incapable of saying no to the sexual abuse, according to charging documents.

The first instance happened in either 2008 or 2009, the second in December 2013 and the third in January 2021. All the alleged abuse occurred in the Lame Deer area, according to prosecutors.

Wallowing Bull pleaded not guilty to all three charges Aug. 14. He was booked into Yellowstone County jail following his arraignment, where he remained as of Tuesday.

If convicted, Wallowing Bull faces up to life in prison and up to $500,000 in fines.

Wallowing Bull was appointed a public defendant, and his trial is scheduled to start 9 a.m. Oct. 21.

Wallowing Bull filed to run as Republican in House District 41, which includes the Northern Cheyenne reservation, part of the Crow reservation and other parts of southeastern Montana. He ran unopposed in the June primary, and he is scheduled to face Democrat Jade Sootkis of Lame Deer in the November general election.

It wasn't immediately clear Tuesday whether his name will remain on the ballot.

According to the Montana Free Press, Wallowing Bull is a community activist in Lame Deer.