Man charged in connection with deadly Navajo Nation parade crash: prosecutors

PHOENIX - Officials with the Navajo Nation Office of the Prosecutor announced on Dec. 24 that a man has been charged in connection with a deadly crash that happened during a holiday parade on the Native American nation.

What we know:

According to a statement posted onto the social media page for Kayenta Township, 67-year-old Stanley Begay Jr. has been charged with Homicide by Vehicle.

The backstory:

The incident that led to Begay's arrest and subsequent charging happened during the Kayenta Light Parade on Dec. 22.

In our previous report on the matter, police said the driver entered the route at 5:10 p.m. before the parade started, striking four people who were waiting for the parade to start.

Three people were struck, according to prosecutors, and one of them, identified only as a three-year-old Navajo child, died as a result of injuries sustained. A GoFundMe has been started for the child's family.

Per their statement, Navajo Nation officials said prosecutors "worked in coordination with the Kayenta Navajo Police Department, the Kayenta Department of Criminal Investigations, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation to file the Homicide by Vehicle charge before the court recessed for the remainder of the week."

What's next:

Officials said because the Navajo Nation has "not adopted enhanced sentencing authority under the Tribal Law and Order Act of 2010," the Indian Civil Rights Act has placed limitations on tribal courts.

Per the statement, the maximum sentence for Homicide by Vehicle is a year of incarceration and $5,000 in fines.

"A conviction in Navajo Nation District Court is still a conviction, with real and enforceable consequences under Navajo law," Chief Prosecutor Vernon L. Jackson, Sr. wrote in the statement.

As for Begay, his arraignment is scheduled for Jan. 13, 2026.

What is the Indian Civil Rights Act?

Dig deeper:

The Indian Civil Rights Act, as mentioned by Navajo Nation officials, refers to a piece of legislation that became law in the late 1960s, and subsequently amended.

The law places a number of restrictions on tribal governments. Some of those restrictions, like a ban on double jeopardy and a ban on unreasonable search and seizures, also appear in the U.S. Constitution and its subsequent amendments.

Under the Indian Civil Rights Act, self-governing tribes cannot impose a sentence of more than a year, and/or a fine of more than $5,000.

As for the "enhanced sentencing authority under the Tribal Law and Order Act of 2010" that Navajo Nation officials mentioned in their statement, it refers to an amendment of the Indian Civil Rights Act that allows for sentences greater than a year in prison and up to $5,000 in fines, provided that the defendant:

• Has previously been convicted of the same or a comparable offense by any jurisdiction in the U.S., or;
• Is being prosecuted for an offense comparable to an offense that would be punishable by more than one year of imprisonment if prosecuted by the United States or any of the states.

Even then, the law states that the maximum penalty in such a situation is three years in prison, and/or a fine no more than $15,000. The law also requires the defendant, under such circumstances, to be provided with the following:

• The right to effective assistance of counsel, at a level at least equal to that guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution
• In the case of defendants who can't afford their own lawyers, access to a licensed defense attorney at the tribe's expense
• A judge that has received sufficient legal training, and is licensed to practice law in the U.S.
• Have criminal laws, rules of evidence, and the rules of criminal procedure of the tribal government be made available publicly before the defendant is charged
• A maintained record of the criminal proceeding, including audio or other recordings