Current:Home > ScamsFormer North Dakota federal prosecutor who handled Peltier, Medina shootout cases dies -WealthGrow Network
Former North Dakota federal prosecutor who handled Peltier, Medina shootout cases dies
View
Date:2025-04-13 09:57:35
FARGO, N.D. (AP) — A former federal prosecutor who handled such prominent cases as the 1977 trial of Native American activist Leonard Peltier has died.
Lynn Crooks died on Sunday, the North Dakota U.S. Attorney’s Office said. He was 83.
Crooks was an assistant U.S. attorney from 1969 to 2002, and led the prosecution team at Peltier’s trial in Fargo, KFGO reported. Peltier was convicted in connection with the shooting deaths of two FBI agents in 1975 on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. He was sentenced to life in prison and was recently denied parole.
Crooks also prosecuted Yorie Kahl and Scott Faul in connection with a fatal shootout in 1983 near Medina, North Dakota, that left two federal marshals dead. Kahl was the son of Gordon Kahl, who was part of the anti-government Posse Comitatus group and also was involved in the shootout.
Crooks served in various roles during his career, including as first assistant U.S. Attorney and acting U.S. attorney. In 2000, he told The Associated Press that his calling was to be a federal prosecutor.
“If I had the opportunity to go back and change it all, I wouldn’t change a thing,” Crooks said then. “I don’t think there’s any better job a lawyer could have.”
In 2016, he supported a ballot initiative that added crime victim rights to North Dakota’s state constitution.
North Dakota U.S. Attorney Mac Schneider issued a statement Monday praising Crooks.
“While North Dakota will remember Lynn for prosecuting challenging and consequential federal cases of national prominence, his colleagues will remember him as a kind and generous man who was never too busy to help a friend or mentor a young attorney,” Schneider said.
He also lauded Crooks as “arguably the greatest prosecutor in the history of North Dakota.”
veryGood! (15339)
Related
- Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow owns a $3 million Batmobile Tumbler
- Millions of Americans overseas can vote — but few do. Here's how to vote as an American living abroad.
- Iowa House OKs bill to criminalize death of an “unborn person” despite IVF concerns
- Fact Focus: Claims Biden administration is secretly flying migrants into the country are unfounded
- Rylee Arnold Shares a Long
- Senate passes bill to compensate Americans exposed to radiation by the government
- That's just 'Psycho,' Oscars: These 10 classic movies didn't win a single Academy Award
- Democrats walk out of Kentucky hearing on legislation dealing with support for nonviable pregnancies
- Intellectuals vs. The Internet
- Teen Mom's Jenelle Evans Breaks Silence on Split from Husband David Eason
Ranking
- The Louvre will be renovated and the 'Mona Lisa' will have her own room
- Gunman in Maine's deadliest mass shooting, Robert Card, had significant evidence of brain injuries, analysis shows
- Cannabis sales in Minnesota are likely to start later than expected. How much later isn’t clear
- MLB's best teams keep getting bounced early in October. Why is World Series so elusive?
- Mets have visions of grandeur, and a dynasty, with Juan Soto as major catalyst
- NFL mock draft: Broncos, Eagles aim to fill holes left by Russell Wilson, Jason Kelce
- State of the Union guests spotlight divide on abortion and immigration but offer some rare unity
- Speaker Mike Johnson on IVF after Alabama decision: It's something that every state has to wrestle with
Recommendation
NFL Week 15 picks straight up and against spread: Bills, Lions put No. 1 seed hopes on line
Nevada GOP governor stands by Trump amid legal battles, distances himself from GOP ‘fake electors’
Xcel Energy 'acknowledges' role in sparking largest wildfire in Texas history
Burger King sweetens its create-your-own Whopper contest with a free burger
Former Danish minister for Greenland discusses Trump's push to acquire island
In State of the Union address, Biden to urge Congress to pass measures to lower health care costs
Fact Focus: Claims Biden administration is secretly flying migrants into the country are unfounded
Amy Robach Shares She's Delayed Blood Work in Fear of a Breast Cancer Recurrence