Lummi tribal member sentenced to prison for assaulting three people with metal baseball bat

 Defendant went on a rampage after injecting methamphetamine

Seattle – A 30-year-old enrolled member of the Lummi Nation was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 52 months in prison for assault with a dangerous weapon and two counts of assault causing serious bodily injury, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman.  Talin Lee Morris, was arrested May 14, 2019, after assaulting three people with an aluminum baseball bat on the Lummi Indian Reservation.  At the sentencing hearing, Chief U.S. District Judge Ricardo S. Martinez said, “The community deserves to be safe from someone who is a danger to them.”

According to records filed in the case, Morris visited friends on a property on the Lummi Reservation.  After shooting up with methamphetamine, he grew agitated and broke a window with an aluminum baseball bat.  As one of his friends led him outside, he hit the friend on the back of the head with the bat and continued to strike his friend while he was on the ground.  When two other people came to assist the victim, Morris used the bat to strike them.  The first victim suffered a concussion, head wound and fracture to his scapula. The second victim had his arm broken in two places and required surgery with bolts and metal plates.  The third victim suffered bruising and swelling where she was hit with the bat.  Morris was arrested by Lummi Police a short time later.

Morris was indicted in July 2019.  Morris pleaded guilty in May 2021.  Morris has been in custody since his arrest.

In asking for a 5-year prison sentence, Assistant United States Attorney J. Tate London noted that at the time of the assault, Morris had just been released from custody for another assault. Morris “has a lengthy criminal history dating back to his late teens that involve convictions for assaults, including assaults of law enforcement officers,” London wrote in his sentencing memo. 

Morris will serve three years of supervised release following his prison term.

The case was investigated by the Lummi Nation Police Department and the FBI.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney J. Tate London, who serves as a Tribal Liaison for the Western District of Washington.