On June 18th, Jeffrey McDowell, 28, was sentenced in federal court to 270 days in prison (three, three-month sentences, to be served consecutively) after he entered a guilty plea to three counts of assault (18 USC 113). The plea and sentence stemmed from McDowell’s involvement in an incident that occurred at Mammoth campground on June 12th. Early that morning, rangers were notified of a fight in progress in the campground and subsequently arrested McDowell for being under the influence to the extent that he was a danger to both himself and others. McDowell had assaulted three park visitors, injuring one of them, after making verbal comments about their racial and ethnic origin. During his initial appearance several days later, McDowell became so verbally abusive and combative that the judge suspended proceedings and ordered a US marshal to remove him from the courtroom. In advocating the lengthy jail sentence, the US attorney argued that the investigation had clearly shown that the offenses were hate-related and based on the perceived national origin and/or religion of the three victims. The attorney also noted that McDowell used slanderous invectives, including religious and racial epithets, during the commission of the unprovoked attacks, striking two of the three victims and spitting on the third. In addition to the sentence, McDowell was banned from entering Yellowstone for five years. The case is also under review by the Justice Department regarding civil rights violations.
