Eagle Butte Man Sentenced to Over 2 Years in Federal Prison for Assaulting a Federal Officer

PIERRE - United States Attorney Ron Parsons, announced today that U.S. District Judge Eric C. Schulte has sentenced an Eagle Butte, South Dakota, man convicted of Assaulting, Resisting, and Impeding a Federal Officer. The sentencing took place on October 26, 2026.

Philip Lamar Nordvold, a/k/a PJ Nordvold, age 48, was sentenced to two years and four months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.

Nordvold was indicted by a federal grand jury in January 2026. He pleaded guilty on July 27, 2026.

The conviction stems from an incident that occurred on May 15, 2025, in the Cheyenne River Sioux Indian Reservation. On that day, a Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe Law Enforcement Services Officer made contact with Nordvald to arrest him on an outstanding warrant. Nordvold resisted by holding a knife above his head and yelling that he was not going back to jail. Nordvold was arrested after dropping the knife.

This case was investigated by the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe Law Enforcement Services and the FBI. Assistant U.S. Attorney Wayne Venhuizen prosecuted the case.

Nordvold was immediately remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.