Spokane, Washington – Acting U.S. Attorney Richard R. Barker announced that U.S. District Judge Thomas O. Rice sentenced 38-year-old Steven Joseph Zacherle to 204 months in federal prison for Second Degree Murder in Indian Country and Threats in Interstate Commerce. Judge Rice also ordered Zacherle to serve 5 years of supervised release and pay restitution to the Colville Confederated Tribes to cover the funeral costs of the victim.
According to court documents and statements made during sentencing, the incident began on October 18, 2022. Zacherle was involved in a domestic dispute with his intimate partner (Victim 1) near a gas station on the Colville Indian Reservation. When Victim 1 drove away while Zacherle was inside a nearby store, he became enraged. He began calling and texting her, threatening to “kill” and “hurt people” if she didn’t return.
At the same time, Dion Boyd, a respected elder of the Colville Tribe, exited the gas station. He and Zacherle walked in the same direction briefly before Zacherle suddenly attacked Mr. Boyd, striking him in the head.
Minutes after the assault, Zacherle called Victim 1, bragging about the attack and asking if she wanted to see what he had done. She could reportedly hear labored breathing and snorting sounds on the call.
Omak Police and first responders quickly found Mr. Boyd lying unresponsive and bleeding from the head. Medical professionals later confirmed he was brain-dead and would never recover. Mr. Boyd’s family kept vigil for 20 days before he ultimately died from a severe brain hematoma and a fractured skull caused by the brutal attack.
“My heart goes out to the Boyd family, who have suffered so much pain as a result of Mr. Zacherle’s unprovoked attack,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Barker. “We remain committed to working with all levels of government to fully prosecute violent crimes on Tribal land. Victims and their families deserve justice.”
During sentencing, MMIP Assistant U.S. Attorney Bree Black Horse emphasized the loss: “Mr. Boyd was a kind, generous man who helped raise his siblings and children. He also served the Tribe as an IT technician, making sure rural members had cell service.”
She urged the Court to impose the 17-year sentence, stating, “This senseless and violent death deeply affected Mr. Boyd’s large, loving family. He now joins the tragic number of murdered Indigenous people, and his family joins too many others in Eastern Washington and beyond.”
“This appalling attack was truly senseless,” said W. Mike Herrington, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Seattle Field Office. “Zacherle showed shocking disregard for human life, taking out his rage on an innocent man. The Colville Reservation is safer with him off the streets.”
The case is part of the Department of Justice’s Missing or Murdered Indigenous Persons (MMIP) Regional Outreach Program, which supports prevention and response efforts through collaboration with Tribal, federal, state, and local partners. The program prioritizes identifying MMIP cases and developing solutions in Tribal communities.
The FBI and Colville Tribal Police Department conducted the investigation. Acting U.S. Attorney Richard R. Barker and MMIP AUSA Bree R. Black Horse prosecuted the case.
