NORTH BATTLEFORD – A second man has been charged in the assault of a First Nations man that was caught on video camera.
Dane Lesmeister, 18, was also arrested and charged with possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose. Dane Lesmeister and Adam Lesmeister made their first court appearance in North Battleford Provincial Court on Aug. 22.
Sgt. Neil Tremblay of the Batlteford RCMP said that the charges for both Adam Lesmeister and Dane Lesmeister stem from the incident from the Eleanore Sunchild video.
Sgt. Tremblay said that only two people are being charged in this incident. Regina RCMP said that the third male in the video was identified and his involvement was investgated and he will not be charged.
Both Lesmesiters are represented by Randy Kirkham, who waived their appearance in court. The two are back in court on Sept. 19
Adam Lesmeister was charged with assault after a video was posted online that allegedly showed an Indigenous man being attacked in Battleford. According to Battlefords RCMP, they got a call about an assault around 6:50 p.m. on June 17 in the 0-100 block of 17 Street East in Battleford. Police say a man was approached by three males he didn’t know and one of the men assaulted him. All three had left the area before officers arrived and the victim, who is from Poundmaker First Nation, was given medical treatment for non-life-threatening injuries.
The video online sparked outrage across the province.
In a statement issued by FSIN, lawyer Eleanore Sunchild said the attack was racist and seemingly an act of vigilante justice, which resulted in her friend being brutally assaulted. The alleged assault occurred in her yard in Battleford and she captured the attack on video and posted it on social media.
“Racism kills and it has to stop,” said Sunchild.
FSIN says the victim was unhooking a trailer while his six-year-old daughter sat in the vehicle at a home in Battleford when the three non-First Nations men approached him on the property.
“The attacker struck him and then proceeded to pull him to the ground by his braid and further [assaulted] the man with a knee to the face. The entire group then left.”
The charges against Lesmeister haven't been tested in court.
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