ALBUQUERQUE – Sho’Nee Ganadonegro, 26, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation who resides in Albuquerque, N.M., pled guilty today in federal court to a child abuse charge. Under the terms of her plea agreement, Ganadonegro will be sentenced to a term of probation to be determined by the court.
Ganadonegro was arrested in Jan. 2016, on an indictment charging her with engaging in child abuse by operating a motor vehicle recklessly on Nov. 1, 2015, in Indian Country in Cibola County, N.M.
During today’s proceedings, Ganadonegro entered a guilty plea to the indictment. In entering the guilty plea, Ganadonegro admitted that on Nov. 1, 2015, she negligently operated a motor vehicle recklessly within Laguna Pueblo while under the influence of alcohol. Ganadonegro admitted that her actions endangered the lives and health of the four Indian children who were passengers in the vehicle. A sentencing hearing has yet to be scheduled.
This case was investigated by the Laguna/Acoma Agency of the BIA’s Office of Justice Services and the Laguna Pueblo Tribal Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Spindle is prosecuting the case.