Muskogee, Oklahoma – The United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma has announced that Colby Eric Dean Ballard, a 29-year-old resident of Muskogee, Oklahoma, has been sentenced to 30 months in prison. Ballard was convicted on one count of assaulting a spouse, intimate partner, and dating partner in Indian Country.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Muskogee Police Department. According to court records, Ballard pleaded guilty on March 21, 2024. The incident occurred on April 4, 2023, when Ballard assaulted the victim by strangling them and causing injuries to their face, head, wrist, and stomach. This crime took place in Muskogee County within the boundaries of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation Reservation in the Eastern District of Oklahoma.
U.S. District Judge John F. Heil III presided over the hearing at the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma. Ballard is currently in custody under the U.S. Marshals Service and will be transported to a designated facility within the United States Bureau of Prisons system to serve his non-paroleable sentence.
The prosecution was led by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Patrick M. Flanigan and Edith Singer.