United States v. Giordano Jackson

I. BACKGROUND

A. The Violent Attack

In July 2017, Jackson violently attacked his then- girlfriend, Alvina Nez, on the Navajo Nation Indian Reservation. Alvina’s minor son and minor nephew observed part of the attack, and her father, Alex Nez Sr., observed its aftermath. 2

On the night of the attack, Alvina’s son and nephew were in their grandparents’ kitchen when a car pulled up outside. The boys then began hearing a noise: At first, they thought it was laughter, but as the boys went outside, it sounded like screaming or crying. From their grandparents’ porch, they saw Jackson come around the car from the passenger’s side to the driver’s side, where Alvina was sitting with the door open. Then, Jackson started punching Alvina—in the face, 1 Jackson was also convicted of first-degree murder for a subsequent September 2017 attack on the same victim, as well as multiple counts of assault against the responding police officers. He received a mandatory life sentence for the murder conviction. See 18 U.S.C. § 1111. He appealed that conviction, and we affirm in a concurrently filed memorandum disposition. 2 Because there are multiple people in this case with the surname Nez, we refer…