Kriti Mehrotra
With Showtime’s ‘Murder in Big Horn’ living up to its title in every way imaginable, we get a true insight into the epidemic of missing and murdered Indigenous women in this titular Montana county. After all, it explores the circumstances surrounding several such cases over the past few years, especially those involving mere teenagers that are shrouded in nothing but convoluted mysteries. Amongst them is thus the 2020 disappearance and death of Selena Not Afraid — yet for now, if you simply wish to learn more about her estranged father, Leroy, we’ve got the details for you.
Who is Leroy Not Afraid?
Although a Crow Tribe native, Leroy Not Afraid is someone whose personal and professional experiences within the Indigenous community seemingly haven’t been positive since the mid-2010s. It all reportedly began once he separated from the mother of his five children Jackie Big Hair, just to spiral into accusations of abuse, sexual assaults, and depravity, alongside a restraining order. Though the most harrowing part is that they were publicly made by the only daughter living with him at the time, then 14-year-old Selena — yet he has since vehemently denied any wrongdoing.
According to the documentary series, Leroy got Selena’s custody following the suicide of her twin sister Zoey in 2013, and the rest of the family did not even see her for the next 12-18 months. This is when the teen ostensibly grew timid, that is, until she decided she’d had enough and broke through her shell to tell authorities she’d been sexually assaulted four times by her own father. “There was an order of protection to restrain me from seeing my daughter,” Leroy said in the Showtime original, referring to the 2018 court document. “The petition stated very ugly, made-up details.”
The father then added, “There were allegations of abuse, that I touched her inappropriately — in a sexual manner. When I read the document, I about fell over. There is no flipping way I would ever touch my girls, or any of my children, or anybody’s children for that matter, in any way that would hurt them.” Therefore, Leroy requested a polygraph on both himself as well as Selena in the hopes of proving his innocence, just for his ex to withdraw the order and for him to agree not to see his girl anymore until she turned 18. But alas, before the fateful June 8, 2021, could arrive, Selena suddenly vanished.
It was New Year’s 2020 when Selena was last seen alive along a highway rest stop near Billings after catching a ride home from a party, only for her body to be found a mile away 20 days later. However, Leroy didn’t participate in a single extensive search for the teen owing to the settlement the family had reached, meaning he had not seen his daughter since the summer of 2018. That’s precisely around the time he was even removed as Chief Judge from the Crow Tribal Court in a 12 to 3 vote once it came to light he had allegedly been mishandling the establishment’s finances.
Where is Leroy Not Afraid Now?
Leroy was actually named Undersheriff of Big Horn County, Montana, shortly following Selena’s early 2020 demise, driving him to completely recuse himself from probes into the same. He has also seemingly made peace with the fact her cause of death has been ruled as hypothermia with no foul play involved, enabling him to maintain his position without a conflict of interest to this day. Coming to his personal standing, from what we can tell, he is happily married to Sheila Not Afraid, and seems perfectly content with where he is today as a police force official, husband, father, and grandfather.
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