Source: Office of United States Attorneys
PIERRE – United States Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell announced today that U.S. District Judge Eric C. Schulte has sentenced a Sisseton, South Dakota, man convicted of Child Abuse. The sentencing took place on January 27, 2025.
Nathaniel Yazzie, 24, was sentenced to one year and seven months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.
Yazzie was indicted for Child Abuse by a federal grand jury in September 2024. He pleaded guilty on October 31, 2024.
On July 29, 2024, Yazzie struck a three-year-old child multiple times in the face and head while the child was in his care. A concerned party heard the child being abused in Yazzie’s room and called law enforcement. Upon arrival at Yazzie’s residence, law enforcement found the child with a bloody lip and bruising on his face, including linear bruises consistent with being slapped. Yazzie was arrested on tribal charges, and the child was transported to the hospital for medical care.
This matter was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office because the Major Crimes Act, a federal statute, mandates that certain violent crimes alleged to have occurred in Indian Country be prosecuted in Federal court as opposed to State court.
This case was investigated by the FBI and Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe Law Enforcement Services. Assistant U.S. Attorney Wayne Venhuizen prosecuted the case.
Yazzie was immediately remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.