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 Mission, South Dakota, woman convicted of Assault Resulting in Substantial Bodily Injury to a Dating Partner. The sentencing took place on May 27, 2025.
Korilyn M. Whipple-Wright, age 25, was sentenced to two years and three 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.
Whipple-Wright was indicted by a federal grand jury in August 2024. She pleaded guilty on February 26, 2025.
On February 16, 2024, Whipple-Wright assaulted her former girlfriend in Rosebud, South Dakota, which lies within the Rosebud Sioux Indian Reservation. The women had recently broken up after dating for approximately six years. Whipple-Wright wrapped her arm around the woman’s neck and choked her, causing her to temporarily lose consciousness. Whipple-Wright also pushed the woman’s face into a wall and punched her. The woman incurred bruising to her forehead, a black eye, and a cut to her head in the assault.
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 Rosebud Sioux Tribe Law Enforcement Services. Assistant U.S. Attorney Carl Thunem prosecuted the case.
Whipple-Wright was immediately remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.