Source: US FBI
ABERDEEN – United States Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell announced today that U.S. District Judge Charles B. Kornmann has sentenced a Peever, South Dakota, man for Assault with a Deadly Weapon.
On June 16, 2025, Terry Wayne Sterling Heminger, age 27, was sentenced to five years and ten months in federal prison with three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay a special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund in the amount of $100.
Heminger was indicted by a federal grand jury in March 2024. He pleaded guilty on September 30, 2024. His conviction stemmed from an incident on December 23, 2022, when Heminger assaulted his spouse with a hammer. The victim sustained serious bodily injuries to her skull resulting in complete vision loss in one eye and 54% loss in the other. The victim also had to undergo the placement of several metal plates to treat the injuries.
This matter is being 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 the Sisseton-Wahpeton Oyate Tribal Law Enforcement. Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth A. Ebert-Webb prosecuted the case.
Heminger was immediately remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.