Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) State Crime Alerts (b)
RAPID CITY – United States Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell announced today that U.S. Chief Judge Roberto A. Lange has sentenced a Wanblee, South Dakota, man convicted of Failure to Register as a Sex Offender and Assault Resulting in Serious Bodily Injury. The sentencing took place on April 25, 2024.
Richard Lorn Brown, 28, was sentenced to a total of four years in federal prison, followed by five years of supervised release, and ordered to pay a $200 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund. Judge Lange imposed an 18-month sentence on the Failure to Register charge and a 30-month sentence on the Assault charge, and ordered the sentences to run consecutively.
Brown was indicted for Failure to Register as a Sex Offender, Committing a Crime of Violence While Failing to Register, Assault Resulting in Serious Bodily Injury, and Assault with a Dangerous Weapon by a federal grand jury in July of 2023. He pleaded guilty on January 26, 2024.
The conviction stems from Brown failing to update his sex offender registration in July of 2022 and then stabbing a man with a knife in July of 2023.
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 U.S. Marshals Service, FBI, and the Oglala Sioux Tribe Department of Public Safety. Assistant U.S. Attorney Anna Lindrooth prosecuted the case.
Brown was immediately remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.