Davison County felony court for Oct. 24

Sam Fosness, The Daily Republic, Mitchell, S.D.
·4 min read

Oct. 26—MITCHELL — The following cases were among those heard Tuesday during a circuit court session at the Davison County Public Safety Center, with Judge Chris Giles presiding:

* Ronald LaFortune, 78, of Mitchell, pleaded not guilty to sexual contact with a child under 16, a Class 3 felony that carries a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison and a $30,000 fine. According to an arrest affidavit, LaFortune allegedly placed a 9-month-old child's hands on his genitals while rocking the infant to sleep. LaFortune was babysitting the infant when the alleged incident occurred, court documents say. The father of the infant checked the baby monitor camera in the infant's room, which allegedly showed LaFortune rocking the child in a chair and placing the infant's hands on his exposed parts, according to the affidavit. The father spoke through the baby monitor to demand LaFortune stop, court documents say. Authorities reviewed the baby monitor footage and wrote in the affidavit that the alleged incident "was as described" by the father.

* Brandon Scott, 41, of Sioux Falls, pleaded not guilty to aggravated eluding, a Class 6 felony that carries a maximum sentence of two years in prison and a $4,000 fine; obstructing law enforcement officers; possession of less than two ounces of marijuana, driving with a suspended license; improper right turn; and possession of drug paraphernalia in a motor vehicle, each misdemeanor charges. Scott's charges stem from a vehicle pursuit that ended after he allegedly crashed his vehicle. Officers located Scott following the wreck with the help of a new drone the Mitchell Police Department recently welcomed. An affidavit of the events says the officer attempted to pull Scott over for an improper right turn. When the officer approached the vehicle, the driver sped away and a pursuit ensued. The affidavit also says the vehicle, driven by Scott, let a passenger out a short while after taking off from the traffic stop. When it drove off, the vehicle "the door caught the passenger's wrist." The pursuit in residential areas exceeded speeds of 60 mph, so it was eventually called off due to safety concerns for the public.

* Charles Tighe, 67, of Mitchell, was appointed an attorney to represent him for failure to re-register as a sex offender, a Class 6 felony. He is scheduled to appear in court Nov. 1 for an arraignment hearing.

* Joseph Rongstad, 41, of Minnesota, pleaded not guilty to possession of a controlled substance (meth), a Class 5 felony; possession of 2 ounces of marijuana or less; failure to make a proper stop; and use or possession of drug paraphernalia, which are each misdemeanor offenses.

* Jamie Waldon, 34, of Mitchell, admitted to violating probation. She was sentenced to five years in prison with five years suspended and ordered to remain serving probation. Waldon was serving probation for possession of meth. She was granted a suspended imposition for the charge. Judge Giles revoked the suspended imposition on Tuesday due to the probation violation, as requested by Davison County State's Attorney Jim Miskimins.

* William Frederick, 28, of Mitchell, was denied a furlough to enter an in-patient drug treatment program. Frederick is currently serving a 155-day jail sentence for violating a court order. His violation stemmed from him failing to comply with the 24/7 alcohol screening he's participating in. His blood alcohol level was about three times over the legal limit when he was arrested for the violation. During Tuesday's hearing, Judge Giles characterized Frederick's request as an attempt to temporarily be released from jail while serving his jail sentence. Giles also pointed to Frederick's past failed attempts at treatment as a reason to deny the request.

* Ervin St. Claire, 48, of Mitchell, pleaded guilty to possession of a controlled substance (meth), a Class 5 felony that carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a $10,000 fine. St. Claire is scheduled to be sentenced on Nov. 1.

* Martin Marrs, 60, of Sioux Falls, pleaded guilty to failure to register as a sex offender, a Class 6 felony. He was sentenced to two years in prison with two years suspended. Marrs was also ordered to serve one year of probation.

* Tory Morrow, 33, of Mitchell, pleaded guilty to violating a protection order, a Class 6 felony; and violating probation. He was sentenced to two years in prison for each charge. Morrow received credit for serving 288 days in jail for the probation violation charge and 263 days for protection order violation.

* Daniel Seiner, 39, of Mitchell, was sentenced to 10 years in prison with two years suspended for a pair of probation violations. Seiner was serving probation for a third-degree burglary charge and possession of a controlled substance (meth).

* Tyanna WittJohnson, 18, of Sioux Falls, had a status hearing scheduled in connection to two counts of possession of a controlled substance, each a Class 5 felony; possession of marijuana in the amount of 2 ounces or less, possession of alcohol by a minor and use or possession of drug paraphernalia, which are each misdemeanor offenses.