Federal authorities have secured major prison terms in a brutal multi-year homicide investigation on tribal land. U.S. District Judge Eric C. Schulte has sentenced two individuals from South Dakota to 30 years each in federal prison for their roles in the 2019 killing of a 15-year-old boy on the Rosebud Sioux Indian Reservation, according to federal prosecutors.
Dillion Millard, 27, of Rosebud, and Charmaine Medicine, 31, of Parmelee, learned their fates following a prosecution led by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of South Dakota. In addition to the three-decade prison sentence, both defendants must serve five years of supervised release and pay a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund, as reported by Dakota News Now.
A Night Out That Turned Lethal
According to court documents and federal prosecutors, the sequence of events began in the early morning hours of July 9, 2019. Millard and Medicine picked up the 15-year-old victim from his home under the pretext of going out to drink together. The trio drove to a park located within the Rosebud Sioux Reservation and walked into a secluded area.
Once the teenager became intoxicated, Millard strangled him with his bare hands until the victim stopped struggling, investigators revealed. Following the fatal assault, Millard dragged the boy’s body to a nearby tree and used a belt to tie him by the neck to a branch.
The pair initially fled the scene but returned a few hours later. In a calculated attempt to destroy evidence and obscure their involvement, Millard and Medicine poured oil over the boy’s remains and set them on fire.
Discovery and a Nearly Five-Year Investigation
The grim discovery was made the following afternoon on July 10, 2019, when hikers came across the burned remains in the secluded reservation area. For nearly five years, the homicide remained an unsolved mystery that weighed heavily on the local community and the victim’s grieving family.
The breakthrough in the stagnant case came when Millard ultimately confessed to investigators, implicating both himself and Medicine in the horrific crime. Because the offense occurred within the boundaries of the Rosebud Sioux Reservation, the case fell under the jurisdiction of the federal Major Crimes Act. This federal statute mandates that major violent offenses committed within Indian Country by Native Americans are prosecuted in federal court rather than state court.
The complex, multi-year probe involved a collaborative investigative effort by Rosebud Sioux Tribe Law Enforcement Services, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Statements and Community Impact
U.S. Attorney Ron Parsons addressed the conclusion of the long-standing judicial process, expressing both sorrow for the tragedy and relief that closure had finally reached the victim’s relatives.
“I am so saddened and disheartened by the inhumanity of this terrible crime,” U.S. Attorney Ron Parsons said, as reported by Dakota News Now. “But I’m relieved for the victim’s family that they finally have some answers and can know that a measure of justice has been achieved.”
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal or professional advice. If you or someone you know has been affected by violent crime, support services and victim advocacy resources are available through local tribal and federal assistance programs.
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