An Aberdeen man was sentenced to 10 years in prison with four years suspended for aggravated assault of a child younger than 3.
Authorities said Jovan P. Primeaux, 28, shook and injured his infant between Feb. 1 and April 24. Court records show the child was born Feb. 1.
Primeaux previously pleaded not guilty before accepting a plea agreement Friday morning. Aggravated assault of a child younger than 3 is punishable by as many as 25 years in prison and $50,000 in fines.
Primeaux's son was taken to the emergency room and found to have bleeding on the brain and in the eyes, according to court documents. Primeaux said the injuries were the result of an accident, but admitted to reckless behavior.
Lori Ehlers, chief deputy state's attorney for Brown County, said doctors in Sioux Falls and Aberdeen found internal injuries that were consistent with nonaccidental head trauma.
As part of the plea agreement, Primeaux was not charged as a habitual offender. He will be eligible for parole once he serves 75 percent of his prison term and must pay attorneys' fees in $1,128, $804 in fines and court costs and for any medical costs associated with his son's injury.
In other court news
A man pleaded guilty to charges of first-degree burglary and identity theft stemming from an incident on March 19.
Trevor Erickson, 20, was sentenced to 60 days in prison with credit for time served. He was also given a 10-year suspended sentence for the burglary and a two-year suspended sentence for the charge of identity theft, he will be on probation for 10 years, he must pay $1,208 in fines and court costs and he must take a corrective thinking class.
He is not allowed to have any contact with the juveniles who were with him the night of the crime.
Erickson admitted to taking four guns from the garage of an Aberdeen home and to attempting to use credit cards found in a pickup truck that was also stolen. The truck was driven through a garage, which resulted in property damage.
A restitution amount for the damage has not been finalized, Ehlers said.
First-degree burglary is a felony punishable by as much as 25 years and a $50,000 fine. Identity theft is a felony punishable by as much as two years and $4,000.
In a separate case, Erickson pleaded guilty to fourth-degree rape and was sentenced to two years of probation. He must pay $604 in fines and court costs and pay $1,250 for a psychosexual evaluation.
He must follow the recommendations made following the evaluation and has to undergo a chemical dependency evaluation as well. There is no further jail sentence because he has already served 186 days. He was ordered to stay away from the victim, who was 13 at the time.
An Aberdeen man pleaded guilty Friday to a felony charge of simple assault of a law enforcement officer, as well as two additional counts of simple assault.
Michael Xavier Rath, 21, was accused of causing bodily harm to his roommate on May 13 after an argument got out of control, said Brown County State's Attorney Kimberly Dorsett. That night, he caused bodily harm to corrections officer Jason Carroll after refusing to comply with Carroll's instructions, she said.
Judge Tony Portra sentenced Rath to two years in prison with six months suspended and ordered him to pay $104 in court costs for attacking an officer. He will be eligible for parole after serving 35 percent of his term. Rath was given credit for 131 days served.
His defense attorney, Christy Griffin Serr, said Rath has been and will continue to work with mental health professionals on anger management. The treatment has shown positive results, she said.
Portra ordered Rath to continue working with mental health officials and to attend anger management classes if he's paroled.
Simple assault on a law enforcement official is a felony punishable by up to two years in prison and $4,000 in fines.
Rath was sentenced to 60 days in prison and fined $84 for the simple assault charge stemming from the incident with his roommate; that time will be served concurrently.
Rath was also charged in a separate case from an incident on March 3, when he repeatedly struck a 15-year-old during a house party, Dorsett said. He was charged with simple assault, sentenced to 60 days and fined $84. This sentence will also be served concurrently.