MITCHELL, S.D. (MITCHELLNOW) Hazing behavior that dipped into the criminal came to light in June of 2023 at a hotel in Rapid City as the Mitchell American Legion was out west for a baseball tournament. Second degree rape and aiding and abetting rape charges were filed, as well as other related charges, against six Mitchell American Legion players.
Peyton Mandel, Carter Miller and Lincoln Bates took earlier pleas of Accessory to a Felony in exchange for having the rape charges dropped. On July 1, 2024, the other three players – Hudson Haley, Karter Sibson and Landon Waddell took the same plea deal. Accessory to a Felony is a Class 5 Felony subject to a maximum penalty of 5 years in prison and a $10,000 fine. Conviction on the rape charges would have resulted in the label of “sex offender” which would follow them for the rest of their lives. By accepting this plea deal, the players avoid that fate.
The six young men will be sentenced on August 13 in Circuit Court in Rapid City. Court observers say that probation with a suspended imposition of sentence and the possibility of later expungement of their felony convictions is not out of the realm of sentencing possibility.