PIERRE, SD (MITCHELLNOW) A 46-year-old man from Fort Pierre man has been sentenced to 60 years in prison on nine felony charges involving two different children.
In August (Aug. 1, 2024), a Stanley County jury determined Donnie Edwards was guilty of four counts of First-Degree Rape, one count of Fourth Degree Rape, two counts of Aggravated Incest, one count of Incest, and one count of Sexual Contact with a Child Under the Age of Sixteen. The charges occurred between 2007 and 2022.
During a sentencing hearing Friday (Nov. 1, 2024) at the Hughes County Courthouse in Pierre, Edwards’ attorney said Edwards maintains that he’s innocent, but acknowledged he needs mental health assistance. The attorney said Edwards has a support system, referencing about a dozen people in the courtroom and 30-some letters of support from people who know him.
Also, during the sentencing hearing, the two victims gave impact statements calling Edwards a “manipulator” and a “predator” who abused his position as their father or stepfather.
Chief Deputy Attorney General Brent Kempema called Edwards a “textbook sexual predator and a psychopath” who lied on the stand. When asking that the judge impose the maximum possible punishment, Kempema called Edwards the “worst of the worst.”
Edwards was remanded to the custody of law enforcement to begin serving his sentence.
South Dakota’s Division of Criminal Investigation and the Stanley County Sheriff’s Office investigated the case. The South Dakota Attorney General’s Office and the Stanley County State’s Attorney’s Office prosecuted.