McLaughlin Man Sentenced For Assault With A Dangerous Weapon

United States Attorney Brendan V. Johnson announced that a McLaughlin, South Dakota, man convicted of Assault with a Dangerous Weapon was sentenced on September 23, 2013, by U.S. District Judge Roberto A. Lange.  

Ryan Soft, age 22, was sentenced to 12 months in custody, 2 years of supervised release, $15,026.55 in restitution, and a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.

Soft was indicted by a federal grand jury on March 13, 2013, and pled guilty to Assault with a Dangerous Weapon on July 9, 2013.

The conviction stems from an incident that began on the evening of February 25, 2013, and went into the early morning hours of February 26, 2013.  Soft was drinking and socializing with some friends and the victim at the friends’ house in McLaughlin.  Soft and another person got into a fight, and when Soft knocked the person to the ground, the victim intervened and began pushing/punching Soft in an effort to break up the fight.  Eventually, Soft was sitting down in the corner of the room.  The victim then took a couple of steps back, and Soft got to his feet, pulled a knife from his pocket and stabbed the victim in the stomach.  The victim fell to the floor and then retreated to the kitchen.

The investigation was conducted by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Standing Rock Agency.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Jay Miller prosecuted the case.

Soft was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service to begin serving his sentence.