Eagle Butte Man Sentenced For Possession With Intent To Distribute A Controlled Substance

United States Attorney Brendan V. Johnson announced that an Eagle Butte, South Dakota, man convicted of Possession with Intent to Distribute a Controlled Substance was sentenced on August 29, 2013, by U.S. District Judge Roberto A. Lange. 

Phillip LaBatte, age 24, was sentenced to time served, which had been approximately 7 months; 2 years of supervised release; and a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund. 

LaBatte was indicted by a federal grand jury on October 16, 2012, and pled guilty to Count III of the Indictment on June 13, 2013. 

The conviction stems from the investigation of burglaries in Eagle Butte.  While investigating the burglaries, a Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe detective learned that several juveniles committed the burglaries and that some of the stolen items could be located at LaBatte’s residence.  The detective obtained a tribal search warrant for LaBatte’s residence.  When law enforcement executed the search warrant, they found, among other things, at least 250 grams, but less than 1 kilogram, of marijuana along with a scale, rolling papers, and a grinder. 

The investigation was conducted by the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe Law Enforcement Division and the Northern Plains Safe Trails Drug Enforcement Task Force.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Kathryn N. Rich prosecuted the case. 

LaBatte was immediately turned over to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service due to two outstanding warrants in North Dakota on unrelated charges.