The small town of Mitchell, South Dakota, has been the center of national attention after sexual assault allegations were made against members of the high school baseball team.
The six boys involved range in ages 17 to 19 and are accused of raping two other players during a June tournament. The victims are described as being 16-year-old males. The sexual assault allegations allegedly took place in June four hours away in Rapid City, South Dakota, where a baseball tournament was taking place.
The teens belong to the Mitchell Legion Baseball Program according to Pennington County state’s attorney Lara Roetzel. In August, all six were indicted on charges including second-degree rape and aiding and abetting second-degree rape. All six boys have since pleaded not guilty to the charges. The teens were later released on bail in August.
Despite some of the teens being under 18 years or younger, all are being tried as adults. Under South Dakota law anyone who is 16 or older and is charged with a Class 1 or Class 2 felony will be tried as an adult. However, juveniles can petition to have their case transferred to juvenile court.
The charges against the teens have garnered national headlines because if found guilty, each of the accused could face up to 50 years in prison and/or a $50,000 fine per charge.
The case has also garnered criticism because it poses the question of whether the assailants were victims themselves of previous hazing that involved sexual assault, as the small-town community has a history of similar behavior, according to the prosecutor's office.
The defense has tried to minimize the claims against the teenage boys calling their conduct during the tournament an act of a “team hazing ritual” and not a sexual assault.
State attorney Roetzel has pushed back against the hazing defense while recognizing the deep-seated culture that may have influenced the assault. “It’s very important for people to understand that I do not think that this was an isolated incident within the Mitchell Legion Baseball Team. I do believe that this was a culture of repeated behavior that had been going on for possibly years.”
Roetzel also highlights the unique culture of the community may have led the victims to feel unsupported by its community members. The teens, members of the baseball teams, and other adults involved in the community are believed to have ties with the local government, including law enforcement officials. When the charges were first brought about, a local area judge allowed one of the accused teens to go back to school, the same school where one of the victims attended. However, the judge did order the accused to stay at least 30 feet away from the victim.
This case is especially notable because the history of hazing could prompt further investigations into past behaviors that led up to the alleged assault at the tournament.
The statute of limitations for second-degree rape in South Dakota is seven years, which would allow investigators to look back into previous cases. Ironically, the youths accused in this case could potentially have been victims in past, unreported cases, given the baseball team's alleged history of hazing. This complication could keep past victims from speaking up or reporting their own experiences of abuse, especially if they later went on to become abusers themselves.
The state’s attorney has not ruled out the possibility of additional charges being brought forward against adults who were present at the baseball tournament this past June. Currently, no charges have been brought against any adults involved.
The six teens are scheduled to have their next hearing in early February.
