FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Thursday, July 18, 2024

Contact: Tony Mangan, Communications Director, 605-773-6878

PIERRE, S.D. – South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley announces that a Saratoga, Wyo., man has been sentenced to 55 years in prison after pleading guilty to shooting at a South Dakota Highway Patrol Trooper during an incident at the 2023 Sturgis Motorcycle Rally.

Wyatt James Fluty, 29, was sentenced Wednesday in Meade County Circuit Court. He was sentenced to 50 years in prison on one count of Attempted First Degree Murder (Law Enforcement) and five years in prison on one count of Commission of a Felony While Armed with a Firearm. The sentences will be served consecutively.

The incident occurred on Aug. 9, 2023 after law enforcement reported that Fluty was believed to have stolen a vehicle from Rawlings, Wyo., and was in possession of stolen firearms. Fluty was seen by a South Dakota Highway Patrol Trooper near Exit 32 in Sturgis.

When the trooper attempted to take Fluty into custody, the defendant tried to flee and fired two shots at the trooper. The trooper returned fire. Fluty then attempted to steal the trooper’s patrol vehicle.

Fluty was taken into the custody by the trooper and an off-duty Minnesota deputy sheriff. Fluty sustained minor injuries. The two law enforcement officers were not injured.

“This case is another example of how law enforcement officers put their lives on their line every day for the rest of us,” said Attorney General Jackley. “Thank you for the bravery shown by the trooper and the off-duty deputy sheriff.”

South Dakota’s Division of Criminal Investigation investigated the case with assistance from the Sturgis Police Department, Meade County Sheriff’s Office, and the South Dakota Highway Patrol.

The Attorney General’s Office and the Meade County State’s Attorney’s Office prosecuted the case.

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