FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Friday, Jan. 31, 2025

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

PIERRE, S.D. – South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley announces that a Wagner youth, whose case had earlier been transferred to adult court, was sentenced Friday to 20 years in prison after earlier pleading guilty to one count of First Degree Manslaughter in connection with the stabbing death of a 16-year-old male in 2023.

Gabe Montgomery, 16, was sentenced in Charles Mix County Circuit Court. He was given a 50-year sentence in prison with 30 years suspended.

“We hope this sentence provides some closure for the victim’s family,” said Attorney General Jackley. “Because of the seriousness of the charge, it was appropriate this juvenile be tried as an adult.”

The incident happened April 10, 2023, during a fight that occurred in Wagner. The defendant will be housed in a Department of Corrections’ juvenile placement center until he reaches the age of 18 where he can then be moved into the adult prison.

Agencies that investigated the case were the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI) and Wagner Police Department. The South Dakota Attorney General’s Office and the Charles Mix County State’s Attorney’s Office prosecuted the case.

                                                                       -30-