A judge has sentenced a former South Dakota legislative candidate from Mellette County to 10 years in the state penitentiary for sexually assaulting his adoptive daughter.
The South Dakota Attorney General’s Office says Joel Koskan plead guilty to two felony counts of incest today (April 11, 2023) in Sixth Circuit Court in Pierre. Each incest charge carried a maximum sentence of five years in prison. Judge Margo Northrup ordered the sentences to be served consecutively. The defendant also was ordered to pay more than $20,000 in fines.
Koskan’s adoptive daughter spoke briefly in Court saying she wanted what was right and that Koskan should be punished.
Koskan waived his right to delay his sentencing and was immediately remanded to the custody of the Mellette County Sheriff’s Office to begin his prison sentence.
Koskan is from Wood in Mellette County. Both parties agreed to hold the sentencing in Hughes County for scheduling purposes.
Agencies involved in this case included the Attorney General’s Office and its State Division of Criminal Investigation.
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