Chelsey Little Sentenced in South Dakota Meth Conspiracy

A Valentine, Nebraska woman has been locked up for her role in a sprawling methamphetamine distribution ring that pumped more than 350 grams of the drug into South Dakota communities. Chelsey Sherri Little, a/k/a Chelsey Long Crow, age 22, was sentenced to 51 months in federal prison on December 12, 2016, after admitting her part in the conspiracy.

U.S. District Judge Roberto A. Lange handed down the sentence after Little pled guilty to one count of Conspiracy to Distribute a Controlled Substance. The charge stems from a drug network that operated between January 2015 and March 2016, during which Little and others knowingly trafficked methamphetamine across tribal and rural areas of the District of South Dakota.

According to court records, Little received bulk quantities of meth from suppliers who knew she would redistribute the drug. She, in turn, supplied others who also intended to push the substance further into neighborhoods, reservations, and backroads. Federal prosecutors emphasized that it was reasonably foreseeable to Little that at least 350 grams of meth would be distributed over the course of the conspiracy — a threshold that triggers harsher penalties under federal law.

Little was indicted by a federal grand jury on March 15, 2016, and formally entered her guilty plea on September 27, 2016. In addition to 51 months behind bars, she will serve 3 years of supervised release upon release and must pay a $500 fine and a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.

The case was aggressively pursued by the Northern Plains Safe Trails Drug Enforcement Task Force and the Rosebud Sioux Tribe Law Enforcement Services, agencies that have intensified efforts to stem the flow of synthetic drugs through tribal lands. Assistant U.S. Attorney SaraBeth Donovan prosecuted the case, calling it a clear example of how small-scale distributors feed a much larger epidemic.

Following the sentencing, Little was immediately taken into custody by the U.S. Marshals Service. Federal authorities say the conviction is part of a broader crackdown on cross-state drug networks exploiting rural and tribal jurisdictions with limited law enforcement resources.