Lower Brule Man Sentenced for Habitual Domestic Assault

PIERRE – In a brutal turn of justice, Isaac Goodface, 32, from Lower Brule, South Dakota, has been sentenced to four years in federal prison for two counts of Domestic Assault by an Habitual Offender.

The sentencing was announced by U.S. Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell on April 15, 2024, with Chief Judge Roberto A. Lange imposing the sentence.

Goodface’s transgressions were heinous. He physically assaulted his victim twice within the Lower Brule Sioux Indian Reservation in Lyman County. The first attack occurred in September 2022, where Goodface threw his victim to the ground, strangled her, and repeatedly struck her head and face. The second incident, in June 2023, involved striking the victim on the face and pointing a gun at her during an argument.

Prosecuted under the Major Crimes Act, federal statutes require certain violent crimes occurring in Indian Country to be handled in Federal court. Assistant U.S. Attorney Troy R. Morley led the prosecution of this case, which was investigated by the Bureau of Indian Affairs – Office of Justice Services, Lower Brule Agency.

The defendant, who changed his plea to guilty on November 30, 2023, was also ordered to pay a $200 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund and serve three years of supervised release after his prison term. Goodface has been immediately remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.

This sentence serves as a stark reminder of the impact of domestic violence in our communities and the justice system’s commitment to holding habitual offenders accountable.