Joel Koskan, who ran for SD Senate, pleads guilty to 2 counts of felony incest
PIERRE — Joel Koskan, who ran unsuccessfully for state Senate in 2022 and days before the election was arrested on charges relating to child abuse, pleaded guilty to two counts of felony incest Tuesday morning.
He was sentenced in a Hughes County court room to 10 years in the South Dakota State Penitentiary.
"This is the first part of the healing process," Judge Margo Northrup said during the hearing.
Koskan, 44, originally faced felony child abuse charges for acts that allegedly took place between October 2014 and October 2016, according to court documents filed in November. He exposed his victim, a now 20-year-old woman, to "sexual grooming behaviors."
In a probable caused statement reviewed by the Argus Leader prior to its sealing in November, the victim was Koskan's family member and had been allegedly sexually abused by Koskan since the time she was a child. Koskan also allegedly made references to GPS tracking and video monitoring the victim's activities.
A special agent with the South Dakota Department of Criminal Investigation recommended charges of rape, sexual contact with a child younger than 16 and aggravated incest.
As part of Tuesday's hearing, as part of a new plea agreement, Koskan would plea guilty to the two counts of felony incest, pay a $10,000 fine for each count, court fees and provide restitution for the victim included in the original plea agreement, rejected by Northrup in March.
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The new charges alleged Koskan had raped the victim and performed oral sex between April 2 and April 16, 2022 at his home in Wood.
Out of safety and privacy concerns, the Argus Leader does not name victims of sexual assault without their permission.
Brent Kempema, the Assistant South Dakota Attorney General, said the victim had been pressured by Koskan and his family not to report the sexual abuse. She had first tried to report the years of abuse in 2016, but was unable to because of the trauma it caused her.
In May 2022, the victim "summon(ed) the courage to reach out to a friend," whose father was a retired agent with Department of Criminal Investigation to report further abuse.
"From then on, the pressure was on," Kempema said, describing Koskan in an act of retaliation had allegedly reported the car she drove stolen.
She had been pressured to "put the family above herself" and to not cooperate with law enforcement during the investigation, Kempema said. She had realized the people she was trying to protect did not have her best interest at heart.
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It was this realization, as well as a understanding after Northrup rejected the original plea agreement, that it wasn't the victim's decision if Koskan went to prison or not, which allowed the victim to finally talk about the abuse.
Dressed in a black dress with yellow and red polka-dots and tan high top sneakers, the victim told the full courtroom Tuesday, "what I want is the truth. What happened isn't my fault."
She told Northrup that the circuit court judge knew what needed to be done when it came to sentencing in between shuddering breaths and tears. She had realized in the time away from her family that not sending Koskan to prison was meant for the family's comfort, contrasting what Clint Sargent, Koskan's lawyer, said minutes before that the victim did not want him incarcerated.
"The defendant's gamble didn't pay off," Kempema said before asking the court for a sentence of five years for each charge plus restitution.
Koskan, dressed in a navy suit and baby blue tie, told the room he was sorry for the pain and suffering his actions caused.
More: South Dakota state Senate candidate Joel Koskan charged with child abuse, documents say
Sargent, Koskan's lawyer, said the defendant would be a good candidate for community supervision and out patient treatment.
Northrup, in her sentencing decision, explained it is society's duty to protect children, especially foster children. Koskan took advantage of a child, she said. She then looked at the victim, who had been crying off and on during the 30-minute hearing.
"I hope you can be proud of the fact that you stood up in courage," Northrup said, adding the victim was a survivor. "You deserve to be loved, cherished and respected by a family."
When Northrup read Koskan's sentence, he looked back at his crying family with a frown on his face.
He was remanded into the custody of the Department of Corrections at the end of the hearing.
Following the hearing, Marty Jackley, the South Dakota Attorney General, issued a statement.
“Justice has been served in this case, because the victim overcame extraordinary conditions to cooperate with the prosecution,” said Jackley. “We applaud the victim for her courage and praise the difficult work of the investigators and prosecutors.”
This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: Joel Koskan pleads guilty to 2 counts of felony incest
