MADISON, S.D. (KFGO) – Two South Dakota men have been sentenced to prison, including one for life, after pleading guilty to shooting at officers during a high-speed pursuit last July.
40-year-old James Lanpher, Jr. of Sioux Falls, and 45-year-old Bonner Juel of Harrisburg were sentenced Wednesday in Lake County Circuit Court.
South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley said the Highway Patrol tried to stop the men in a vehicle Lanpher was driving, but Lanpher didn’t stop and the pursuit began.
The chase began in Minnehaha County north of Sioux Falls and ended in Madison in Lake County.
Jackley said, during the pursuit, Lanpher used a rifle to fire a shot at officers.
“This was a dangerous incident for the law enforcement officers responding, and thankfully, no one was injured,” Jackley said. “This is another example of the dangerous situations that law enforcement officers face while protecting the rest of us.”
Lanpher pleaded guilty to two counts of aggravated assault on an officer and admitted to being a habitual offender. He received life in prison for each count.
Juel pleaded guilty to one count of aggravated assault on an officer, and one count of taking a controlled substance. He was sentenced to 25 years in prison for the assault charge and five years for the drug charge. Those sentences will be served consecutively.
The South Dakota Highway Patrol, the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation, Madison Police Department, Lake County Sheriff’s Office, and Moody County Sheriff’s Office were part of the pursuit and investigation.
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