SIOUX FALLS, S.D. — A former Hartford, S.D., chiropractor and former coach accused of having sex with a teen patient more than 100 times will spend a decade in prison after admitting to possessing child sexual abuse material.
A Minnehaha County judge on Tuesday, Jan. 7, sentenced Joel Martens, of Hartford, to serve 10 years in prison with credit for 44 days already spent in custody.
As part of a plea agreement, Martens pleaded guilty in September to 12 counts of sexual contact with a child under 18 years old by a person in a position of authority, one count of possessing child sexual abuse material and one count of sexual exploitation of a minor.
In exchange, two counts of second-degree rape and one count of possessing child sexual abuse material were dismissed.
According to court documents, an investigation into Martens began in July 2023 when a student-athlete reported to the Minnehaha County Sheriff’s Office that she had been raped by Martens for the past eight months.
The victim told authorities that Martens had first made sexual contact with her while she was doing pull-ups during an athletics training session in May 2021, but that she didn’t say anything because she was “shocked and confused.”
In March 2022, the victim began seeing Martens again for treatment of an athletic injury. The victim told police Martens had sexually abused her and asked her not to tell anyone because “it could ruin his life and career.”
Court documents accuse Martens of scheduling chiropractic appointments with the victim when his clinic was otherwise empty. The two allegedly had sex more than 100 times, according to the victim.
A review of phone records between Martens and the victim corroborates the victim’s accusations, authorities said.
Martens was arrested in July 2023 and later released on a $250,000 bond.
