RAPID CITY, S.D. – A 17-year-old who pleaded guilty to manslaughter has been sentenced to 40-years in prison with 10 years suspended.
James Hight was sentenced by Judge Craig Pfeifle.
Hight was originally charged with second-degree murder in adult court but struck a plea deal with the state in January and admitted to shooting 19-year-old Jayden Russell in the head in November of 2021.
According to the state, four young people — including Hight and Russell- were in a bedroom at Hight’s home on Tamarack Drive in Rapid City when Russell was killed. The group was drinking and smoking marijuana. One of the witnesses said just Hight handled the revolver in a game of Russian roulette, and another said both Hight and Russell handled it.
First-degree manslaughter has a potential of life in prison, but it’s unconstitutional for a juvenile to be sentenced to life without the possibility of parole.
