(Fremont County, WY) – The sentencing hearing for Arapahoe woman Kandace Sitting Eagle (aka Van Fleet) was held yesterday, September 24, in the U.S. District Court of Cheyenne before the Honorable Judge Alan B. Johnson
The charges and sentence breakdowns are as follows:
- Assault Resulting in Serious Bodily Injury – 121 months, 5 years supervised release, $100 special assessment
- Assault with a Dangerous Weapon – 120 months, 3 years supervised release, $100 special assessment
- Aggravated Child Abuse – 121 months, 5 years supervised release, $100 special assessment
All Counts, including the supervised release, are to be served concurrently, and Kandace was also ordered to pay $33,622.93 in restitution.
Kandace was charged with assault resulting in serious bodily injury, assault with a dangerous weapon, and aggravated child abuse back in late 2023, after law enforcement discovered a juvenile in her and husband Truman’s care who had been being kept from school, was locked in his room/deprived of food for long periods of time, and had been physically assaulted on multiple occasions.
(She was also originally charged with kidnapping in addition to the other charges, but that Count was later “terminated with prejudice by the United States,” according to federal Court filings.)
After a Federal jury found her guilty of the charges back in June, Kandace’s sentencing hearing was rescheduled multiple times leading up to yesterday’s date.
Truman was sentenced to 108 months imprisonment and ordered to pay $33,622.93 in restitution back in early August.
Kandace’s mother, Karen Rider, faces a federal felony tampering with a witness charge in relation to the case, after investigators reportedly found that she coached the siblings of the victim to not speak to law enforcement during investigation interviews.
Her jury trial was originally set for August 26 and then later rescheduled for October 15, but now a change of plea hearing is currently set for October 4.
County 10 will provide updates on Rider’s case, which can be viewed here, and you can view all of the coverage of the Sitting Eagle’s cases here.