Garretts sentenced crop insurance, relief fraud

While the fate of the 140-year-old family farm is grim, Monday night decided the fates of father and son James and Levi Garrett, who a federal jury convicted of making false statements to collect crop insurance following a six-day trial and 6.5-hour deliberation in October.

James will end up serving 18 months with two years of supervised release, whereas Levi gets 24 months and two years supervised release. Following the Garretts' October conviction, the two faced 30 years in prison and $250,000 in fines.

The Garretts' Oct. 31, 2021 indictment reported the two were charged for making false statements and convincing the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation that they planted more acres of soybeans (count 1, against James), sunflowers (counts 2 and 5, against James; count 3, against Levi) and corn (count 4, against James) than they actually had on occasions between 2017 and 2020. The indictment also reported the two defrauded the government of almost $3 million, including $1 million in coronavirus relief.

Levi quit attending SDSU after a year to return to the family ranch due to his father's injuries. Upon entering the courtroom, James used a cane as well as needing a hand. James' deteriorating health played into the court's decision on a number of fronts, first and foremost where he may end up. While that still remains to be determined, it is likely that he'll wind up at the Federal Medical Center in Rochester, Minnesota.

While James and Levi sat silently, aside to affirmingly nod when asked a direct question, the same could not be said for their representation. The father son combo was represented by a similar duo, Rapid City-based attorneys Steven Beardsley and his son Mike.

Mike was up and active, especially during the cross examination of special agent Justin Voorhees. Assistant U.S. attorney Cameron Cook stayed behind the podium to lay out the evidence. Cook had Voorhees explain how Levi requested they not record a February 2022 interview where he doubled down on the idea that he planted what he did in 2018 and 2019. Mike Beardsley on the other hand decided to ask Judge Roberto Lange if he was allowed to move about the courtroom. This strategy did not faze the special agent. Mike Beardsley was going after count four of the charges, which involved the 47.5-insured acres of corn planted on June 17, 2019.

He said that James requested a notice of wrongdoing, showcasing a supposed lack of intent.

Some of the most critical evidence ended up coming on a yellow legal pad. Sioux Nation LLC in Fort Pierre uses one to keep track of seed deliveries. By showcasing that the seed was bought past their plant deadline, the prosecutors demonstrated that the Garretts had no intention of having a successful crop yield. The prosecution also argued the Garretts' lack of irrigation would make it hard for anything to grow. They also brought up the spray drift complaint from the summer of 2018. A field of sunflower seeds was sprayed down with paraquat dichloride, by doing so killing any chance the crop had at growing.

As a last-ditch plea, Mike Beardsley attempted to persuade the court to allow the Garretts to remain out of custody. He said by doing so, they would still be able to produce on their ranch. Lange denied the request, continuing onto the sentencing. Furthermore, Nebraska-based realtor Ron Stock confirmed with the Capital Journal that he now has possession of the land after the Garretts didn't make timely payments. Upon sentencing, Lange made note of the dozens of character letters written by those in the community.

The Garretts are now tasked to self-report, with no definitive date set. The Capital Journal reached out to Beardsley, Jensen & Lee for their plans to self-report and did not hear back by deadline. The Capital Journal also approached the attorneys outside the courthouse to see if they plan on appealing the decision. Mike Beardsley declined to comment.