Brookings man sentenced to prison for child abuse

A Brookings man is sentenced to the state penitentiary for 7 years for abuse or cruelty to a minor.

Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg says 23-year old Allen Theodore Smith pleaded guilty in October to abuse or cruelty to a minor less than seven years old. He was originally indicted on one count of aggravated battery of an infant and one count of abuse or cruelty to a minor.

The charges stem from a time when Smith lived with the mother of the victim.

Judge Jon Erickson also ordered Smith to pay restitution to the victim’s family and to have no contact with the victim or the victim’s family.

Cook is already being held in the Jameson Annex at the South Dakota State Penitentiary in Sioux Falls and appeared via video conferencing at his sentencing hearing.

This case was investigated by the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation, along with the Brookings Police Department. The case was prosecuted by the South Dakota Attorney General’s Office.

Smith was facing a maximum of 15 years in prison.