A husband and wife have been charged in connection with the death of a two-year-old girl who was murdered at a housing complex operated by the
Yankton Sioux Tribe of
South Dakota.
Taylor Cournoyer, 21, and his wife, Laurie Cournoyer, 28, are the first people charged under a state law that requires people to report a child's death within six hours.
The couple allegedly waited more than a day and a half before notifying authorities of the death of RieLee Lovell.
Lovell was a relative of Laurie Cournoyer's. She died sometime before July 4. An 11-year-old boy, also a relative, is being held in connection with the girl's death.
The Cournoyers lived at a tribal housing complex that's located on state land.
Neither the tribe nor the nearby city of Wagner can exercise criminal jurisdiction there.
Get the Story:
Court papers reveal neighbor children saw body hours before 911 call
(The Sioux Falls Argus Leader 7/13)
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