Michael Lovejoy, Jr., a 43-year-old man from Fort Thompson, South Dakota, has been sentenced for failing to register as a sex offender. The sentencing was delivered by Chief Judge Roberto A. Lange at the U.S. District Court on November 25, 2025.
Lovejoy received a sentence of time served in custody through January 2, 2026, which is approximately ten months in federal prison. He will also serve five years of supervised release and must pay a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.
A federal grand jury indicted Lovejoy in June 2025. He pleaded guilty on August 14, 2025.
In August 2005, Lovejoy was convicted of Third Degree Rape in Pennington County, South Dakota. This conviction requires him to register as a sex offender and update his registration within three business days if he moves or changes employment or student status. In November 2024, while beginning supervised release, he updated his registration to show residence in Fort Thompson but did not actually live there afterward. An arrest warrant was issued and he was arrested in Fort Thompson on March 13, 2025.
The case is part of Project Safe Childhood, an initiative started by the Department of Justice in May 2006 to address child sexual exploitation and abuse nationwide. The program is led by U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the DOJ’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Unit, which focus on prosecuting offenders and rescuing victims. More information about Project Safe Childhood can be found at https://www.justice.gov/psc.
The United States Marshals Service investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kimberly Zachrison prosecuted it.
“Lovejoy was immediately remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.”
