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Man charged in triple homicide pleads guilty but mentally ill

A man is accused of killing three people and injuring two more during a domestic violence shooting at this house in Scotland, SD.
South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigations
Police tape outside a Scotland home where three people were killed in November of 2021. The suspect in the homicides recently changes his plea.

A Scotland man charged in a triple homicide has changed his plea.

Francis Lange was accused of killing his former girlfriend and two other people at a home in Scotland in November of 2021. Two others were injured in the incident, including a 5-year-old girl.

He previously pleaded not guilty to three counts of murder. On Wednesday, he changed his plea to guilty but mentally ill in a Bon Homme County courthouse.

Attorney General Marty Jackley said Lange still faces the max penalty of three mandatory life sentences. However, the plea allows for further mental treatment.

Josh Chilson is the news director at South Dakota Public Broadcasting. A Florence, S.D. native, Josh graduated with a journalism degree from South Dakota State University. He has worked as a newspaper reporter and videographer, and most recently as managing editor for Dakota News Now. Josh is based out of SDPB's Sioux Falls studio.
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