Sentencing in child’s murder postponed, again

RAPID CITY – The sentencing hearing for the accused accomplice in the murder of Kylen Shangreaux, 2 at the time of his death, has been postponed, again.

Kylen’s life was taken in the most brutal of ways. The young boy was allegedly beaten to death by his birth mother, Katrina Shangreaux in Porcupine, on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in the early morning hours of July 28, 2016.

Katrina Shangreaux was sentenced to 40 years in prison for second degree murder in July, 2018. In the home at the time of the beating death was Kylen’s maternal grandmother, Sonya Dubray. Dubray has pleaded guilty to helping to cover up the crime scene, clean up the blood of the boy, all before calling authorities hours after the murder: accessory to second degree murder.

Aside from having bite marks, thermal injuries to the head (cigarette burns), injuries caused by a studded belt, and injuries to 70 percent of his body, Kylen had also had defensive wounds to the back of his hands, according to statements made in court. Angela Shangreaux said she believes that Kylen had tried to protect himself and fought to live.

Angela Shangreaux, Kylen’s paternal aunt, had custody of the boy for 15 months prior to his death. During this time, the pair were able to form a bond like that of a mother and son. Kylen called her mom.

The sentencing hearing for Sonya Dubray’s role in the murder and cover up was scheduled for Monday, Aug. 12 at 3 p.m. but was postponed just before noon on the day of the hearing. This after Angela Shangreaux had asked her family and supporters to come to the Andrew W. Bogue Federal Building near downtown Rapid City for the hearing.

The reason for the postponement was due to flooding on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation which allegedly prevented Dubray from traveling to Rapid City. This was the second sentencing hearing that has been canceled since Dubray had pleaded guilty in 2018. Shangreaux said the first hearing was postponed due to a medical procedure for Dubray.

Each time these sentencing hearings have come up, has caused a great deal of stress and anxiety for Shangreaux. She has to relive the tragedy over and over, along with her own children who became Kylen’s brothers during his short life.

“I think I’m in a place where I go into a shock each time these hearings come up. I think it’s a way of preserving myself, so I’m not a mess,” she said. “I just function. I talked to this lady who specializes in grief. She said this is my way of preserving myself and staying above the waters, so your not totally consumed by it.”

Shangreaux says her sons (ages 12 and 15) have been feeling the loss and gravity of the experience also. “Things can be very fragile with them. I think I’ve had to shut my part down. It doesn’t mean that I don’t miss him or cry for him, but I’m just not the way I was before,” she said. Her sons have been in trauma counseling for the last year.

The eventual sentencing will bring some kind of closure for Angela and her family, but she feels justice will be served when other families in similar situations will be spared the grief she has endured for the last three years. This includes the Oglala Sioux Tribe adopted Kylen’s Law. This is a law written to protect children that she would like to see adopted by the tribe and other tribes.

“I don’t think that they stalled it (Kylen’s Law) on purpose. They go into those meetings and they have their agenda and something comes up and they get veered off in another direction,” she said. “As a tribe, they need to look as his death and be like we have to do something here. They removed the judges but that doesn’t get rid of the problem. I feel like the tribe removed the judges and was just kind of done with it.”

Shangreaux says there is still a problem with the CPS in Pine Ridge and she continues to be contacted by families with similar situations of children being taken from homes and placed in possible dangerous situations.

Angela Shangreaux doesn’t know the sentencing guidelines for Dubray’s case. She has no idea of what the sentence will be. As a grieving parent, she hopes the maximum sentence is given for a boy who she considered to be her son.

At the time of the publishing of this article, no third date has been set for sentencing.

(Contact Native Sun News Today Correspondent Richie Richards at richie4175@gmail.com)

 

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