Minneapolis Man Indicted for Committing Sexual Abuse Against a Child

MINNEAPOLIS—Earlier today in federal court, a Minneapolis man was indicted for committing aggravated sexual abuse against a child under the age of 12. The indictment charges Joseph Valerian Parshall, age 31, with two counts of aggravated sexual abuse against a child under the age of 12. The indictment alleges that on February 1 and July 27, 2011, Parshall committed a sexual act against the child.

According to a law enforcement affidavit filed in the case, on July 27, the Red Lake Tribal Police Department was informed of the sexual abuse of the child. Parshall, who was arrested on August 31, 2011, in Minneapolis, by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Fugitive Task Force, remains in custody.

If convicted, Parshall faces a potential maximum penalty of life in prison on each count, with a mandatory minimum penalty of 30 years. All sentences will be determined by a federal district court judge. This case is the result of an investigation by the Red Lake Tribal Police Department and the FBI. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Clifford B. Wardlaw.

Because the Red Lake Indian Reservation is a federal jurisdiction reservation, some of the crimes that occur there are investigated by the FBI in conjunction with the Red Lake Tribal Police Department. Those cases are prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

An indictment is a determination by a grand jury that there is probable cause to believe that offenses have been committed by a defendant. A defendant, of course, is presumed innocent until he or she pleads guilty or is proven guilty at trial.