Mark Milk, Freed Early by Kristi Noem's Commutation, Charged in Death of 14-Year-Old Niece McKenna Wendel

The Charges

Federal prosecutors in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Iowa filed charges against Mark Milk on Wednesday, June 18, according to CBS News and Law & Crime. The indictment includes five counts: possession with intent to distribute cocaine resulting in death, a separate possession with intent to distribute count, transportation of a minor with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity, and two counts of conspiring to conceal evidence related to an official proceeding.

McKenna Wendel was reported missing March 13, 2026, and last seen alive in Sioux Falls in the early hours of March 14. Her body was found six days later, on March 19, in a rural area outside Brookings, South Dakota, roughly 55 miles north of Sioux Falls, according to Mitchell Now.

"This is a horrific case," FBI Special Agent Gene Kowel said at a Thursday press conference in Sioux City, Iowa. "There are no cases that we investigate that are more heart-wrenching and more tragic than the ones that involve children or the death of a child."

The indictment states that Milk distributed cocaine on or about March 14, the last day Wendel was seen alive, and that her death "resulted from the use of the controlled substance defendant possessed with the intent to distribute and distributed," according to the court document cited by CBS News.

The Second Suspect

Jon Rogness, 38, of Brookings, is charged with conspiracy to conceal evidence and accessory after the fact, according to the indictment obtained by Law & Crime. Prosecutors allege Rogness took possession of drugs after the fact and conspired to hide items connected to Wendel's transportation, disappearance, and death. Rogness was already serving time at the South Dakota State Penitentiary on a 2008 manslaughter conviction, per Mitchell Now.

U.S. Attorney Ron Parsons for the Northern District of Iowa said all charged conduct occurred within his district, and that the counts filed were "the most serious, readily provable" charges available.

Noem's Role

Milk was sentenced in 1994 after pleading guilty to manslaughter for the October 1993 stabbing death of Shawn Peneaux in Winner, South Dakota. Peneaux had knife wounds to his chest, side, back, and face; Milk allegedly kicked him repeatedly in the head before leaving him to die, according to Mitchell Now. The original grand jury indictment included first-degree murder, but a plea deal reduced the conviction to manslaughter.

In February 2023, while serving as South Dakota governor, Noem commuted Milk's life sentence, restructuring it to 240 years and making him eligible for parole, according to CBS News and Mitchell Now. The parole board unanimously approved his release in June 2024.

One of the people who spoke in favor of Milk at that June 2024 hearing, according to both Mitchell Now and the NY Post, was McKenna Wendel herself.

Noem is no longer governor. She served as Secretary of Homeland Security before being removed from that post, and as of March 2026, she holds the position of U.S. Special Envoy to the Shield of the Americas, according to the NY Post.

South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley said in a late-March news conference that the commutation decision was entirely Noem's. "Under the constitution, it's a determination of the governor to make a commutation or parole decision," Jackley said, adding that case documents were sealed. He noted he was not attorney general at the time the commutation was processed.

The Fair Concern About Clemency

People who were convicted as teenagers, served nearly 30 years without a major disciplinary record, and have community support can present as genuinely rehabilitated. Parole boards exist precisely to make those calls. Milk had served roughly 29 years when Noem acted, and his niece, the eventual victim, was among those who advocated for him. Governors grant clemency regularly, and the system is designed to allow it. The question of whether this particular commutation was reckless differs from whether clemency as a tool is wrong.

Prosecutors say Milk was distributing cocaine to a 14-year-old and allegedly transporting her for sexual abuse less than a year after his parole was approved. Milk was arrested on March 17 for driving while impaired and evading police, two days before Wendel's body was found, and remains jailed on that charge, per Mitchell Now.

What Remains Unknown

Authorities confirmed an autopsy was conducted but have not released findings, citing Justice Department policy on active investigations, according to CBS News. The cause and manner of Wendel's death have not been officially disclosed. No attorneys were listed in court records for either Milk or Rogness as of the CBS News report dated June 19, 2026.

Wendel was raised by her grandparents, who are Rosebud Sioux Tribe members. Her obituary, cited by CBS News, described her as having a "vibrant personality and a zest for life" who loved animals and the sounds of powwow drums.

What the state's review process for Noem's 2023 commutation actually looked like remains unclear. South Dakota AG Jackley said the relevant documents remain sealed. Whether those records will be made public and whether the commutation process included any substantive risk assessment have not been answered as of June 21, 2026.