Daunte Gage Smith
Introduction
Daunte Gage Smith, a 22-year-old man from Leake County, Mississippi, pleaded guilty in federal court on November 10, 2026, to the sexual abuse of a minor, in a case arising from conduct on the Choctaw Indian Reservation . According to court documents, Smith engaged in sexual contact with a female minor who was older than 12 years of age but younger than 16 at the time of the offence, with the conduct beginning in March 2025 and continuing until March 2026 . Smith is scheduled to be sentenced on February 26, 2027, and faces up to fifteen years in prison followed by at least five years of federal supervision .
Background Information
Court records show the criminal conduct occurred in the Redwater Community of the Choctaw Indian Reservation, beginning in March 2025 and continuing until March 2026 — a year-long course of abuse of a child who fell within the federal protective age range for the charge . The Justice Department did not release the victim’s name, consistent with its practice of protecting minor victims of sexual offences . The case was investigated by the Choctaw Police Department and the FBI, and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kevin J. Payne and Brian K. Burns together with Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Kalleigh McCoy .
The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation
Pleaded guilty; sentencing pending. Smith admitted sexually abusing a young teenage girl on the Choctaw Indian Reservation over a year-long period.
Smith’s guilty plea, entered November 10, 2026, in Mississippi federal court, admitted the sexual abuse of a minor — a charge carrying up to fifteen years in prison and at least five years of federal supervised release once a federal district judge determines the sentence . The plea covered conduct spanning March 2025 to March 2026 against a girl aged between 12 and 16, according to the court documents cited in the announcement . U.S. Attorney Baxter Kruger and Robert Eikhoff, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Jackson Office, made the announcement of the plea . Because Smith has pleaded guilty but not yet been sentenced, the conviction record is not yet final; he remains entitled to have his sentence determined by a federal district judge after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors .
Public Reaction and Consequences
The announcement of the plea by the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the FBI’s Jackson office put the case on the public record with the victim unnamed and the tribal-community setting explicit: the abuse occurred within the Redwater Community of the Choctaw Indian Reservation, and the investigating agencies were the Choctaw Police Department and the FBI . The plea resolves the question of guilt by admission and moves the case to the sentencing phase, where the statutory range — up to fifteen years plus at least five years of supervised release — frames what Smith now faces .
Current Status
Smith pleaded guilty on November 10, 2026, and is awaiting sentencing, which is scheduled for February 26, 2027 . Upon sentencing he faces up to fifteen years in prison and at least five years of federal supervision, with the sentence to be determined by a federal district judge under the Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors .
Impact on Their Career/Life
Smith’s admitted sexual abuse of a child now stands as a federal felony conviction awaiting sentence, with the February 2027 hearing set to fix a prison term of up to fifteen years and a supervised-release term of at least five years . At 22, he enters sentencing as a convicted child sex offender in the federal system, with the investigation and prosecution record jointly maintained by the Choctaw Police Department, the FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s Office .
Sources
- GSM Global News, “Leake County Man Pleads Guilty to Sexual Abuse of a Minor, Faces Up to 15 Years,” November 10, 2026 — source