Keystone teen dies from gunshot

Keystone is usually in the spotlight this time of year for tourism but a tragic incident spotlighted Keystone in another  way.On the night of June 13 law enforcement was called out to a residence in the 400 block of 1st Street in Keystone. When they arrived on scene they discovered that 19-year-old Ty Scott had been shot. He died at the scene.The South Dakota Highway Patrol, National Park Service and Pennington County Sheriff’s Office responded to the situation.A bullet from a .45 caliber reportedly struck Scott in the chest area. The alleged shooter was Maxton Pfeiffer, 18.Pfeiffer, Scott, and four other people were  passing around a .38-caliber handgun when Pfeiffer picked up another handgun and pointed it in the direction of his companions. According to the Rapid City Journal, defense attorney Dana Hanna described the alleged offense as an “accidental shooting.” Sandi McLain, of Big Thunder Gold Mine, said the thought of the shooter was that the chamber of the gun was empty. It was an unfortunate incident. She also told the Prevailer that it was something that shouldn’t have happened as they were just messing around.McLain said the police were still talking to people up to 10:30 p.m. The investigation lasted up to two and a half hours.Pfeiffer was arrested and charged with first degree manslaughter. The maximum sentence carries a sentence of life in prison. According to the Journal, Scott’s death was the first homicide case in Pennington County — outside Rapid City — this year. Pfeiffer was not asked to enter a plea and appeared through video link from the county jail.A magistrate judge granted the state’s request for a $10,000 cash-only bond last Friday. He was ordered to stay away from family members of the victim and any potential witnesses.Judge Scott Bogue asked Pfeiffer’s parents to provide oversight as he continues to live with them in Rapid City. Pfeiffer will return to court for a preliminary hearing on June 29.Scott was a 2017 graduate of Hill City High School. His mother is the director of the Keystone library, Robin Scott. She said Ty loved his brother and best friend Cody as well as his sister Lexie Jenni. He also loved  cousins, friends, family, sports and music. “He was very sensible, sweet, loving, fun loving,  conscientious, worried too much about life, innocent and always jovial,” Robin Scott said.Scott had many relatives and friends in Keystone and the Keystone/Hill City area. He worked at Holiday Inn Express in Keystone and studied computer science at Western Dakota Technical Institute.A memorial has been established at First Interstate Bank in Hill City.The Keystone library in the Keystone Community Center opened on June 20 thanks to volunteers.