South Dakota Supreme Court

The South Dakota Capitol is reflected in Capitol Lake. (John Hult/South Dakota Searchlight)

Legislator’s conflict of interest puts meaning of ‘indirect’ under microscope

BY: - September 1, 2023

What does “indirect” mean? The question has been at the forefront of political discourse in South Dakota for weeks after former Sen. Jessica Castleberry, R-Rapid City, was found to have accepted over $500,000 in allegedly illegal indirect benefits from state government while serving as a state legislator. The state constitution prohibits legislators from being interested […]

South Dakota Chief Justice Steven Jensen gestures as he participates in oral arguments with other state Supreme Court justices on March 23, 2023, in Brookings. (David Bordewyk/South Dakota Newspaper Association)

Drug dealer asks Supreme Court to overturn conviction tied to former roommate’s testimony

BY: - August 31, 2023

A failure to inform jurors about a key witness’ immunity from prosecution unfairly tainted a drug dealer’s chance for a fair trial, his defense attorney told the South Dakota Supreme Court on Thursday in Pierre.  A jury found Todd W. Stevens, of Brookings, guilty of six drug-related counts at his trial one year ago. Stevens […]

The South Dakota Supreme Court chamber at the state Capitol in Pierre. (Joshua Haiar/South Dakota Searchlight)

Former lawyer with felony conviction asks Supreme Court for reinstatement

BY: - August 30, 2023

A Rapid City attorney who admitted to felony tax evasion in 2017 wants the South Dakota Supreme Court to reinstate him as a member of the State Bar. Kenneth Orrock was Bennett County state’s attorney before being charged in federal court for failing to collect and remit payroll taxes from 2011 through 2015. The charges […]

The entrance to the South Dakota Supreme Court at the state Capitol in Pierre. (Joshua Haiar/South Dakota Searchlight)

Convicted rapist asks state Supreme Court for a new trial over alleged misconduct

BY: - August 30, 2023

A Spearfish man found guilty of raping an underage girl wants the South Dakota Supreme Court to grant him a new trial over what his lawyer calls police and prosecutorial misconduct. Scott Rudloff, 45, was convicted of three counts of first-degree rape against an 11-year-old girl and given 30 years on each count. Rudloff maintained […]

Kevin Costner holds an American flag in a scene from the 1990 film "Dances With Wolves," which was filmed in South Dakota. (Tig Productions/Getty Images)

Court: Kevin Costner may need to pay off South Dakota sculptor

BY: - August 3, 2023

Actor Kevin Costner may end up on the hook to pay a South Dakota sculptor for her work after a state Supreme Court decision in her favor. In 1994, the movie star commissioned Rapid City artist Peggy Detmers to create bronze statues of buffalo and Lakota warriors for a planned Deadwood resort dubbed “The Dunbar,” […]

The entrance to the South Dakota Supreme Court at the state Capitol in Pierre. (Joshua Haiar/South Dakota Searchlight)

Supreme Court: Lie detector tests too faulty to influence criminal sentencing

BY: - July 28, 2023

A Sioux Falls judge was right to bar the use of polygraph test results in a sentencing for a 2020 robbery and shooting death. That was the conclusion of the South Dakota Supreme Court this week in the case of Raymond Banks. The 22-year-old is serving a 60-year prison sentence for manslaughter in the death […]

South Dakota Supreme Court Justice Janine Kern gestures as she participates in oral arguments with other justices on March 23, 2023, in Brookings. (David Bordewyk/South Dakota Newspaper Association)

South Dakota Supreme Court: ‘Stand your ground’ law not retroactive

BY: - July 14, 2023

Less than 24 hours into his first visit to Sioux Falls, Minnesota native Ramon Deron Smith shot and killed Larry Carr Jr. and wounded two others.  A little over two years later, a state law took effect that lets those charged with a crime of violence make a self-defense claim before a trial – and […]

An equal justice statue sits outside the doors of the Minnehaha County Courthouse in Sioux Falls. (John Hult/South Dakota Searchlight)

Rising caseloads lead to first new magistrate position for Sioux Falls area in 20 years

BY: - June 19, 2023

The Second Circuit, serving Minnehaha and Lincoln counties, handles over one-third of the state’s court cases, according to Second Circuit Presiding Judge Robin Houwman. The growth of the Sioux Falls metro area, adding nearly 50,000 residents to Minnehaha and over 40,000 to Lincoln since 2000, has led to a rising caseload — with Houwman expecting […]

Amir Beaudion Jr. appears in court on Jan. 28, 2020, at the Lincoln County Courthouse in Canton. Beaudion is charged with first degree murder in the death of Pasqalina Esen Badi. (Photo by Abigail Dollins, reused with permission from the Argus Leader)

Death penalty dispute could go to state Supreme Court

BY: - May 18, 2023

Prosecutors in Lincoln County want the state Supreme Court to decide if it’s constitutional to seek the death penalty for a man defense attorneys say is intellectually disabled. Second Circuit Presiding Judge Robin Houwman ruled in late April that the state’s standards for intellectual disability do not comport closely enough with medical standards to pass […]

South Dakota Supreme Court Justice Janine Kern gestures as she participates in oral arguments with other justices on March 23, 2023, in Brookings. (David Bordewyk/South Dakota Newspaper Association)

Court documents outline cause of shuttered child porn investigation of T. Denny Sanford

BY: - April 27, 2023

Nearly four years ago, detectives in South Dakota launched an investigation to determine if the state’s richest man had shared or received child pornography through email. One year ago, then-Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg issued a statement declaring that T. Denny Sanford had committed “no prosecutable offenses within the district of South Dakota.” On Thursday, after […]

South Dakota Supreme Court Justice Janine Kern speaks during oral arguments March 22, 2023, in Brookings. Also pictured are Justice Scott Myren, left, and Chief Justice Steven Jensen. (Dave Bordewyk/South Dakota Newspaper Association)

Supreme Court: Release T. Denny Sanford court records

BY: - April 6, 2023

Court records ought to be released to the public that could finally shed light on why the property of South Dakota’s richest man was searched as part of a child pornography investigation, the South Dakota Supreme Court ruled on Thursday. It’s the second loss in a row at the state’s high court for T. Denny […]

South Dakota Chief Justice Steven Jensen gestures as he participates in oral arguments with other state Supreme Court justices on March 23, 2023, in Brookings. (David Bordewyk/South Dakota Newspaper Association)

Limits, application of South Dakota ‘stand your ground’ law debated before Supreme Court

BY: - March 24, 2023

BROOKINGS — In 2019, Minnesota native Ramon Deron Smith killed a man and wounded two others in a Sioux Falls parking lot during his first visit to the city.  He kept shooting as his targets fled across a busy urban thoroughfare. After doing so, he drove back to Minneapolis, shaved his head, ditched the vehicle […]