Stand Your Ground
South Dakota Supreme Court: ‘Stand your ground’ law not retroactive
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 […]
‘Stand your ground’ law alters criminal justice landscape
This story is one of two exploring the impact of South Dakota’s “stand your ground” laws. The companion article explores specific examples of how defendants are using the laws to make self-defense claims. — South Dakota lawmakers talked of home invasions and mass shootings when they strengthened self-defense protections in recent years, but the new […]
Bar fights, neighbor disputes, playground justice: How ‘stand your ground’ plays out in court
This story is one of two exploring the impact of South Dakota’s “stand your ground” laws. The companion article explores the ways prosecutors, politicians and defense lawyers view the laws. — James Bialota Jr. believes he was defending himself when he took down a 12-year-old boy on a Rapid City playground. Thanks to two recent […]
Nine months and counting: Slain transgender woman’s family frustrated by wait for justice
Prosecutors in Rapid City know who shot and killed Acey Morrison. They’ve known since Aug. 21, 2022. That was the day the transgender member of the Oglala Sioux Tribe was shot in the mobile home of a man she’d met for an ill-fated hookup attempt that began on a dating app. What they don’t know […]
Limits, application of South Dakota ‘stand your ground’ law debated before Supreme Court
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 […]