South Dakota

Lawyer who ‘flunked retirement’ returns to former firm, will try not to work as hard

At first, when he retired in 2011 after decades in practice, James E. “Jim” McMahon told friends he didn’t miss his work at all. But within a year the truth was apparent. “I flunked. I just flunked retirement,” the 62-year-old South Dakota lawyer told the Argus Leader. Fortunately, he was…

Oct 11, 2013 8:15 PM CDT

Rapper’s Instagram posts lead to ‘largest seizure of illegal guns’ in NYC history

This week the New York Police Department and Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced what they’re calling the “largest seizure of illegal guns in city history.” So what tipped them off to the 254 firearms seized and led to 19 arrests? There were undercover buys and gumshoe investigative work. But police were…

Aug 22, 2013 3:45 PM CDT

South Dakota lures lawyers to rural areas with annual subsidies

Rural law practice will become more lucrative for some South Dakota lawyers under a new law passed last month. Lawyers participating in the pilot program will be paid $12,000 a year to work in rural areas, the New York Times reports. The lawyer will have to make a five-year commitment,…

Apr 9, 2013 12:43 PM CDT

Financial incentives proposed for lawyers who relocate to state’s rural areas

Rural lawyers are so scarce in South Dakota that many counties located in the center of the state have fewer than four lawyers. And at least six counties do not have a single lawyer working in them. In response, South Dakota Supreme Court Justice David E. Gilbertson is pushing a…

Feb 12, 2013 11:22 PM CST

‘Pink Slime’ Beef Producers Sue ABC, Diane Sawyer, USDA Microbiologist and Others, Seek $1.2B

A group of companies that produce lean finely textured beef–called “pink slime” by some critics–has filed a defamation suit over news coverage that included the nickname and, plaintiff Beef Products Inc. alleges, falsely portrayed the meat as unhealthy. Winston & Strawn’s chairman, Dan Webb, represents BPI concerning the 257-page lawsuit,…

Sep 13, 2012 4:22 PM CDT

Top Federal Prosecutor in South Dakota Takes Over Review of 56 Tribal Reservation Homicides From FBI

Stepping into the middle of a long-simmering tension between the Oglala Lakota Nation and the Federal Bureau of Investigation that has ignited strong feelings for decades, the top federal prosecutor in South Dakota is reviewing 56 homicides on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. U.S. Attorney Brendan Johnson has taken over…

Aug 7, 2012 10:14 AM CDT

Death Penalty Is Sentence for Two Brothers Convicted in Separate Crimes, 25 Years Apart

Brothers Roger and Rodney Berget are a rarity in the criminal justice system. Both were condemned to die for murders. There are at least three other cases in which brothers got the death penalty, the Associated Press reports. But the Bergets are unusual because they were sentenced to death for…

May 30, 2012 2:56 PM CDT

South Dakota Governor Signs Law Banning Courts from Enforcing Religious Codes

South Dakota Gov. Dennis Daugaard has signed a bill designed to prevent courts from applying Islamic law. The revised measure bars courts and governmental agencies from enforcing any provisions of any religious code, according to Gavel to Gavel, a newsletter of the National Center for State Courts. The bill was…

Mar 13, 2012 3:48 PM CDT

Tribe Seeks Injunction to Curb Alcohol Sales Near Reservation

An Indian tribe in South Dakota is asking a federal judge to issue an injunction as part of its suit against companies that make and sell beer in a Nebraska border town. The Oglala Sioux Tribe has amended its $500 million suit to ask the judge to limit beer sales…

Feb 23, 2012 2:04 PM CST

Inmate Seeking Execution Says He Wants to Kill Again; Judge Mulls Aggravation Arguments

Updated: Accused of beating a 63-year-old South Dakota prison guard to death in a failed escape attempt in April, Eric Robert pleaded guilty and said he wants to be executed. And a judge agreed that death was the only appropriate punishment, reports the Argus Leader. He’s ready to kill again,…

Oct 26, 2011 11:29 PM CDT

Give Rural South Dakota a Chance, State Bar Urges Lawyers

Sixty-five percent of South Dakota’s lawyers are headquartered in four cities in the state, a statistic that concerns the state bar. Under a new initiative called Project Rural Practice, the State Bar Association of South Dakota hopes to lure lawyers to areas of the state with the greatest legal need,…

Sep 9, 2011 12:01 PM CDT

Friendlier State Legislatures Lead to a Rise in Anti-Abortion Legislation

South Dakota may be one of the least populous states in the union, but at 77,000 square miles, it’s the 17th-largest. In that vast expanse, there is only one abortion provider—a doctor who flies in once a week from Minnesota to the Planned Parenthood clinic in Sioux Falls. Time and…

Aug 1, 2011 7:20 AM CDT

Defendant Loses Appeal Based on Judge’s ‘Go Native’ Remark

Corrected: A Native American has lost his bid for a new sentence because of the judge’s “go native” remark. The South Dakota Supreme Court said the judge’s comment, used to describe the defendant’s pattern of behavior when drinking alcohol, was “ill chosen” but there was no bias. The June 22…

Jun 28, 2011 1:28 PM CDT

Disciplined for Rudeness, Judge Says He Can’t Afford Probation, Will Retire and Return to Practice

Disciplined for repeated rudeness to lawyers, court staff and others, a South Dakota judge says he can’t afford the nearly $175,000 that a six-month suspension and subsequent probation could cost him. So Circuit Judge A.P. “Pete” Fuller of Rapid City will retire and return to law practice, reports the Associated…

Jun 20, 2011 5:54 PM CDT

Judge Who Acted with ‘Unconscionable Arrogance’ Must Retire or Face Suspension

A 68-year-old judge who flipped the bird, used vulgar language and made insensitive racial and sexist jokes must retire or face a six-month unpaid suspension, the South Dakota Supreme Court has ruled. If Judge A.P. “Pete” Fuller of Rapid City accepts the suspension, he will also be placed on probation…

May 20, 2011 4:24 PM CDT