South Dakota AG Ravnsborg, who allegedly fatally struck man with car, escapes felony charges
South Dakota’s high legislation enforcement official averted felony charges for allegedly placing and killing a man with his automobile over the summer time, when he initially stated he believed he had hit an animal, equivalent to a deer, officers lately introduced.
South Dakota Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg was charged Thursday with three misdemeanors and will resist 30 days in jail and as much as a $500 high-quality on every cost: careless driving, driving out of his lane and working a motorized vehicle whereas on his cellphone.
Ravnsborg stated he was grateful that the authorized system assumes his innocence, whereas relations of the man killed within the collision, 55-year-old Joseph Boever, stated they have been upset however not shocked that the lawyer normal was solely going through misdemeanor charges.
COUSIN OF SOUTH DAKOTA MAN KILLED IN CRASH INVOLVING STATE AG SEEKING ANSWERS, JUSTICE
Hyde County Deputy State’s Attorney Emily Sovell stated the proof merely did not help felony charges of vehicular murder or manslaughter, which may have meant years of jail time. She famous Ravnsborg wasn’t intoxicated and {that a} manslaughter cost would have required the state to indicate he “consciously and unjustifiably” disregarded a considerable threat.
Jason Ravnsborg, South Dakota lawyer normal, speaks throughout a information convention outdoors the Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., on Monday, Sept. 9, 2019. ( Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg by way of Getty Images)
(Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg by way of Getty Images)
“At best, his conduct was negligent, which is insufficient to bring criminal charges in South Dakota,” stated Beadle County State’s Attorney Michael Moore, who helped deal with the case.
Secretary of Public Safety Craig Price, who led the crash investigation, has stated Ravnsborg was distracted earlier than he drove onto the shoulder of a darkened stretch of freeway however has not supplied further particulars. Boever was strolling on the aspect of the highway and displaying some sort of sunshine when Ravnsborg’s 2011 Ford Taurus hit him, in response to Price.
Ravnsborg launched a press release shortly after the crash saying his automobile “struck something that I believed to be a large animal (likely a deer).”
Ravnsborg stated he known as 911 and used the flashlight on his cellphone to survey a ditch close to the world “but couldn’t see anything.”
911 CALL IN SOUTH DAKOTA AG’S ALLEGED FATAL CRASH RELEASED
“I looked around the vehicle in the dark and saw nothing to indicate what I had hit,” he stated within the assertion. “All I could see were pieces of my vehicle laying on and around the roadway.”
When Sheriff Mike Volek arrived, he, too, “surveyed the damage” to the crime scene and to Ravnsborg’s automobile, the state AG stated.
“At no time did either of us suspect that I had been involved in an accident with a person,” his assertion continued. Ravnsborg, whose automobile was too broken to drive, borrowed Volek’s private automobile to get dwelling, he stated.
Ravnsborg described how he and his chief of workers have been driving to return Volek’s automobile the morning after the scene once they stopped on the accident scene.
“As I walked along the shoulder of the road I discovered the body of Mr. Boever in the grass just off the roadway,” he wrote. “[I]t was apparent that Mr. Boever was deceased.”
Boever’s household had questioned Ravnsborg’s account and expressed frustration as 5 months handed whereas they waited for a charging choice.
COUSIN OF SOUTH DAKOTA MAN KILLED IN CRASH INVOLVING STATE AG SEEKING ANSWERS, JUSTICE
Victor Nemec, left, and Nick Nemec pose outdoors Nick Nemec’s dwelling in Holabird, S.D., Friday, Jan. 29, 2021. (AP Photo/Stephen Groves)
Nick Nemec, Boever’s cousin, stated Thursday he was “disappointed, but not surprised” on the charges. He known as South Dakota’s manslaughter legislation “weak” and stated he anticipated his household to take civil motion in opposition to Ravnsborg.
“I was afraid the charge would be something on the order of crossing the white line,” Nemec stated. “And that’s exactly what the charge was.”
Ravnsborg stated in a press release, “I appreciate, more than ever, that the presumption of innocence placed within our legal system continues to work.”
He added that he couldn’t think about the “pain and loss” of Boever’s household.
Moore, the state’s lawyer, stated the misdemeanor charges have been the “right decision” however that he did not be ok with it.
“Obviously when a person dies, we want to know what happened. But we’re limited by the investigation and by the facts,” he stated. “And we can’t compel someone to tell us. I mean, there’s just nowhere else to go.”
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Despite the cost accusing Ravnsborg of being on his cellphone, he was not truly on his system on the time of the crash, authorities stated. They stated cellphone data confirmed he had been utilizing his cellphone about one minute earlier than.
Prosecutors decided from cellphone data that Ravnsborg walked by Boever’s physique whereas he walked the crash scene with his cellphone flashlight. But Sovell famous that it was a “very dark night” with no lighting on the highway and that there was no proof that both Ravnsborg or the sheriff who responded to the crash noticed Boever’s physique.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
