South Dakota House impeaches attorney general over deadly 2020 crash
The South Dakota House on Tuesday impeached state Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg (R) over a fatal 2020 crash in which he killed a man, Joseph Boever, while he walked alongside a highway. The historic vote, 36-31, removes Ravnsborg from office, at least until the conclusion of his Senate trial, which can't begin until May. Two-thirds of senators would have to vote to permanently remove him from office.
South Dakota has never even tried to impeach an elected official, and its only impeachment inquiry was of a circuit judge in 2017, The Associated Press reports. "I believe impeachment should be reserved only for grave and exceptional circumstances, and I believe this is one," state Rep. Will Mortenson (R) told his colleagues in the House on Tuesday.
"The House of Representatives voted and I respect the process," Ravnsborg said in a statement after the vote, "but I look forward to the Senate trial where I believe I will be vindicated." He pleaded no contest last year to two traffic misdemeanor charges from the crash, serving no jail time, and he argued against his impeachment in letters to lawmakers on Monday.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
"In a few hours, your vote will set a precedent for years to come," Ravnsborg wrote. "No state has ever impeached an elected official for a traffic accident." He argued that having killed a man with his car does not "impede my ability to perform the functions" of attorney general, and accused Gov. Kristi Noem (R) of using the "unfortunate circumstances of a man being killed in a traffic accident to make her political moves," backing his impeachment because of his investigation into her behavior.
Ravnsborg "wants to make this about me, to distract House members, when the question before them is whether he should be the state's top law enforcement officer," Noem tweeted before the vote. "He killed an innocent man, lied about the events of that evening, and abused his office to cover it up."
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
NY attorney general asks public for ICE raid footageSpeed Read Rep. Dan Goldman claims ICE wrongly detained four US citizens in the Canal Street raid and held them for a whole day without charges
-
Trump’s huge ballroom to replace razed East WingSpeed Read The White House’s east wing is being torn down amid ballroom construction
-
Trump expands boat strikes to Pacific, killing 5 moreSpeed Read The US military destroyed two more alleged drug smuggling boats in international waters
-
Trump demands millions from his administrationSpeed Read The president has requested $230 million in compensation from the Justice Department for previous federal investigations
-
Trump nominee in limbo after racist texts leakSpeed Read Paul Ingrassia lost Republican support following the exposure of past racist text messages
-
Trump begins East Wing demolition for ballroomspeed read The president’s new construction will cost $250 million
-
Appeals court clears Trump’s Portland troop deploymentSpeed Read A divided federal appeals court ruled that President Trump can send the National Guard to Portland
-
Millions turn out for anti-Trump ‘No Kings’ ralliesSpeed Read An estimated 7 million people participated, 2 million more than at the first ‘No Kings’ protest in June



