The South Dakota House will use the Nov 9th special session on redistricting to hold preliminary discussions on whether to impeach Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg for a car crash last year that killed a pedestrian.
Republican Speaker Spencer Gosch said Saturday that enough House members had signed onto the idea to move forward after the State Senate had a similar response earlier in the week, but it doesn’t mean there will be impeachment proceedings.
Instead, the House will consider a separate resolution forming a select committee to review evidence from the accident investigation and determine if articles of impeachment should be drafted.
If articles of impeachment are drawn up and approved by the House, Ravnsborg would have a trial before the State Senate.
Ravnsborg hit and killed 55-year old Joe Boever of Highmore on Sept 12 as Boever walked along a highway near the town. The attorney general eventually pleaded No Contest to a pair of misdemeanors – illegal lane change and using a cellphone while driving.
He received no jail time and just a combined fine of $1,000 dollars, but was also ordered to pay more than $3,700 in court costs.
Governor Kristi Noem, a Republican like Ravnsborg, has repeatedly called on Ravnsborg to resign and has strongly supported impeachment, but the attorney general says he won’t resign and feels he can still perform his duties despite his convictions.