South Dakota Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg was impeached Tuesday over a 2020 car crash in which he ran over and killed a pedestrian.
The state House voted 36–31 to impeach Ravnsborg, a Republican, during a special session, rendering him the first South Dakota official to be impeached in the state’s history. His fate will be determined by the state Senate, which is tasked with conducting a trial over whether he should be booted from office.
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“Your decision could overturn an election and set forth a dangerous precedent for all South Dakota elected officials,” he wrote in a letter to state lawmakers Monday night. “As such, I respectfully ask that you adopt the House Investigation Committees’ majority report and declare this matter complete and final and let the healing process continue.”
The impeachment is at odds with a recommendation from a special investigative committee that spent months investigating Ravnsborg’s conduct surrounding the 2020 incident. The committee released its recommendation on March 28 and voted along party lines in a 6-2 vote, deciding that his actions did not rise to the level of an impeachable offense.
Last year, Ravnsborg pleaded no contest to two misdemeanor charges for using a phone while driving and making an illegal lane change during the incident. He avoided jail time and paid over $4,000 in fines for his actions and reached an undisclosed settlement with the victim’s widow. Prosecutors acknowledged he was not using his cellphone at the time he struck 55-year-old Joe Boever, according to his letter.
“First and foremost, I am very sorry Joe Boever lost his life in this accident. I am sorry to the entire family for the loss of their loved one. They have had to deal with the pain, anger, and sadness of this accident,” he said in a statement at the time. “Joe’s death weighs heavily on me and always will.”
Ravnsborg claims he did not know what he struck on Sept. 12, 2020, but officials determined he killed Boever, who had been walking near the shoulder of the highway at night, the Argus Leader reported. He alerted authorities to Boever’s death the following morning after discovering the body.
Ravnsborg was first elected to the attorney general post in 2018. He felt compelled to finish out his first term as attorney general because a resignation would “impede” his ability to carry out the functions of the attorney general, including his investigation into Gov. Kristi Noem, according to Monday’s letter. The governor expressed outrage and called for him to resign last year after more details about the crash came to light. Noem backed the impeachment effort against him.
Today, the House of Representatives did the right thing for the people of South Dakota and for Joe Boever’s family.
— Governor Kristi Noem (@govkristinoem) April 12, 2022
His office is currently investigating Noem for her involvement in her daughter’s bid to acquire a real estate appraisal license and her use of state airplanes for out-of-state political travel, per the Daily Beast. He has accused her of “interfering” in the Legislature’s proceedings.
“My office has multiple ongoing investigations into the Governor’s alleged activities and people associated with her,” he wrote in the letter. “Despite her procedural interference and bias towards me, I believe she has rights and should have the ability to let the process prevail regarding these open investigations regarding her and her administration.”
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The state Senate trial is expected to take place no sooner than May 2, per the state Constitution, which requires a 20-day delay after the initial impeachment vote in the House. If convicted, he will be permanently removed from office.
