The SD Supreme Court handed down two decisions this morning.
Both of these decisions are 3-2 decisions, with Justice Kern authoring a
dissenting opinion in which Justice DeVaney concurs. Chief Justice Jensen authors the majority
opinion in each case, in which Retired Chief Justice Gilbertson concurs:
1) Application of 180 speedy trial issue resolved for State;
2) Restrictive Covenants in Deadwood resolved in favor of short
term rentals during Sturgis Rally
Summaries follows:
STATE v. LANGEN, 2021 S.D. 36: The sole issue in this appeal
relates to the State’s failure to comply with the 180 day speedy trial
requirement found in SDCL 23A-44-5.1 in connection with the arrest of the
Defendant in Minnehaha County. The
Minnehaha County arrest triggered a probation violation proceeding in Aurora
County, with Defendant being sentenced to 4 years in prison by the Aurora
County Court. As a result of
Defendant’s incarceration, he was unable to present himself for a UA, resulting
in an arrest warrant being issued in Minnehaha County. In regard to the Minnehaha County case,
Defendant requested a 180 speedy trial rule dismissal. The trial judge ruled for the State on the
basis that the delay was caused by the Defendant’s “absence or
unavailability.” The resolution of this
issue involves the application of SDCL 23A-44-5.1(4)(d) and the obligation, if
any, on the Defendant to notify the Minnehaha County authorities that he is
incarcerated elsewhere in the state.
This case was submitted on the briefs to the Court on briefs
on April 20, 2020. Authorship of the
Court’s opinion was reassigned on February 19, 2021. The SD Supreme Court affirmed the lower court
in a 3-2 decision. The majority opinion
is authored by Chief Justice Jensen. Retired Chief Justice Gilbertson participated
in this decision, with his vote included in the 3 justice majority.
Justice Kern filed a dissenting opinion in which Justice
DeVaney concurred. Justice Kern’s
dissent is premised upon the application of the presumption found in SDCL
23A-44-5.1(5). From Justice Kern’s dissenting opinion:
[¶48.] Because the period of
delay during which Minnehaha County officials erroneously believed [Defendant]
was out of custody with a warrant pending was improperly excluded, prejudice to
[Defendant] is presumed. The case must
be dismissed unless the prosecution successfully rebuts this presumption. SDCL
23A-44-5.1(5).
WILSON v. MAYNARD, 2021 S.D. 37: The nature of this dispute and its resolution
is described in the opening paragraph of the opinion:
[¶1.] Rory
and Kristen Maynard (Maynards) built a home in a residential development near
Deadwood, South Dakota, and rented the home to short-term guests. The owners of
an adjacent property, Robert and Sharlene Wilson (Wilsons), sued Maynards
alleging that Maynards violated restrictive covenants limiting use of
properties in the development to “residential purposes.” The circuit court
granted summary judgment in favor of Maynards, holding that short-term rentals
were a residential purpose, and denied Wilsons’ request for injunctive relief.
We affirm.
The circumstances causing aggravation to the Plaintiffs can be
discerned in the 9th paragraph:
[¶9.]
Maynards rented the Property nine times in 2018. In 2019, they rented the
Property nearly every day between June and September. During the 2018 and 2019
Sturgis Motorcycle Rallies, they rented the Property to twelve guests at once;
and the Property has housed as many as twenty guests at a time. Maynards charge
$500 for weekday stays, $650 for weekend stays, and up to $1,200 per day during
the Sturgis Rally.
The trial court held that the short-term rentals were
permissible, not in violation of the covenants. This case was submitted on
briefs on November 16, 2019. The SD Supreme Court affirmed in a 3-2
decision. The Court’s opinion is
authored by Chief Justice Jensen, with Retired Chief Justice Gilbertson and
Retired Justice Konenkamp (sitting in lieu of Justice Salter) concurring.
Justice Kern filed a dissenting opinion, in which Justice
DeVaney concurs.
These decisions may be
accessed at
http://ujs.sd.gov/Supreme_Court/opinions.aspx .
