Justia South Dakota Supreme Court Opinion Summaries

Employee was injured when he ran from a co-worker on the job site after tricking that co-worker. Employee sought workers’ compensation benefits. Employer and Insurer denied workers’ compensation benefits, asserting that Employee’s injury did not “arise out of” or “in the course of” his employment because Employer specifically prohibited horseplay by its employees. Employee petitioned for a hearing. The Department of Labor concluded that Employee’s injury arose “out of” his employment because, but for his work with Employer” he would not have been at the job site where he was injured, but that the injury did not occur “in the course of” the employment. The circuit court affirmed. The Supreme Court reversed in part, affirmed in part, and remanded for an award of benefits, holding that the Department (1) correctly concluded that Employee’s injury arose “out of” the employment; and (2) erred when it did not consider the effect of the mandatory lull in Employee’s work when it determined that the injury did not occur “in the course of” his employment. Because Employee’s act of horseplay was not a substantial deviation from his employment, it occurred “in the course of the employment.” View "Petrik v. JJ Concrete, Inc." on Justia Law

Pro se appellant Robert Mercer submitted a request to the South Dakota Attorney General’s Office under S.D. Codified Laws 1-27-37 seeking the release of the Division of Criminal Investigation’s (DCI) records related to the investigation of Richard Benda’s death. Mercer conceded that S.D. Codified Laws 1-27-1.5(5) precluded public release of the documents but requested the death investigation records because Benda was a public figure and because news reports “raised questions about the death.” The Attorney General’s Office stated that it would make the death investigation records available if certain conditions were met. Because Mercer was unable to fulfill the conditions, the Attorney General’s Office denied Mercer’s request for disclosure. The office of Hearing Examiners (OHE) upheld the Attorney General’s office’s denial of Mercer’s request. The circuit court affirmed. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that “the public’s significant and legitimate interest” did not warrant access to the death investigation records because Benda’s death investigation records were exempt from disclosure under section 1-27-1.5(5). View "Mercer v. S.D. Attorney General Office" on Justia Law

Patricia Wheeler was employed by Cinna Bakers, Westside Casino, and Get ’N’ Go and held the three separate jobs concurrently. Wheeler was injured in the course of her employment with Cinna Bakers, which rendered her unable to work at any of her jobs. Cinna Bakers and its insurance company (together, Cinna Bakers) accepted Wheeler’s injuries as compensable but disputed whether all three of Wheeler’s concurrent employments should not be aggregated to calculate her Average Weekly Wage (AWW). An administrative law judge determined that only Wheeler’s wage from Cinna Bakers could be utilized to calculate her AWW. The circuit court affirmed. The Supreme Court reversed, holding (1) South Dakota law allows for the aggregation of wages when an injury at one employment renders the worker incapable of performing that employee’s other concurrently held employments; and (2) the Court is persuaded to adopt the “growing minority rule,” which allows for aggregation of wages from all concurrently held employments, not just similar or related employments. View "Wheeler v. Cinna Bakers LLC" on Justia Law

Linda Golden owned a fifty percent mineral interest that was within a “spacing unit” in which Luff Exploration Company desired to drill for oil. Golden declined Luff’s offer to lease her mineral interest or participate with Luff in the cost of the drilling. After Luff decided to proceed with drilling, it filed a petition with the South Dakota Board of Minerals and Environment (Board) seeking to “compulsory pool” the mineral interests in the spacing unit and seeking “risk compensation” from Golden. The Board issued a compulsory pooling order and found that Golden should pay 100 percent risk compensation. The circuit court affirmed. The Supreme Court reversed, holding that the Board failed to comply with the plain language of S.D. Codified Laws 45-9-32 by granting a pooling order that contained no provision specifying a time and manner for Golden to elect to participate in the well by paying her proportionate share of the cost of drilling, equipping, and operating the well. View "In re Petition of Luff Exploration Co." on Justia Law

Aaron Terveen was an employee for the South Dakota Department of Transportation. When returning from a work-related trip, Terveen was involved in a one-automobile accident on a dead-end road just off the highway. The Department of Labor awarded workers’ compensation benefits, determining that Terveen sustained an injury arising out of and in the course of his employment. The circuit court reversed, concluding that Terveen’s accident and resulting injuries did not arise out of and in the course of his employment. The Supreme Court affirmed the circuit court’s denial of coverage, holding that Terveen had taken a severable side-trip when he was injured, and the side-trip did not arise of or occur in the course of his employment. View "Terveen v. S.D. Dep’t of Transp." on Justia Law

Brett Jarman applied to the Law Enforcement Officers Standards and Training Commission for law enforcement certification seeking certification of qualification as a candidate for county sheriff. After a hearing, the Commission denied the application, concluding that Jarman did not meet the minimum qualifications for law enforcement certification due to lack of good moral character. The circuit court affirmed the Commission’s decision. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) although Jarman engaged in conduct that a jury determined to be not criminal and the resulting legal actions were expunged, the Commission properly acted within its authority in denying Jarman’s certification based on that conduct; and (2) the Commission’s findings were established by a preponderance of the evidence. View "In re Certifiability of Jarmon" on Justia Law

The property at issue in this case was transferred to Deadwood Stage Run, LLC (Developer) in early 2006. On December 18, 2006, the City of Deadwood created Tax Incremental District Number Eight (the District) out of the property. After the City and Developer entered into a contract for private development of the District, Lawrence County sent its 2007 assessment of the property reflecting the most recent assessment of $934,520. The Developer sought a declaratory judgment prospectively establishing the 2006 assessed valuation of the District as the appropriate tax incremental base rather than the 2007 assessed valuation, arguing that the Department of Revenue incorrectly calculated the tax incremental base for the District in the City by using the County’s November 1, 2006 annual assessment rather than the Department’s August 25, 2006 annual Certificate of Assessment, Equalization, and Levy. The circuit court granted summary judgment in favor of the Department. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that, in calculating the tax incremental base for a tax incremental district, the Department is statutorily required to use the last aggregate assessed valuation certified by the Department prior to the date of creation of the tax incremental district. View "Deadwood Stage Run, LLC v. Dep’t of Revenue" on Justia Law

After Paul Lockenour was arrested, police officers found drugs and drug paraphernalia in Lockenour’s recreational vehicle (RV). Lockenour pleaded guilty to distribution of a controlled substance. The State then brought a civil forfeiture action against Lockenour’s RV. The value of the RV was $54,000, and the approximate street value of the drugs found in Lockenour’s possession was between $1,600 and $2,000. Lockenour asserted as an affirmative defense that the forfeiture of the TV was disproportionate to his crime. The circuit court granted summary judgment for the State, concluding that the forfeiture was not grossly disproportionate or unconstitutionally excessive. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that, based on the entire circumstances surrounding the offense that led to the forfeiture, the forfeiture of Lockenour’s TV was not grossly disproportionate to the gravity of Lockenour’s offense. View "State v. 2011 White Forest River XLR Toy Hauler" on Justia Law

In 2000, while working at Homestake Mining Company, Michael Martz injured his shoulder. Martz was paid workers’ compensation benefits. In 2002, while working for McLaughlin Sawmill (Hills Materials), Martz injured the same shoulder. Hills Materials began paying benefits but, several years later, denied liability for further benefits. Martz petitioned the Department of Labor, contending that both employers were liable for benefits. Homestake was granted summary judgment on statute of limitations grounds. In regards Hills Materials, the Department rejected Martz’s argument that promissory estoppel precluded Hills Materials from denying liability and concluded that Martz failed to satisfy his burden of showing that the 2002 injury was a “major contributing cause” of his current condition. The circuit court affirmed. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) Hills Materials was not estopped from denying liability for Martz’s current condition and need for treatment; and (2) Martz failed to establish that Hills Materials was liable for benefits where he did not prove a sufficient causal relationship between his 2002 injury and his current condition and need for treatment. View "Martz v. Hills Materials" on Justia Law

Eastern Farmers Cooperative (EFC) applied for and was granted a conditional use permit to build and operate an agronomy facility on sixty acres of land near Colton, South Dakota. Appellants’ residence was directly across a county road from the proposed facility. Appellants appealed. The Minnehaha County Commission upheld the decision to grant the conditional use permit to EFC, as did the circuit court. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) the County Commission’s decision to uphold the approval of the permit was not arbitrary and capricious in violation of Appellants’ due process rights; and (2) any alleged due process concerns arising out of a certain commissioner’s participation in the County Commission’s action were remedied by invalidating that commissioner’s vote. View "Hanson v. Minnehaha County Comm'n" on Justia Law