Justia South Dakota Supreme Court Opinion Summaries

The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the circuit court determining that J. Clancy, Inc. had performed under a contract for renovations of a Spearfish hotel and that Khan Comfort, LLC had breached the contract by failing timely to make payments, holding that there was no error.J. Clancy brought this action alleging claims for nonpayment under a series of implied-in-fact contracts. Following a trial, the circuit court awarded Khan a judgment against J. Clancy for overpayment. The Supreme Court reversed, concluding that the parties had entered into an express contract for the renovations. After a remand, the circuit court found that J. Clancy had fully performed under the terms of the contract and that Khan had breached the contract. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) the circuit court's actions on remand were within the parameters of its decision-making authority; (2) the circuit court did not err in finding on remand that J. Clancy had fully performed; and (3) the record supported the court's findings of fact on damages. View "J. Clancy, Inc. v. Khan Comfort, LLC" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed Defendant's conviction of first-degree rape, in violation of S.D. Codified Laws 22-22-1(1), holding that the court did not err in denying Defendant's request to withdraw his guilty plea.Defendant pled guilty to sexual penetration of a victim less than thirteen years of age. After a change of plea hearing but prior to sentencing, Defendant unsuccessfully filed a letter asking the circuit court to withdraw his guilty plea and requesting substitute counsel. After denying both requests the court sentenced Defendant to 100 years in prison with fifteen years suspended. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) the trial court did not abuse its discretion in denying Defendant's request to withdraw his guilty plea; and (2) this Court declines to address Defendant's ineffective assistance of counsel claim on direct review. View "State v. Alvarez" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the circuit court convicting Defendant, after a jury trial, of two counts of first-degree rape, holding that the circuit court did not abuse its discretion in the way it handled Defendant's arraignment or in its evidentiary rulings and that misconduct that occurred during the State's closing rebuttal argument did not constitute prejudicial error.On appeal, Defendant claimed that his arraignment violated his due process rights and S.D. Codified Laws 23A-7-1 and that the circuit court abused its discretion in several of its evidentiary rulings. The Supreme Court disagreed and affirmed, holding (1) the challenged evidentiary rulings were without error and were not an abuse of discretion; and (2) while the prosecutor committed misconduct during closing argument, it was improbable that the prosecutor's misconduct altered the jury's verdict. View "State v. Hankins" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed the order of the circuit court affirming the decision of the Hanson County Drainage Board granting a drainage permit sought by James Paulson to clean out a pre-existing ditch, holding that Appellants were not entitled to relief on their allegations of error.On appeal, Appellants argued that the Board failed to follow the relevant approval procedures and that the Board abused its discretion by approving the drainage permit. The circuit court affirmed. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) the Board complied with the proper procedures for approving the permit; (2) the circuit court did not err in denying Appellants' request to present additional testimony; and (3) the circuit court did not err by denying Appellants' request to take judicial notice of an earlier proceeding. View "Little v. Hanson County Drainage Board" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court reversed the judgment of the circuit court in favor of Liberty Mutual Fire Insurance Company in this insurance dispute, holding that the circuit court improperly dismissed the complaint for failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted.An agent of Kaiser Trucking was in an automobile accident with Liberty Mutual's insured. The circuit court granted default judgment for Kaiser Trucking and its agent. After the judgments were returned unsatisfied, Kaiser and its agent brought this action against Liberty Mutual seeking indemnification of the judgments against its insured. Liberty Mutual filed a motion to dismiss under S.D. Codified Laws 15-6-12(b)(5), arguing that Plaintiffs failed to plead a condition precedent to coverage under the policy. The circuit court agreed and dismissed the complaint. The Supreme Court reversed, holding that Kaiser Trucking, Inc. was not required to plea satisfaction of conditions precedent in the relevant insurance policy sufficiently to state a claim upon which relief could be granted and avoid a Rule 12(b)(5) dismissal of its complaint. View "Kaiser Trucking, Inc. v. Liberty Mutual Fire Insurance Co." on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed in part and reversed in part the judgment of the circuit court granting a divorce to Husband and Wife on the grounds of irreconcilable differences, holding that the circuit court erred in part.On appeal, Husband raised challenges regarding issues involving child custody and support, the valuation and division of marital assets, and attorney fees. Wife appealed the circuit court's rulings regarding the grounds for divorce, property division and valuation, and attorney fees. The Supreme Court reversed in part, holding (1) the circuit court's findings were insufficient to support its conclusion that certain buy-out funds should be excluded from the marital estate and in setting the property aside as non-marital; and (2) the trial court erred by sua sponte ordering the production of the parties' tax returns post-divorce without seeking in put from the parties on the relevant considerations for a protective order. View "Dunham v. Sabers" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the circuit court denying Appellant's petition for habeas corpus, holding that the circuit court did not err in denying the petition after holding an evidentiary hearing.Appellant was convicted of three counts of first-degree rape and one count of sexual contact with a child under sixteen for raping and having sexual contact with his four-year-old autistic daughter. The conviction was affirmed on appeal. Appellant later filed a petition for habeas corpus alleging several instances of ineffective assistance of counsel. After a hearing, the circuit court denied the petition. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that Appellant failed to establish that his trial counsel provided ineffective assistance. View "Spaniol v. Young" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed in part and reversed in part the judgment of the circuit court in this action brought by Plaintiff to determine custody, child support, and shared parenting of the parties' child and on Defendant's counterclaim for breach of an implied contract and unjust enrichment, holding that the circuit court erred in part.In his counterclaim, Defendant argued that the parties had impliedly agreed that they would jointly own the marital home and that he would receive equity in the home acquired through his financial contributions toward the home mortgage. In response, Plaintiff claimed that she owned the home and that Defendant simply paid her rent while living there. The circuit court denied Defendant's claims, concluded that the parties' relationship was that of a landlord and tenant and awarded back rent, and determined shared child support and parenting issues. The Supreme Court reversed in part, holding that the circuit court (1) erred when it awarded Plaintiff back rent; (2) erred in determining the amount of back child support due; and (3) did not otherwise err or abuse its discretion. View "Murphey v. Pearson" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court held that the S.D. Codified Laws chapter 21-65 does not create a private right of action that survives a vulnerable adult's death and that a predicate theft conviction is not required to maintain an action authorized under S.D. Codified Laws 22-46-13.Plaintiff brought this action on behalf of Richard Hermanek's estate, claiming that Defendants, who previously served as Hermanek's attorneys-in-fact pursuant to a durable power of attorney (POA), breached their fiduciary duties under the POA and converted Hermanek's property to their own use. The district court certified a question of law addressing Defendants' claim that an action alleging abuse of a vulnerable adult does not survive the death of the adult at issue. The Supreme Court answered (1) a vulnerable adult or substitute petition has a private right of action for the financial exploitation of a vulnerable adult, but the private right of action cannot be commenced under chapter 21-65 after the vulnerable adult's death; and (2) financial exploitation remains actionable after a person's death under section 22-46-13, and a criminal conviction is not required as a predicate to a civil cause of action for exploitation. View "Hermanek-Peck v. Spry" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed Defendant's conviction for second-degree murder and aggravated battery of an infant, holding that the circuit court did not err during the proceedings below and that there was sufficient evidence to support the convictions.After a jury trial, Defendant was found guilty of second-degree murder and aggravated battery of an infant and sentenced to life imprisonment for the second-degree murder. Defendant appealed, arguing that the circuit court erred when it denied his motion to suppress statements made to law enforcement during a custodial interview and that there there was sufficient evidence to support his convictions. The Supreme Court disagreed, holding that Defendant's suppression motion was properly denied and that his convictions were supported by sufficient evidence. View "State v. Larson" on Justia Law