Justia South Dakota Supreme Court Opinion Summaries

Jieun Choi and Jason Vandyke were married for about a year and a half before divorcing on the grounds of irreconcilable differences. A stipulation and settlement agreement was incorporated into the divorce decree that provided for alimony in the form of nineteen payments of $1,500 a month to Choi. After making fourteen of the nineteen payments and upon discovering that Choi had been employed full-time by Black Hills State University, Vandyke sought termination of alimony. The trial court ordered termination of alimony, finding that the payments were excessive given Choi’s financial circumstances and ability to work. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that, in light of the law and circumstances, the trial court did not abuse its discretion in terminating alimony. View "Vandyke v. Choi" on Justia Law

Black Hills Power, Inc. (BHP), a public utility in South Dakota, filed an application to increase electric rates with the South Dakota Public Utility Commission. Black Hills Industrial Intervenors (BHII) filed a motion to intervene in BHP’s rate-increase application, which the Commission granted. The parties agreed to a settlement stipulation regarding the increase in December 2014. BHP, however, sought to amend the stipulation in February 2015. The Commission granted the amended settlement stipulation and approved the rate increase. BHII appealed. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) the Commission properly ruled that BHP could submit adjustments to the settlement stipulation after the filing of the initial application; (2) the Commission did not act arbitrarily or capriciously in its consideration of pension expenses; and (3) the evidence was sufficient to support the Commission’s inclusion of portions of BHP’s incentive-compensation plan. View "In re Application of Black Hills Power, Inc." on Justia Law

Defendant was convicted of seven drug-related offenses, six of which were felonies. The trial court sentenced Defendant to an aggregated sentence of forty-five years’ imprisonment and thirty days in the county jail. The court suspended all but six years and thirty days of the prison sentence and ordered that the jail sentence run concurrently. Defendant appealed his convictions and sentence. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) the trial court did not err by denying Defendant’s motion for acquittal because there was sufficient evidence to sustain the convictions; and (2) Defendant’s sentence did not constitute cruel and unusual punishment in violation of the Eighth Amendment. View "State v. Uhing" on Justia Law

Homeowner’s fixtures encroached on Landowner’s property. Homeowner sued for an implied easement to keep the encroachments on the adjoining property. Landowner counterclaimed for trespass and sought a mandatory injunction to remove the encroachments. The circuit court denied Homeowner’s claim for an implied easement and ruled that the encroachments constituted a trespass but nevertheless denied Landowner’s request for an injunction. Instead, the court ordered that the encroachments would not be subject to an order of removal but would have to be removed if they became subject to relocation in the future. The Supreme Court affirmed in part, reversed in part, and remanded, holding (1) the circuit court did not err in denying an injunction to remove the septic system, allowing it to temporarily remain, and awarding nominal damages; but (2) the circuit court erred in failing to balance the equities and hardships as to the remaining encroachments. On remand, the court should balance the equities relating to those encroachments. View "Hoffman v. Bob Law, Inc." on Justia Law

Total Auctions and Real Estate, LLC (Total Auctions) was a licensed automobile dealer that intended to hold automobile auctions in Lincoln County. Total Auctions met with a dealer agent employed by the Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV) on how to comply with the applicable law. Total Auctions informed the agent that its business plan included the sale of vehicles consigned from dealers outside Lincoln County, the county of Total Auctions’ place of business. The agent failed to inform Total Auctions that state law prohibited auctioning vehicles consigned from dealers outside Lincoln County. After incurring expenses setting up its business, Total Auctions was informed that there was a problem with the out-of-county consignments. Total Auctions sued the DMV agent, the DMV, its director, and the Department of Revenue and Regulation, alleging negligence and negligent supervision. The court of appeals dismissed the complaint for failure to state a claim. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that because Total Auctions’ claimed damages were caused by the agent’s alleged misrepresentation of law, relief was barred as to all claims because misrepresentations of law are not actionable. View "Total Auctions & Real Estate, LLC v. S.D. Department of Revenue & Regulation" on Justia Law

After a jury trial, Defendant was found guilty of first-degree manslaughter, commission of a felony with a firearm, and possession of a controlled weapon. Defendant appealed, arguing, inter alia, that the State committed a violation of Brady v. Maryland when it denied Defendant access to certain records. The Supreme Court issued a limited remand to determine whether a Brady violation occurred in this case and to include the records in the record. On remand, the circuit court concluded that the State committed no Brady violation as it pertained to the challenged records. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) the circuit court did not err when it concluded that the State committed no Brady violation; and (2) the circuit court did not err in determining that Defendant was not entitled to a new trial related to the subject records. View "State v. Birdshead" on Justia Law

Defendant pleaded guilty to one count of aggravated incest and four counts of abusing his children. Defendant was sentenced to a total of forty-seven years imprisonment and ordered to pay the Department of Social Services $19,555 for counseling and treatment costs incurred in caring for the children. Defendant appealed from the reimbursement order, contending that the Department was not statutorily entitled to the reimbursement order because it was not a victim of Defendant’s crimes. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that, even if the Department did not qualify as a victim under S.D. Codified Laws 23A-28-2(5), Defendant was still responsible for paying the entirety of his victims’ treatment costs under S.D. Codified Laws 23A-28-12. View "State v. Jones" on Justia Law

Prior to reconstructing the interchange at Interstate 90 and Cliff Avenues in Sioux Falls, the State instituted a quick-take condemnation action against two landowners (together, Defendants) and effected a partial taking of their real property south of the interchange on-ramp. Defendants did not contest the taking and requested that a jury determine damages. After a four-day trial, the jury awarded Defendants $551,125. The State appealed. The Supreme Court reversed, holding (1) before a landowner may present evidence of and recover for loss resulting from a change in access, the court must first determine that such change amounts to a substantial impairment of access; (2) if the change in access amounts to a substantial impairment and is not caused by the State’s actual taking of the landowner’s property, the landowner must prove that the injury is peculiar to the landowner’s property and not of a kind suffered by the public as a whole; and (3) because the circuit court in this case did not make these determinations, the case must be remanded. View "State v. Miller" on Justia Law

JB Enterprises (JBE) owned property located on a corner lot abutting Cliff Avenue and 63rd Street in Sioux Falls. Prior to initiating a public improvement reconstructing the interchange at Interstate 90 and Cliff Avenue, the State instituted a quick-take condemnation action against JBE, contesting JBE’s “control of access” to its property. The State ultimately changed the public improvement and left intact JBE’s curb cut along Cliff Avenue. After the State closed the intersection of 63rd Street and Cliff Avenue, JBE requested a jury trial on damages, alleging that the State owned JBE’s right to “control of access” to its property. The circuit court granted summary judgment in favor of the State, concluding that the State’s public improvement did not result in a compensable taking because the State did not physically take any of JBE’s property and did not eliminate JBE’s direct access to Cliff Avenue. The Supreme Court reversed, holding that because the State acquired the right to deprive JBE of access to Cliff Avenue, JBE must be compensated under the assumption that the State will do so. Remanded for a trial on damages. View "State v. JB Enterprises, Inc." on Justia Law

Carlyle Schleim owned, and Farmers State Bank of Canton held a mortgage on, property located near an intersection that was closed in connection with the State’s reconstruction of the interchange between Interstate 90 and Cliff Avenue. Schliem and the Bank brought an inverse-condemnation action against the State alleging that the closure of the intersection diminished the value of the subject property. The circuit court granted summary judgment in favor of the State, concluding that Schliem did not identify a property interest that had been taken or damaged by the State. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that Schliem did not suffer compensable loss by the intersection’s closure, and therefore, the circuit court properly granted summary judgment for the State. View "Schleim v. S.D. Department of Transportation" on Justia Law