The South Dakota Supreme Court has sided with the Rapid City Journal in its battle to unseal the court records of a South Dakota legislator. The divided Supreme Court found that the presiding magistrate made an error when he sealed the record, and that the Journal had put in a request for the file before the error was corrected.
State Senator Gary Cammack was arrested on Jan. 18, 2020, in Meade County, and was subsequently charged with driving under the influence and speeding.
According to coverage by the Black Hills Pioneer, Cammack’s roadside breath test showed his blood alcohol content at .082, barely over the legal limit of .08, and when he was given a blood test later, he was under the legal limit.
Cammack entered into a plea deal in June 2021 and admitted to a reduced charge of careless driving. His sentence was not imposed at the time. Instead, he paid fines and was ordered to obey all laws for six months. After completing those terms, he would not be sentenced and his file would be sealed.
The Rapid City Journal did not find out until the beginning of October that the senator had been prosecuted.
In early October, Cammack’s lawyer, with the consent of the prosecutor, took steps to get the file sealed, and on Oct. 4, Magistrate Chad Callahan complied.
The Journal then managed to get some records but was denied access to the sealed file. The Journal protested that the file should not have been sealed until Dec. 29, 2021, when the six-month probation ended.
On Dec. 15, 2021, Judge Callahan issued an amended order that excluded the probationary term.
The Journal then went to the South Dakota Supreme Court for relief.
The majority opinion, written by Justice Patricia Devaney, holds that the law allows judges to amend orders, but there are exceptions when third-party interests are harmed.
The court ordered that the Journal must be given access to any documents filed up to and including the Dec. 15 amendment.
Chief Justice Steven Jensen dissented, finding that a paper trail in emails and clerk’s notes indicate Judge Callahan intended to end the probationary period when he sealed the file, and even though that intent wasn’t realized for whatever reason, it should be honored as a point of law.
