Volume 33 – Number 3
An information publication of the South Dakota Newspaper Association, Brookings, SD
July/August 2019
S.D. needs to make more progress on open records By Dana Hess For the S.D. Newspaper Association
SIOUX FALLS — While South Dakota has made progress on opening government records to the public, more needs to be done. That was one of the conclusions from a panel discussion about open records hosted Friday by the South Dakota Newspaper Association at the Minnehaha Country Club. The discussion marked the 10-year anniversary of major open records legislation that presumed South Dakota records are open unless they are noted as closed. Panelists for the discussion included former state senator Dave Knudson of Sioux Falls, Argus Leader reporter Jonathan Ellis, SDNA Legal Hotline attorney Jon Arneson and Tony Venhuizen, who served as chief of staff to former Gov. Dennis Daugaard. The panel was moderated by Jack Marsh of S.D. News Watch. Knudson, the sponsor of the open records legislation in 2009, said getting the bill through the Legislature was not an easy process with opponents that included Gov. Mike Rounds, the South Dakota Municipal League, the Board of Regents and the Secretary of State’s office. “The overriding concern for me through the session was I wanted a presumption of openness and I wanted to have a bill that was not going to be vetoed,” Knudson said.
Brian Hunhoff receives prestigious ISWNE award SDNA Past President and Newspaper Hall of Fame member Brian Hunhoff received the 44th annual Eugene Cervi Award from the International Society of Weekly Newspaper Editors on June 22 in Atlanta. The Cervi Award celebrates “a career of outstanding public service through community journalism and adhering to the highest standards of the craft with deep reverence for the English language.” Tim Waltner of Freeman is the only other South Dakotan to receive ISWNE’s highest honor. He was awarded the Cervi in 2012. The winner is decided by a vote of 25 past presidents of the international editors group, which includes 300 members from the United States, Canada, England, Australia, Nepal and Ireland. Hunhoff, 59, is a former publisher of the Yankton County Observer. He still contributes columns, editorials, sports and youth features for the newspaper. He also is the Yankton County Register of Deeds. Continued on page 6
Former state senator Dave Knudson of Sioux Falls makes a point during a panel discussion about open records hosted by the S.D. Newspaper Association. To Knudson’s left are Tony Venhuizen, chief of staff for former Gov. Dennis Daugaard; SDNA Legal Hotline attorney Jon Arneson; Argus Leader reporter Jonathan Ellis; and moderator Jack Marsh of S.D. News Watch. (S.D. Newspaper Association photo)
“Even though this got passed by very wide margins all along the way, there was an element of a mile wide and an inch deep support for it, particularly on the House side.” Similar open records bills were discussed in 2008.
“I just felt this was an idea whose time had come,” Knudson said. “It wasn’t quite right in 2008 but was clearly so in 2009.” Arneson, known for his work on First Amendment issues, took exception to Knudson’s description of the timing. “I would say a long, long time before
that we should have been ready for a presumption of openness,” Arneson said, noting that prior to the 2009 legislation records were open only if a specific state statute said they were open. Otherwise they were closed. Arneson said about 15 years ago he worked with The Associated Press to get a list of South Dakota vanity license plates, “which of course are publicly displayed license plates,” Arneson said. According to Arneson, the state agency in charge of license plates said, “Until you show us a statute that says you must open up vanity plate records, you’re not going to get it.” As Daugaard’s chief of staff, Venhuizen was appointed chairman of a 2012 open government task force consisting of representatives from law enforcement, state and local governments and the media. Five of the eight bills proposed by the 2012 task force eventually became law, with the most recent one happening in 2017 when a law requiring certain police booking photos to be a public record was passed. “I would say the open government task force did a good job of trying to move the ball forward,” Venhuizen said. “These are always incremental changes.” During Daugaard’s eight years in Pierre, Venhuizen said the governor’s office worked hard to change the attitude of Continued on page 6
The eagle has landed Vermillion lawmaker officially honored with open government award Reprinted with permission from the June 28, 2019, Yankton Daily Press & Dakotan. By Randy Dockendorf randy.dockendorf@yankton.net
As a circuit court judge for 18 years, Art Rusch was often disturbed by the confidentiality clauses that came with a number of settlements. The Vermillion judge’s concerns heightened when the confidentiality clause covered a government entity, shutting out the very taxpayers who were paying for the settlement. "That’s when I decided there was a need to address the confidentiality clauses, particularly when it involved government entities and the government money being spent, that the public ought to know," he said. Now a Republican state legislator, Rusch has sponsored a bill for the past two years prohibiting government from entering into certain confidential settlements. He championed the ban last year and saw it passed in the Senate but fail in the House Judiciary Committee. This year, his revised bill passed overwhelmingly in both chambers and gained Gov. Kristi Noem’s signature. State
State Sen. Arthur Rusch of Vermillion (center) was the 2019 recipient of the South Dakota Newspaper Association’s Eagle Award for protecting the public’s right to know. SDNA First Amendment Committee Chair Tim Waltner (left) presented the award. Also pictured is SDNA Executive Director David Bordewyk. (S.D. Newspaper Association photo)
and local governments will no longer be permitted to settle lawsuits confidentially under the new law, which goes into effect on July 1.
Rusch’s efforts have earned him recognition as the 2019 recipient of South Dakota Newspaper Association’s Continued on page 6
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South Dakota Newspapers
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All I want for Christmas Christmas is still months away, but I have put together my wish list for open government gifts I would like to see under the tree in South Dakota. Many people no doubt have other wishes to add to this list, but these five suggestions are based mostly on what I have heard over the years from newspaper editors and reporters as among their biggest frustrations. 1. Refine executive session exception for “personnel” First, do not allow a public board to go into executive session to discuss filling a vacancy on that same board. County commissioners – or any other public board – should not be permitted to discuss in private who to appoint to fill a vacant county commission position that is otherwise chosen by voters in an election. Second, school boards – or any other public board – should not be allowed to discuss budget matters under the excuse of the “personnel” executive session exception just because those budget matters may or may not involve school district staffing. In other words, discussing the “qualifications, competence, performance, character or fitness” of any employee in executive session should be limited to only that and nothing more. 2. Refine executive session exception for “consulting with legal counsel” Current law allows for closed-door discussions between a public board and legal counsel about “proposed or pending litigation or contractual matters.” My experience has been that the definition of “proposed” or “pending” is stretched beyond the normal expectations of what those words mean. Just about any topic
David Bordewyk SDNA Executive Director for discussion can be construed to mean a possible lawsuit. Why not include language in the open meetings laws to state that the proposed or pending litigation must be expressed or communicated in writing before it is allowed to be discussed in executive session? Or why not eliminate the words proposed and pending altogether and replace with the term “actual or current litigation?” 3. Allow public access to certain law enforcement records Public access to law enforcement records is extremely limited in South Dakota, especially when compared to most states around the country. We’ve made some progress to allow public access to police logs and certain arrest booking photos but that’s about it. We need to create public access to incident and arrest records kept by law enforcement. We also need to create public access to law enforcement investigative files once a criminal investigation is ended or closed. None of that is possible today in South Dakota. 4. Allow public access to official government correspondence including email This may be the most challenging open government wish, because it involves all public officials at all levels
of government in South Dakota. So much of what transpires in government today occurs via email and other electronic means of communication, making it even more important to allow at least a certain amount of public access. We are not interested in personal emails or texts, but if a government official is communicating official business, then it should be public, unless it’s information that otherwise is allowed to be kept confidential in our open records laws found in SDCL chapter 1-27 or other confidentiality statutes. The sky will not fall if South Dakota were to enact this change to our open records laws; public access to government correspondence is law in most states. 5. Create open government ombudsman position in state government Finally, South Dakota needs a go-to person or office for assistance and answers related to open government questions and problems. Over the years various states have created an open government ombudsman position in large part because government transparency and accessibility are essential to any interactions with government. Over the years our attorney general’s office has served this role informally and for the most part has done it well. But the time has come to put additional resources into a formal position that has more visibility and accessibility in dealing with open government issues in our state. Perhaps an ombudsman position or office could still fall under the AG’s umbrella. Regardless, the time has come for South Dakota to get serious about helping citizens navigate and solve open government challenges.
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Editorial: Despite defeat, push for public access continues Reprinted with permission from the June 27, 2019, edition of the Argus Leader, Sioux Falls. The Argus Leader’s eight-year battle for transparency in government spending records reached its legal pinnacle this spring in front of the United States Supreme Court. On Monday, in a shattering blow to government transparency, that battle was lost. Our quest for public access to information about where federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) dollars are spent in South Dakota was struck down. A 6-3 majority reversed nearly a half-century of judicial precedent, effectively prioritizing private industry’s desire for secrecy in government dealings over the public’s right to know how their tax money is spent. In 2011, under the Freedom of Information Act, our reporters requested the annual amounts the federal government paid to retailers that participate in SNAP (formerly known as food stamps) from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. We were examining rural communities’ access to affordable, nutritious food and probing issues of potential fraud by retailers who accept government payment. Some of the few such windows journalists have gotten into the $70 billion SNAP system have revealed clear abuses. According to indictments brought by the Department of Justice in 2017 against a group of retailers in southern Florida, eight convenience stores “received more than $20 million in federal payments for transactions in which they did not provide any food” by exchanging SNAP benefits for as little as half their value in cash. Retail industry trade group Food Marketing Institute picked up the gauntlet after the USDA gave up challenging Argus Leader court victories. Yet we prevailed at the Eighth Circuit Court against FMI’s argument, which was rooted in Exemption 4 of the FOIA: that retailers would suffer competitive harm were the information we sought to be made public. Monday’s ruling made clear why this Supreme Court agreed to hear FMI’s appeal of the Eighth Circuit decision. It was not due to the particulars of our specific case. Ours was simply the first FOIA case to reach this level that could be used as a vehicle to strike the “substantial competitive injury” test used in the judicial system since 1974 to determine whether or not information involving private business dealings with the government should be kept confidential or could be made public. The majority opinion written by Justice Neil Gorsuch ignored that the records we requested were of government payments to businesses, information that is typically public record. Gorsuch focused only on an extreme narrowing of meaning of the word “confidential” in the original text of FOIA as written in 1966, basing this new restrictive definition on dictionaries of that era. This strict textual approach, adherence to the letter of the law versus its spirit, has only recently been on the ascendancy in U.S. courts following years of legal interpretation based on the intent of lawmakers whose language was imprecise or idiosyncratic. Since a 2015 dissent by textualist justices Clarence Thomas and the late Antonin Scalia, a sect of the Supreme Court has been waiting for the opportunity to break the competitive-harm lens through which
Argus Leader News Director Cory Myers and attorney Robert Loeb answer reporters’ questions outside the U.S. Supreme Court building following the oral arguments in the Food Marketing Institute vs. Argus Leader Media case on April 22. Loeb argued the case on behalf of the Argus Leader.
Exemption 4 interpretations have been viewed. Unfortunately, Food Marketing Institute v. Argus Leader Media was sucked into the gravitational pull of that movement. We agree with Justice Stephen Breyer’s partial dissent in this case, in which he was joined by Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Sonia Sotomayor: that this ruling is at odds with FOIA’s principles of public access to government information that cannot otherwise be obtained. As Breyer wrote, “After all, where information is already publicly available, people do not submit FOIA requests—they use Google… given the temptation, common across the private
and public sectors, to regard as secret all information that need not be disclosed, I fear the majority’s reading will deprive the public of information for reasons no better than convenience, skittishness, or bureaucratic inertia.” Extending Gorsuch’s logic in the majority opinion, a local contractor’s invoice for payment for road paving work done for the city of Sioux Falls could be shielded simply because it was submitted by a private contractor. The open bidding process—one of the most fundamental anti-corruption methods—is at risk of being undermined. As Breyer’s dissent charges, “For the
majority, a business holding information as private and submitting it under an assurance of privacy is enough to deprive the public of access. But a tool used to probe the relationship between government and business should not be unavailable whenever government and business wish it so.” The majority opinion also fails to acknowledge the FOIA Improvement Act of 2016, which added explicit language concerning the definition of confidentiality on which the decision centered. That’s important because, although this week’s decision essentially abdicates Congress’s role to either industry or the executive branch, Congress is the next battlefield in the fight to cast sunshine on government dealings. In that regard, there are already signs of hope. Republican Senator Chuck Grassley took to the Senate floor Thursday as “an advocate for the Freedom of Information Act and the public’s business being public,” venting his displeasure that this week’s ruling restricts access to public information. Grassley said he is “working on legislation to address these developments and to promote access to government records. Americans deserve an accountable government, and transparency leads to accountability.” We hope that South Dakota’s congressional delegation plans to join that fight. Such a response softens the acute disappointment we felt in the wake of our Supreme Court loss. We vow to redouble our watchdog efforts. Although this battle fell short, it can serve to spur important action in the ongoing push for public access to government information. We might be temporarily down, but we promise never to be out.
Janklow call to reveal settlement was 23 years ahead of its time Reprinted with permission from the Friday, July 5, 2019, edition of The Yankton County Observer, Yankton. Editor’s Note: This is the second in a series of 2019 Observer editorials about open government, freedom of information, and the First Amendment, by Brian J. Hunhoff. The late William Janklow served 16 years as Governor of South Dakota and often sparred with the media. He phoned reporters late at night to complain if they wrote articles that annoyed him. Yankton native Dave Knudson was Janklow’s chief of staff. Knudson noted last week in an open government forum that his former boss could be secretive. But not always. This writer recalls a cordial phone call from Gov. Janklow that was ahead of its time in terms of government transparency. Twenty three years ahead to be exact. Last Friday, State Sen. Arthur Rusch received the South Dakota Newspaper Association First Amendment Eagle Award. He was honored for spearheading a 2019 bill that makes it illegal for government entities to enter certain confidential settlements. Rusch said citizens have a right to the details when government money is spent. We agree the public has a right to know
Gov. Bill Janklow at a panel discussion during the 2000 SDNA convention in Aberdeen. At right is Ken Allen, formerly of National Newspaper Association.
where their hard-earned taxpayer dollars go. We applaud and congratulate Sen. Rusch. His successful legislation sparked memories of a pair of Observer editorials we wrote on this subject 23 years ago. In 1996, the State of South Dakota settled a lawsuit with a woman who had sued for damages from sexual misconduct by a state highway patrol officer. The alleged
incident occurred during a 1993 traffic stop near Yankton. After reading the case was settled for an undisclosed amount, we wrote, “Elected officials and those they hire to do the government’s work often forget who is paying the bills. That who is you. Your tax dollars pay the bills of government. You have every right to know why and where that money is going.” Our 1996 editorial also pointed out a precedent from seven years earlier. In that case, state officials revealed a $950,000 settlement with the husband and father of a Yankton woman and daughter murdered by a South Dakota Human Services Center walkaway. Our editorial’s bottom line 23 years ago said, “This was not the first time the State of South Dakota settled a lawsuit for an undisclosed amount, but it should be the last.” A few days after our 1996 editorial was published, Gov. Janklow phoned this writer and said he had no problem with revealing the settlement amount. “It was $100,000,” he said. The governor said no other reporter had previously bothered to ask the amount. Gov. Janklow was an enigma. He often favored secrecy, but could also be refreshingly candid. On that particular day in 1996, he was well ahead of his time.
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SDNA members gather for 137th convention Photos by Brad Nygaard and David Bordewyk Charley and Norma Najacht of Custer were honored as the 2019 South Dakota Newspaper Hall of Fame inductees. The Najachts publish newspapers at Custer, Hill City and Winner. They have long, distinguished careers in community newspaper publishing.
Ellen Bardash was named South Dakota Outstanding Young Journalist among daily newspapers. She is a reporter at The Daily Republic, Mitchell. Also pictured are publisher Joni Harms and managing editor Luke Hagen. Fireworks erupt during the grand finale of the Medora Musical. SDNA and NDNA members attended the opening night performace.
South Dakota’s Sweepstakes contest winners, from left: Cory Myers of Argus Leader Media, Brett Nachtigall of the Fall River County Herald, Jeremy Waltner of the Freeman Courier, LeAnn Suhr of the Reporter & Farmer and Luke Hagen and Joni Harms of The Daily Republic, Mitchell.
SDNA Executive Director David Bordewyk hoists the traveling Best of Dakotas trophy in celebration as South Dakota newspapers won the 2018 contest winning three of five circulation categories.
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This was for the fourth joint convention in eight years for members of the South Dakota and North Dakota Newspaper Associations. Many of them gathered for a photo before a performance of the Medora Musical at Medora, N.D.
S.D. Secretary of Tribal Relations Dave Flute makes remarks during a panel discussion about news coverage of race issues in the Dakotas. Also participating were N.D. Indian Affairs Commissioner Scott Davis and Jodi Rave Spotted Bear, founder of the Indigenous Media Freedom Alliance. Retired Grand Forks (N.D.) Herald publisher Mike Jacobs moderated the discussion.
Bully! Teddy Roosevelt welcomes everyone during the opening reception on Thursday evening.
Cory Myers tees off at Bully Pulpit Golf Course.
During the association business meeting, Letti Lister (left) presents outgoing SDNA President Debbie Hemmer with an appreciation plaque for her service to SDNA and South Dakota newspapers.
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Open gov’t. panel Continued from page 1
government employees who were faced with a request for information. “The law had changed, but in a lot of ways the mindset really hadn’t,” Venhuizen said. “There used to be a real sense that these are our records and this is our department and why are you calling us. There is still a lot of that, probably.” Ellis, the Argus Leader reporter, said he was “astounded” to find out that police reports aren’t open records in South Dakota. He also agreed with Venhuizen about the attitudes of public employees when it comes to giving out information. “That mentality that ‘these are our records,’ that’s still very prevalent in Pierre,” Ellis said. “Department people, administration people just assume that these are their records and not the taxpayers’ records.” Asked for their top open records priority moving forward, Venhuizen and Knudson said that making government records easily accessible and searchable online should be a priority. Ellis said that most other states have deemed government correspondence and emails as public records and South Dakota should, too. Arneson said he would like to see a change of philosophy in state government’s executive branch, ensuring that employees know they are working with the public and not against the public. “If you want to work in government, you’re still working for the public,” Arneson said. “You are our employee. Those are our records. If you don’t like that, move into the private sector.” Prior to the panel discussion, the Eagle Award, sponsored by SDNA’s First Amendment Committee, was presented to Sen. Arthur Rusch, R-Vermillion, for his work on legislation that prohibits certain confidential court settlements in government lawsuits. “The people of South Dakota are fortunate to have people like Sen. Arthur Rusch as an advocate,” said former Freeman Courier publisher and First Amendment Committee chair Tim Waltner while presenting the award. Rusch, who served as a judge for 18 years, told about 50 people gathered for the presentation and the panel discussion that he presided over many cases in which confidential settlements were reached. “I always wondered about that,” Rusch said, because even in those cases where a settlement was reached between private parties, they were reaching that conclusion in a court system and courthouse that was paid for by taxpayers. As he worked for two years to get the bill passed, Rusch said he heard some critics say that making the terms of court settlements public could prove to be embarrassing. “If it’s embarrassing, then it’s even more reason people ought to know about it,” Rusch said.
South Dakota Newspapers
Hunhoff Continued from page 1
Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist David Mitchell of Point Reyes Station, Calif., was among those nominating Hunhoff. “Brian is a first-rate journalist and eloquent defender of open government,” Mitchell said. “He is recognized as a champion of a free press.” Former Mobridge Tribune Publisher Larry Atkinson also nominated Hunhoff. “I’ve known Brian nearly 40 years and long admired his incredible writing skills and undying devotion to and love of newspapering,” Atkinson said. “He is the epitome of what it means to be a community journalist.” Roxann Hunhoff noted her husband’s lifelong passion for newspapers. “Brian eats, breathes and sleeps newspapers. It’s what he is talking about more often than not at home, on the phone, in the car, wherever.” A 1977 graduate of Yankton High School, Hunhoff’s journalism career began at age 18. Hunhoff served as president of SDNA in 1997-98. He was inducted into the South Dakota Newspaper Hall of Fame in 2018.
Longtime ISWNE member Gary Sosniecki with Brian Hunhoff, the 2019 recipient of the ISWNE Eugene Cervi Award.
Eagle award "Eagle Award." The honor is given by the newspaper association to an individual or group that has demonstrated outstanding efforts to protect and enhance open government and the public’s right to know. He was honored Friday at a luncheon attended by about 50 people at the Minnehaha Country Club in Sioux Falls. Rusch told the Press & Dakotan he was always bothered by the secret agreements that came before him on the bench. "During that time, I had a number of settlement agreements brought to me that had a confidentiality clause so neither party could disclose the terms," he said. "Even when both the parties were private citizens, I was always concerned about the fact that here was an entity, a court system, being paid for by the taxpayers, that has approved a settlement that the taxpayers will never know about. That fact troubled me." Headed to Pierre Rusch retired from the bench in 2011. While no longer part of the legal system, he found a way to address the confidential settlements and to open up the people’s right to know where and how its money was being spent. He was elected in 2015 to the South Dakota Legislature. He headed to Pierre as the District 17 state senator serving Clay and Turner counties. Rusch’s effort on the confidential agreements ran into opposition from the outset. Questions arose about the consequences if the public learned details about a lawsuit and agreement. "A number of people came to talk to me, saying the public shouldn’t know because it would be embarrassing," he said. "If it’s embarrassing, it’s even more reason that the public should know about it." Rusch credited the support of Noem, his fellow state legislators, SDNA and the general public for making the bill a reality. "Every year, I try to have a signature piece of legislation. This was certainly my signature piece," he said. "You can’t just assume you can get something done in a year. You really need to be willing to come back and educate people." What made the difference in 2019?
Continued from page 1
"We had new legislators, and there was more of a realization that we needed to do this (bill). The fact that the governor came out in support of it made a difference. It was part of her effort for more transparency, which was one of the hallmarks of her campaign," he said. "The governor’s counsel testified in favor of the bill. She let it be known that she was backing it. And I think maybe this year, some of the people who had been really opposed to it before now recognized that they were on the losing side of things." Moving Forward Rusch did learn from the 2018 experience and tweaked the legislation this year. "One of the opposing things the first time we brought it up was the idea that victims — say, someone who was raped by a state employee — didn’t want their names revealed," he said. "We put in the provision that the judge could keep the victim’s identity confidential." Rusch acknowledged his legislation wouldn’t have affected private lawsuits. "On a regular basis, I would see a lot of the private lawsuits had a confidentiality clause. The big one was down in Union County, over the ‘pink slime’ lawsuit (where BPI filed a defamation lawsuit against ABC News for using the term in a description of lean finely textured beef) where nobody knows what they settled for (as the dollar amount)," he said. "This (new legislation) wouldn’t have prevented that from occurring because we’re talking about two private entities. But when it’s public money or public employees, the public has a right to know." Rusch pointed to the timing of one lawsuit while his bill moved through the 2019 Legislature. "One particular case that came out while my bill was under consideration was where the Brookings school board settled a lawsuit by a student against them," he said. "But they didn’t disclose the amount, so taxpayers didn’t know if the student got $100 or $100,000." Rusch pointed to another example of the need for open records "I had situation where I got a call from
a reporter who went up to the clerk of courts office and the clerk wouldn’t let (the journalist) have a file," he said. "I called the clerk, because our policy is they need to release it. The clerk said, ‘I don’t know, this is a sensitive case.’ I said it didn’t matter. It may be sensitive, but it’s our policy to release it. "People are afraid of reporters. They’re afraid the reporter will (misrepresent) the story and make them look bad. But you’ve got to have confidence in the reporter." Rusch said this year’s effort in the Legislature was much easier because people understood his motivation. He even had one official tell him that he wished the bill had passed years ago and had taken a confidentiality clause off the table in one lawsuit. Exceptions remain on the books, Rusch said. He noted the language in those cases didn’t forbid disclosure, only that it wasn’t required. SDNA First Amendment Committee Chairman Tim Waltner praised Rusch for his commitment to the open government legislation. "It takes persistence to advance the ideals of open government, transparency and accountability," Waltner said. "Senator Arthur Rusch embodies those qualities and we’re pleased to honor him for his willingness to craft legislation that shines light on the actions of elected officials." The citizens’ right to know forms the very foundation of good government, Waltner said. "It’s gratifying when elected officials, who seek to serve the best interests of the citizens, recognize that openness, transparency and accountability are essential components in our democracy and act on it," he added. Rusch expressed pleasure at receiving the Eagle Award, but he said the real winners are the people of South Dakota. "I really think the trend is toward more open government," he said. "I hope this (award) encourages other people and serves as a motivator for others to take action."
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Members attend ISWNE conference South Dakota newspapers were well represented during the annual conference for the International Society of Weekly Newspaper Editors held at Emory University in Atlanta on June 19-23. Brian Hunhoff, of the Yankton County Observer, was honored with the Eugene Cervi Award, which is the highest award given by the ISWNE organization. Molly McRoberts of the Potter County News in Gettysburg, left, and Tim Walter of the Freeman Courier, right, were honored by the Golden Quill judge with the Golden Dozen Award for Outstanding Editorial Writing. McRoberts was also the recipient of the Hazel Brannon Smith Scholarship, given to a woman editor to attend the annual summer conference. ISWNE membership includes 300 journalists and others from the United States, Canada, England, Australia, Nepal and other countries around the world.
South Dakotans will soon be able to access court records from any computer Reprinted with permission from the July 7, 2019, edition of the Rapid City Journal. By Arielle Zionts Criminal Justice Reporter
If a South Dakotan wants to see public court records, they can only do that by looking them up on computer at a state courthouse during work hours between Monday and Friday. That means a Pine Ridge resident would have to drive an hour to the court in Hot Springs or 50 minutes to Martin. Many people in Meade, Butte and other large western counties also face long drives. So to help improve access to court records, the UJS is currently piloting a program that will eventually allow the public to see records from any computer, said Greg Sattizahn, administrator of the South Dakota Unified Judicial System. The website will be similar to the PACER website, which lets people view and download federal court records for a fee. "We recognize that the (computer) terminals are kind of limited in their functionality," he said. Lawyers can currently view documents related to their cases on any computer for free and on the new website, Sattizahn said. The new website, which is being used by a small group of lawyers before expanding this month, will allow them to see documents related to other cases for 10 cents per page. The website will then be open to the general public, who will also have to pay 10 cents per page they view, in late 2019 or early 2020. The fees will help cover enhanced technology within the UJS, Sattizahn said. The public computers at the courthouses
only let people search by case number, which can be retrieved by telling a clerk the name of the defendant and their alleged crime. The new website will allow people to search by name if a date of birth or county and date range of the alleged offense are also entered. Requiring the extra information with the name is meant "to ensure the correct person and case is returned and to safeguard against data mining," Sattizahn said. To search for someone's complete criminal background, he said, people will still need to pay $20 at a state court or at ujspars.sd.gov. The online court calendar (ujscourttv.sd.gov), which lists hearings the day they happen, is not going to expand to listing hearings that are scheduled further out. Federal courts in South Dakota have a website that lists hearings scheduled in the next five days. Printing cost changes The new website will improve access to public records and should help cut down on paper and printing costs. But in the meantime, before the website goes live, expect to pay more when printing court documents in Rapid City or at any other court that previously allowed for double-sided printing. The public computers at the state courts were recently upgraded from Windows 7 to Windows 10, which requires new security whose software prevents the computers from allowing double-sided printing even if printers are capable of it, said Kent Grode, IT director for the UJS. Most documents are free to view on computers made available to the public, but it costs 20 cents to print each page. Before the upgrade, people visiting courts with double-sided printers could print two
online pages onto one piece of paper. Now, with only single-sided printing, they will pay twice as much. UJS considered both cost and security needs when upgrading the computers, Sattizahn said. "Certainly cost was a factor that was taken into consideration. However, the need to meet system security standards for the information held by the UJS was an overriding concern," he said. "The UJS database includes highly confidential information, sealed court records and personally identifiable information in addition to publicly accessible records, and we must be vigilant in safeguarding those records." Access differs across state Printing costs can add up, especially because police reports can be many pages long and while listed on the public computer at the Pennington County court in Rapid City can't be opened on the computer. In order to see those documents, the public must pay to have them printed and redacted by a clerk. That's still how people will have to access police reports filed in Pennington County cases with the new website, according to Kristi Erdman, administrator of the 7th Judicial Circuit, which includes Pennington, Custer, Oglala Lakota and Fall River counties. "The court clerk receives the documents from law enforcement and the state's attorney's office, who have informed us they do not have the capability to redact the reports in the short time between generation of the report and court," Erdman said. Instead of law enforcement or prosecutors redacting the documents before submitting them, the clerks redact informa-
tion — such as Social Security numbers and names of minors and victims — after someone asks for them to be printed. If a prosecutor doesn't attach police reports to a case, the public has to request the documents through the records department, which oversees the Rapid City Police Department and Pennington County Sheriff's Office, said police spokesman Brendyn Medina. He said records are usually only provided to those directly involved in a case or their family. Other law enforcement agencies, state's attorneys and courts handle police reports and probable cause for arrest affidavits in different ways. Police reports aren't attached to cases in the 4th Judicial Circuit, said Administrator Shawn Sorenson, who oversees courts for Butte, Lawrence, Meade, Corson, Dewey, Harding, Perkins and Ziebach counties. She said clerks first redact any private information before filing probable cause for arrest affidavits, and the documents are able to be viewed on the public computer screens. These affidavits, which aren't commonly filed in Pennington County, can also be viewed on the public computer, Erdman said. Police reports and probable cause affidavits for arrests are rarely attached to cases in the 2nd Juridical Circuit said Karl Thoennes, who oversees the Minnehaha and Lawrence county courts. If an affidavit is attached, the documents can be viewed on the public computer screens. But when police reports are attached to a case, they can't be printed for the public. Instead, someone would need to ask a judge or the relevant law enforcement agency to release the reports.
The South Dakota Newspaper Foundation is devoted to the promotion and betterment of journalism and newspapers in South Dakota and elsewhere. Please consider a contribution to the South Dakota Newspaper Foundation this year. Contact SDNA General Manager David Bordewyk for more information. Donations to the South Dakota Newspaper Foundation are tax deductible. Consider a contribution in honor of or in memory of an associate or friend. All donations are greatly appreciated. Send to: South Dakota Newspaper Foundation, 1125 32nd Ave., Brookings, SD 57006.
8 • July/August 2019
South Dakota Newspapers
SDNA Board looks at annual newspaper contest
The SDNA Board met in historic Deadwood on July 18. Among those participating: SDNA Sales Director John Brooks, Executive Director David Bordewyk, President Letti Lister, First Vice President Beau Ravellette, Third Vice President Garrick Moritz, Director LeeAnne Dufek and Second Vice President Robert Slocum. Not pictured is Director Cory Myers, who departed before the photo was taken. Past President Debbie Hemmer was unable to attend.
Ad series promotes newspapers, communities It may sound like a conspiracy, but newspaper ads promoting newspapers will begin appearing in South Dakota newspapers soon. A series of ads that features conversations with various newspaper publishers around the state will be published by weekly and daily newspapers in cooperation with South Dakota Newspaper Association. “The ads emphasize the important connections between the newspaper and the communities served by the newspaper, from the point of view of the publisher,” said SDNA Executive Director David Bordewyk. “A good newspaper is so important to the life of a community and a good newspaper needs the support of a community in order to do its job well.” The tagline for the series of ads is: “Your newspaper, your community … essential partners.” “Newspapers and the communities they serve truly are partners in each other’s success,” Bordewyk said. “Communities benefit from a newspaper full of local news, information and advertising. Newspapers benefit from readers who subscribe to the newspaper and those who advertise in the newspaper. It all goes hand in hand.” The first two ads in the series feature newspapers and publishers on the opposite ends of the state: LeeAnne Dufek of Castlewood, who publishes newspapers in Castlewood, Estelline and Hayti; and Letitia Lister, who is publisher of the Black Hills Pioneer at Spearfish, which serves communities and residents in Lawrence, Butte and Meade Counties in western South Dakota. Both Dufek and Lister serve on the SDNA Board. Lister is the 2019-20 SDNA Board president. South Dakota has more newspapers per capita than any state in the nation. Seventy percent of households in South Dakota read the local newspaper, whether it is the printed, hard-copy version or online.
The SDNA Board voted in July to make changes to the circulation categories for daily newspapers participating in the SDNA Better Newspapers Contest and to examine further the circulation categories for weekly newspapers before making any decisions about them. The board agreed to set the daily circulation categories for next year’s contest at under/above 7,000 circulation. That means the large daily circulation group (more than 7,000 circulation) for next year’s contest will include the Aberdeen American News, Mitchell Daily Republic, Rapid City Journal, Sioux Falls Argus Leader and Watertown Public Opinion. The less than 7,000 circulation group will include the Brookings Register, Huron Plainsman, Madison Daily Leader, Pierre Capital Journal, Spearfish Black Hills Pioneer and Yankton Daily Press & Dakotan. The previous circulation break for dailies had been 9,000. Currently, the weeklies fall into three circulation groups: less than 1,150
circulation, 1,151 to 2,000 circulation, and more than 2,000 circulation. These contest circulation groups for weeklies have been in place for several years and board members agreed that now is a good time to review them. SDNA board member LeeAnne Dufek of Castlewood will chair a committee to look at the weekly circulation groups and make recommendations for the board to consider at its fall meeting in November. Dufek’s committee also will review the various news and advertising categories and decide if any changes should be made to them. Those recommendations also would go to the full board for any final action. SDNA members can look for more information in the near future about the contest review and for opportunities to comment about them. This past year the contest had 1,111 entries, which was down from previous years. The SDNA board will meet Nov. 7 at Oacoma.
Why does a community need a newspaper?
Newspapers come together for
a conversation with… LeeAnne Dufek Hamlin County Publishing LeeAnne is publisher of three weekly newspapers located in Castlewood, Estelline and Hayti. She brings more than 26 years of award-winning experience in newswriting, editing, advertising and commercial printing to her communities.
The local, community newspaper is the lifeline to connect all aspects of the town together. Whether it’s a pie social at the church, a ballgame at the school or the town’s annual celebration – the newspaper is the one place to find it all. We are Facebook in the print form. Newspapers also serve as the watchdog for government entities such as counties and schools – from covering their meetings to being an independent provider of their legal notices in the newspaper. We provide a permanent record of all history, which cannot be hacked or altered.
What makes a good newspaper? Every reader has their favorite part of the paper – some read the sports first, others can’t wait to read the court news. A good newspaper must provide a variety of accurate, informative and entertaining articles, as well as let the business community let their customers know what’s new through advertising.
Why should people pay for your newspaper when they can find plenty of news and information online for free? Our community newspapers cover events that can’t be found anywhere else and can always be counted on to be accurate and true. Newspapers offer a consistent, constant reliable source of information.
What is the most difficult challenge you face as a newspaper publisher/editor? People take for granted the newspaper will always be there, much like a grocery store, gas station or school. Most members of the community probably don’t realize how often they depend on the newspaper to look up a phone number or see what’s going on at the school. All businesses in small towns struggle to make ends meet, but the support of the readers and advertisers has been able to sustain the weekly newspapers in Hamlin County for over 120 years.
What about the future? What will it take for community newspapers like yours to survive and be successful? The future of community newspapers depends on the commitment of publishers to continue to bring their town to life every week on the printed page. And for readers and advertisers who support that newspaper every week.
Your newspaper, your community … essential partners A series sponsored by this newspaper and the South Dakota Newspaper Association.