Senator-Elect Reynold Nesiba is innocent.
Minnehaha County State’s Attorney Aaron McGowan has dropped the single charge of non-consensual sexual contact charge filed against him in November.
Strangely, ace KELO-TV reporter Don Jorgensen wasn’t at Nesiba’s office on the Augustana campus or at Nesiba’s home with cameras rolling at the exact moment that law enforcement made this announcement. Jorgensen doesn’t even take the byline on the KELO-TV story this afternoon announcing what Neisba calls his vindication.
Hmmm… how come is that, Don? Isn’t Nesiba your big story, Don? As the guy who broke the story, Don, shouldn’t you be cleaning up the pieces?
The state’s attorney says there’s no case because investigation has revealed “inconsistencies” in the evidence. The state’s attorney’s office declines to elaborate:
“Because of the restrictions contained in Marsy’s Law as well as the confidentiality of Law Enforcement records, the State is not able to provide further details in this matter,” the statement said [John Hult and Dana Ferguson, “Sexual Contact Charges Dropped in Legislator Case,” that Sioux Falls paper, 2017.01.05].
Hold on—Marsy’s Law? Amendment S, the new crime victim bill of rights? What’s that have to do with this situation? There’s no crime, so how is there a victim with rights to invoke? That’s exactly the deep legal flaw of Amendment S that I brought up well before S became law: granting a “victim” rights before there’s a conviction violates the right of the accused to be presumed innocent until proven guilty. Now the accused isn’t even accused in the eyes of the law, so Amendment S shouldn’t even be mentioned.
With this case closed, Senator Nesiba should have no trouble finding his seat at Capitol next week, and the state Democratic Party should have no problem rescinding the weirdly named “leave of absence” from the Senate Democratic Caucus that they imposed on Nesiba after his on-camera arrest in November. The party and Nesiba can move on to putting the professor’s sharp economic mind to work on the Senate Appropriations Committee.
This is great news for Mr. Nesiba and the Democrat Senators in the legislatures because it keeps the ranks fro being cut by 20 or 30 percent.. Let us hope this wipes Mr. Nesiba’s slate clean and everybody can move forward from this point on. And let us hope the lobbyists don’t use the phrase “you don’t need those pants” during any talking about the law bills that will no doubt come up.
I like the phrase. I may use it sometime.
Nothing to see here. Move along!
As much as it pains me to say it, the Republican majority had the decency to seat this man as he was innocent until proven guilty. The Democrats were AWOL. I would drag Jorgensen by his scrawny neck to a civil court case as this man’s teaching career may be over. Kelo has deep pockets of old moldy loot laying in shoe boxes under the flooring. Time to pay up boys.
Just because charges were dropped, doesn’t mean there is not a victim. Time and time again, state and federal attorneys drop charges, not because of a lack of a crime, but because of the inability to successfully prosecute the accused perpetrator. Or when plea deals happen, and lower level criminals are absolved from guilt for whistle blowing. Or when statutes of limitation expire. Or any of the ridiculous dumb things that Trump has said he has done, yet not been prosecuted for. Or if prosecution relies on knowing what the accused’s intent is, which is difficult to prove (which could be the case here?)
Maybe the State’s attorney is looking at this as attempted crime?
I don’t think we will ever know all the facts in regards to what happened in that apartment, but I reckon Nesiba will think twice about hooking up with people via the internet (although Anthony Wiener never seemed to learn his lesson)
But who knows, maybe we will see a civil suit crop up, like what happened after OJ was found not guilty of killing his wife.
Yeah, and maybe this was what it looks like, a hit piece. Why on earth would you allow Jorgensen to deliver the arrest warrant if it were anything but a payback hit. For some reason, I actually thought there was a police force in Sioux Falls, my bad on that thinking. I hope he makes that adams apple on Jorgy’s scrawny neck jump up and down while he is swallowing hard to answer up for the pee poor journalism he provided.
In the United States and even in South Dakota a person has to be considered
Innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
We must be cognizant of the constant
Temptation of the social media push toward , Guilty until they prove their innocence.
There are however never apologies or “all situations”revert to time prior to accusation.
I predict that Dr Nesiba will choose not to seek damages against either the reporter or the TV station. I also predict that the Senator will distinguish himself as one of our state’s most thoughtful, intelligent and enlightened legislators.
Joe, I recognize the difference between a practical victim and a legal victim. That’s part of the problem I had arguing against Amendment S: the con arguments all sound like lectures on constitutional law, while the pro arguments all make good 30-second soap opera commercials.
Even though Amendment S says these rights exist from the moment of victimization, I don’t get how law enforcement or the courts can afford any citizen rights if a court has not determined that a chargeable crime has been committed. I don’t get how the court can grant a citizen rights over another citizen if a court has not determined that the other citizen has committed a crime. If the state drops charges, never prosecutes, the state does not get to infringe on the accused’s rights (and that’s what Amendment S does) as if it had charged, prosecuted, and convicted the accused.
“attempted crime”—even there, the state needs to charge, prosecute and convict someone of attempting a crime. If there is a charge for attempted non-consensual sexual contact, the state could file it. The state hasn’t.
Thus, whatever facts we don’t know, the salient fact we do no is that there are no charges, Senator-Elect Nesiba is innocent, and no legal sanction (including the victim rights of Amendment S) may be applied.
All that said, I do agree, Joe, that there could be a civil suit. If the accuser is unhappy with the state’s attorney’s decision (and Pat Powers, predictably, jerkily, dismisses that decision as partisan), the accuser could seek civil recourse. But that’s a whole separate kettle of fish… and Amendment S can’t apply to a plaintiff in a civil suit, can it?
Curt, I agree with your bet. I suspect Senator-Elect Nesiba will want to let this story sink into oblivion and get to work serving the people of South Dakota.
Says Sheldon Osborn in his weekly invite to the Friday “Drinking Liberally” in Sioux Falls:
Hmm… maybe Nesiba was a victim and should invoke his Amendment S rights?
the victim is the falsely accused.
If the determination included a conclusion that these were false charges, the Nesiba could also be seen as a Marsy’s Law “victim”, I suppose.
We are all victims of Marsy’s Law.
None of us are “innocent” but most are not guilty.
If the victim(?) decided to sue Nesiba it would open the door as to her intentions and whether or not she was a party to conspiracy to set up Nesiba.
I hope she goes for it so we can get to the truth.
Senate Democrats turn the page:
Jeff! To underscore your point:
Barth has become Bard or is Bard merely Barth? Oh, “What’s in a name?”
There’s not enough mind bleach to get rid of the image of Nesiba lying naked in the woman’s bed like some steaming heap of lutefisk. Blecchh!
It’s funny KELO has the state’s most aggressive investigative reporters with Angela Kennecke and one of the worst with Don Jorgensen. Don’s talent begins and ends with that of a carnival barker. Keep him behind the desk reading the scripts to introduce stories and segue to the weather report, and he’ll stay out of trouble. And while strongly agree with your language describing his lack of professional ethics, Cory, I don’t think Don’s the bad guy. He’s the dumb guy.
The bad guy (or woman) is a member of the law community. Whomever made sure Dandy Don had the arrest warrant so KELO and the law community could stage a televised “gotchya” moment on a case that was weak to begin with, needs to be fired.
Somebody put some effort into going after Reynold Nesiba. Somebody with deep connections with the case and a desire to see Mr. Nesiba deeply wounded.
That’s the real rat needing to be chased down and exposed.
Any news reporters around any more?
96: You know the answer to your question already – there are no curious and courageous reporters remaining in SD. Mayor Huether could have ferreted out this inappropriate behavior – still could if he would take an interest in it. Reynold may have been kinda naughty – but the actions of SFPD and others are beyond reprehensible.
This is just another case which demonstrates how South Dakota law enforcement and the judicial process operates under the cover of law. A craven press, as explicitly demonstrated in this case, is complicit in the acts. Sometimes the police will tip off the press when it is about to make an arrest. But they violate a standard of integrity when they supply a reporter with an arrest warrant with which the reporter can ambush the defendant before the warrant is officially served and so that the reporter can set up a camera crew to capture the dramatic moment. Although initially some radio personnel on KELO raised questions, no one has asked law enforcement or KELO-TV how this came about so that they could even report a no comment. The Argus Leader did run a story which quoted enforcement personnel on the process used, but no question was asked as to why the process was enacted in the way it was.
“abuse of process
n. the use of legal process by illegal, malicious, or perverted means. Examples include serving (officially giving) a complaint to someone when it has not actually been filed, just to intimidate an enemy, filing a false declaration of service (filing a paper untruthfully stating a lie that someone has officially given a notice to another person, filing a lawsuit which has no basis at law, but is intended to get information, force payment through fear of legal entanglement or gain an unfair or illegal advantage.”
Dr. Nesiba may well wish to put this behind him and try to get on with business, but as the cur Coyote has demonstrated above, there are those who will never relinquish the lewd, lascivious, and malevolent imagery that they so protectively cherish. Meanwhile, the chancres that seethe under the facade of South Dakota nice and laws that enforce secrecy and block sun light just keep festering away. Inconsistencies generally involve matters of truth.
Funny, Coyote—I don’t find that image etched indelibly in my mind. The image of a naked man has a strange hold on your imagination, Don. And, given there is no case, we must emphasize the word imagination. Give it a rest.
You’re so darn smart, David Newquist. Thanks for posting here on a cold Sunday in January. PS … haven’t heard “cur” in a while. A pleasant appearance of a well placed “emotional word picture”.
That sentence made me laugh out loud! Thanks Prof!
OT- Nat Hentoff has leftt he building @ age 91. 1st amendment advocate.