House committee mulls bill barring most rapists from having criminal cases sealed

Annie Todd, Sioux Falls Argus Leader
·2 min read
Representative Jon Hansen shakes hands with a fellow member of the House during the first day of the legislative session on Tuesday, January 11, 2022, at the South Dakota State Capitol in Pierre.

Correction: An earlier version of the story misidentified a direct quote from lawmaker Mike Stevens. The story has been updated to reflect this change.

The House Judiciary Committee has weighed in on a bill that would bar most people convicted of rape from having their cases sealed after a period of time.

"Rapists shouldn't be able to erase their sentence," said Mary Fitzgerald-R, who sponsored the first draft of the bill, which would have barred all people convicted of rape from having their cases sealed.

Suspended imposition of sentence happens after a plea deal or guilty verdict is reached, when a judge decides to withhold a finding of guilt that if the person who is guilty abides by a specific set of conditions in a set time-frame, then they can have their case sealed.

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A person is eligible for suspended imposition two years after their conviction or during the person's parole or probation.

An amendment, brought and passed during the hearing, offered certain carve outs for people convicted of statutory rape and raping someone who didn't give consent while under the influence.

"The net is too big at this point," said Mike Stevens-R, vice chair of the committee.

Stevens added he wanted to prevent situations where a young man convicted of statutory rape could have the conviction follow him for the rest of his life, keeping him from getting a job.

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Fitzgerald, who objected to the amendment when it was first introduced earlier in the hearing, was not in the room when the amendment was passed and subsequently when HB 1026-A passed the committee in an 11-1 vote, with one excused.

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This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: South Dakota House committee mulls bill barring rapists from having cases sealed