What we learned about Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg's crash from newly released documents

The House Select Committee on Investigation publicly released dozens of documents the committee explored during their impeachment investigation the last three months.

The documents come on the heels of Monday's decision by the committee not to recommend the House of Representatives impeach South Dakota's attorney general for his role in a fatal September 2020 crash, according to a 22-page report.

Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg struck and killed Joe Boever while he was driving from a political event the night of Sept. 12, 2020.

Earlier: What we know about the year-long saga surrounding AG Jason Ravnsborg's role in fatal crash

Nearly a year passed before he faced charges stemming from the crash, and ultimately he accepted a plea deal and was convicted of a pair of minor driving infractions that did not amount to criminal culpability for the death of the 55-year-old Hyde County man.

Led by House Speaker Spencer Gosch, R-Glenham, the nine-member House Select Committee on Investigation spent hours behind closed doors, starting in December and in subsequent meetings in January. The redacted information from 60 of 65 materials available to them related to the September 2020 crash.

Earlier: Autopsy photos, cellphone forensics won't be part of Attorney General's impeachment record

Those materials include investigation reports, video footage of interviews and interrogations with the attorney general and autopsy photographs.

Beyond a 13-page report explaining what details of the crash investigation the public will never have access to, nothing has been released, except for whatever has been publicly discussed during impeachment proceedings.

Here's a closer look at what we're learning from these documents as they're released:

Earlier: Jason Ravnsborg should not be impeached, investigation committee says

Hyde County Sheriff Mike Volek saw a light in the grass after the crash

In a second interview with North Dakota investigators, Volek revealed he “did not even consider that Jason Ravnsborg hit a body.”

Volek told investigators deer accidents happened frequently in that area, and there was not always the presence of a deer after the fact. He had responded to other accidents in that same area where deer had not been located afterward.

When Volek arrived in his patrol vehicle, he pulled up behind Ravnsborg’s vehicle. Volek did not have a spotlight on his vehicle, the documents state. Volek walked the scene together with Ravnsborg, looking for what was hit, but told investigators the pair did not walk any further east than a large piece of debris on the shoulder.

As Volek waited for a tow truck after Ravnsborg left, he kept looking around, because it “bothered” him that “with the level of impact,” there should have been a deer there. He believed Ravnsborg must have hit a big deer, and wondered if it made it to a nearby cornfield.

He spotted a light glowing in the grass on the side of the road, but believed it to be a lightbulb glowing from the car. He did not go look at the light, he told investigators. And he had not consumed any alcohol that night.

Investigators and crime scene analysts later tested a flashlight found at the scene for evidence of blood and DNA, but no blood was found, and there wasn't enough DNA on the flashlight to be conclusive. More: Read documents.

Ravnsborg has extensive traffic stop record going back to the 1990s

Since 1996, Ravnsborg has received 25 traffic citations ranging from speeding to failing to stop or improper lane changes. He only received seven citations. The rest were verbal warnings. Nine of those stops were conducted by South Dakota Highway Patrol.

In April 2019, he was pulled over going 10 over in a 30 mph zone. He identified himself immediately as the attorney general and was given a verbal warning by the state trooper.

He also received a verbal warning in February 2020, when he was caught going 50 mph in a 35 mph zone by the Gettysburg Police Department. Ravnsborg told the officer he was the attorney general and “was in a hurry to go to a meeting in Clark.” He “felt speed was necessary due to meeting/video only available with a letter of intent.” More: Read document

Ravnsborg spoke with his father after the crash

Ravnsborg’s father, Richard Ravnsborg, told North Dakota investigators he received a call from his son after the crash.

He said the call consisted of the following:

• Ravnsborg told his father he hit something, and thought it was a deer.

• He said his son did not see anything, but assumed it was a deer because of where he was in the country.

• Ravnsborg told his father the vehicle had been damaged on the front right corner, and the windshield had broken. He sent a picture of the damage.

• Ravnsborg told him he called 911 and the sheriff came out. The pair looked around to see what he’d hit. Ravnsborg told him he “only had a cell phone light to use to look around.”

• Ravnsborg did not say anything to his father about being tired, and did not sound tired on the phone.

• His son told him he only drank one Coca-Cola at the dinner, and his father said his son was not a drinker.

• Ravnsborg told his father he wasn’t using his cell phone at the time of the crash, nor was he speeding or driving off the shoulder of the road.

More: Read document

Sheriff pulled Ravnsborg over after 911 call

Volek told crash investigators that both he and Ravnsborg had walked the ditch in an attempt to identify what Ravnsborg had struck but did not see Boever.

After deeming the vehicle undrivable and being loaned Volek's personal vehicle, Ravnsborg left the scene and headed toward Pierre and Volek called a tow truck. However, realizing he’d forgotten to get the keys to the Taurus from Ravnsborg before he left in the loaner vehicle, Volek had to conduct a traffic stop on Ravnsborg to get the keys.

Volek also told investigators Joe Boever “had a drinking problem” and suffered from mental health issues. More: Read document

Witness spoke to Boever minutes before he was stuck and killed

A witness told authorities that she was driving west of Highmore on Highway 14 when she passed Boever. She turned around and drove back to him. The time was between 10:15 and 10:20 p.m.

She knew Boever and asked if he needed help. Boever was shining his cellphone flashlight into the ditch, and he said he was looking for his pickup. The witness asked if Boever was intoxicated, because he was stumbling. Boever replied he was not.

Boever was walking westbound on the north shoulder at the time of the interaction. He was hit by Ravnsborg just a few minutes after the interaction with the witness. More: Read document

iPhone flashlight/lock screen usage 'consistent' with parts of Ravnsborg’s alibi, following car collision

North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation special agent Cassidy Halseth reported, based on Ravnsborg’s Apple iPhone XR, that the locking/unlocking statuses of the phone is “consistent with the internet usage just prior to the 911 call, and consistent with when the 911 call was made." after the crash.

That was in reference to when the phone was locked at 10:22:48 p.m., and unlocked at 10:24:06 p.m. Investigators estimated the impact occurred at 10:23:37 p.m., according to previous Argus Leader reporting.

Another “artifact of interest” pointed out in the report was that on the night of the crash at 10:26:59 p.m., the flashlight on Ravnsborg’s cell phone was turned on and was illuminated until he turned it off about six minutes later at 10:33:15 p.m.

“This flashlight usage would coincide with steps taken with the Apple iPhone XR from 10:24:24 p.m., to 10:34:23 p.m., where 848 steps were recorded,” the report stated. More: Read document

Ravnsborg wanted to know what info cellphone forensics could find

On Sept. 15, 2020, the attorney general wanted to know what cellphone data would be discoverable to law enforcement examining his phones and turned to agents working under him in the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation, which had handed off the case to North Dakota investigators due to the conflict of interest.

According to then-DCI agent Brent Gromer, Ravnsborg asked him what level of data cellphone application usage, emails and other device activity or inactivity would be retrievable by investigators. MORE: Read documents

Witness didn’t see Boever carrying flashlight

Detectives spoke with a witness who said she’d seen Boever’s white truck and an individual walking in the shoulder toward Highmore around 10:20 p.m. Sept. 12, 2020. The person she saw walking was in the shoulder and “the white line was between (the witness) and the individual.” She didn’t notice if they had been carrying a flashlight.

The witness also stated in the interview with investigators that she didn’t have her high beams on “but could still see him over there.” More: Read document

3 people witnessed a man walking on the side of the road before the crash

A husband, wife and their daughter on their way to Pierre from Huron told North Dakota investigators they observed a man walking along the edge of the grass on Highway 14. They spotted him as they entered the west edge of Highmore, stating to authorities he was walking westbound on the northside of of the highway. The male was wearing jeans, a cap and a blue sweatshirt, the witnesses stated.

That was between 9:55 p.m. and 10:15 p.m., the witnesses told police. The driver turned his high-beam headlights on shortly before seeing the male, and he said visibility at the time was normal.

More: Read document

Friend of Ravnsborg had been told Ravnsborg was the one who died in the crash

In interviews with people who’d spoken to Ravnsborg in the immediate aftermath of the crash, Kristie Fiegen, the vice chairperson of the Public Utilities Commission, had been told by an employee of the Public Utilities Commission that Ravnsborg had died in the crash. She called Ravnsborg’s cell and spoke with him. She and her family put him on speaker phone and prayed for him.

Fiegen and Ravnsborg had grown close over the 2018 campaign trail.

Fiegen also told investigators that they had spoken on another occasion after the crash, where at the time she felt that she had to keep the information confidential because her “husband did not keep things to himself and had he known any details about the crash, he would have told others.”

Later when Ravnsborg sent out a press release about the crash, all information he had told Fiegen had been included. More: Read document

Blood splatter found on Taurus

Investigators found human blood along the passenger side of the vehicle, including the rear passenger side tire, on the passenger side kick paneling and the underside of the rear bumper. The vehicle’s headlights were also deemed to be illuminated at the time of the crash.

Toxicology: Ravnsborg had no drugs or alcohol in his system

According to a report filed by North Dakota investigator Arnie Rummel, a toxicology test found Ravnsborg had no drugs or alcohol in his system when the blood sample was taken on September 13, 2020, the day after the crash.

Victor Nemec, Boever’s relative, came looking for him the day after the crash

Boever’s neighbor told North Dakota law enforcement that on Sept. 13, she had just returned from a weekend camping trip when Nemec was spotted at Boever’s home. Nemec asked the neighbor if she knew where Boever was, and she told Nemec she did not. Boever and the neighbor would check on each other frequently, her testimony to law enforcement states.

At one point, a month and a half prior to the crash, the neighbor intervened when Boever “nearly drank himself to death,” her testimony states. She told police Boever was on medications for bipolar disorder, alcohol, ADHD and diabetes.

Part of Ravnsborg’s initial defense was to question the mental state of Boever at the time of the crash, including whether Boever had been suicidal. More: Read document

Ravnsborg texted Bormann and Natvig 'I am OK but my car is not' minutes after 911 call

According to a cell phone exam from the North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation, Ravnsborg texted a photo of the car crash in a group message to AG chief of staff Tim Bormann and DCI director Dave Natvig at 10:33 p.m., the night of the crash. That was 9 minutes after he called 911, at 10:24 p.m. One of the messages read "I am OK but my car is not."

After Ravnsborg texted Bormann and Natvig at 10:33 p.m. a photo of his damaged car, Natvig replied, “Oh (expletive) … did the deer die instantly? Are you sure you’re OK?” at 10:53 p.m, according to released cell phone exam documents from North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation.

Ravnsborg responded with an audio clip at 10:53 p.m.: “I was about a mile west of Highmore and I hit something in the road it didn’t show any blood or anything in the car but it smashed the hell out of it.”

Released cell phone exams from North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation from Oct. 2020 show Ravnsborg made “several outgoing phone calls” to Natvig, Bormann, and his father, Richard Ravnsborg, during the timeframe between leaving the accident and returning to Pierre the night of the car crash. Other activity during that time was instant messages between Ravnsborg, Bormann and Natvig. More: Read document

Highmore sheriff saw Boever’s truck on the night of the accident

After loaning Ravnsborg his personal vehicle on the night of Sept. 12, Volek had to pull over Ravnsborg to get the keys to the attorney general’s Ford Taurus so that it could be towed. It was then that he noticed Boever’s white pickup on the side of the road.

The truck was unoccupied, and Volek called Harlan Reid, the registered owner. Reid told Volek that he has sold the truck to Joseph Boever. Both Reid and Boever were known to Volek.

Among the evidence gathered at the scene was an illuminated flashlight, that is described as “small.” More: Read document

What was the last thing Ravnsborg remembered before the crash?

Ravnsborg told North Dakota investigators on Sept. 30, 2020, the last things he remembered before hitting Boever was setting his phone down, turning off his radio from a Minnesota Twins baseball game, and looking down at his speedometer.

He remembered seeing the speed limit sign, and looking down, but did not engage in cruise control. He told detectives he did not feel fatigued, but felt normal from the drive from Redfield.

He had told detectives he wanted quiet time to think about a few big cases his office had.

Ravnsborg did not notice Boever’s glasses in his passenger side floorboard until investigators showed him the photograph during their interviews with him. That was despite Ravnsborg reaching through the driver side to get to the glove compartment, which had opened during the crash, to get registration and insurance documents. More: Read documents

Lincoln Day Dinner not a drinking event

Ravnsborg had been traveling to Pierre from a Republican Party function in Redfield, called the Lincoln Day Dinner. Other attendees as well as staff and the owner of the bar and grill where it was held told investigators that Ravnsborg had ordered only a soda. A receipt provided to investigators showed he paid $2.42 for the soda and added a $2.58 tip.

The owner told investigators only one person at the event was drinking and that she “didn’t make any money at the Lincoln Day Dinner.”

Two of the attendees were state lawmakers Brock and Lana Greenfield, who both said they hadn’t seen Ravnsborg drinking and that he’d left the function before them. More: Read documents

Noem’s former chief of staff tells Ravnsborg they want transparency “from the first”

Redacted Facebook messages reveal Tony Venhuizen, Noem’s former Chief of Staff, corresponded with Ravnsborg on Sept. 13, 2020, the day Noem gave a press conference on the collision.

“Governor Noem is in SF and is going to do a press conference yet today to give the facts as to the accident involving the AG and how the state investigation will proceed,” wrote Venhuizen on Sept. 13. “She believes she needs to be transparent from the first.” MORE: Read documents

Boever suffered “severe trauma” from impact

North Dakota Special Agent Joe Arenz arrived at the accident scene at approximately 4 p.m. on Sept. 13. Arenz was one of several North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation agents called to assist the investigation. Arenz described seeing Joe Boever’s body on the side of Highway 14. The injuries were consistent with a violent collision. Boever’s right leg had been amputated below the knee, he had suffered “substantial trauma” to his body and face. Boever’s left leg had been bent to the extent his left foot was next to the left side of his face. More: Read document

Various samples collected from crash site including plastic fork

Various samples were taken from the crash site, including the spots on the highway as well as swabs on Ravnsborg’s car. A plastic fork was collected with red staining on it found on the shoulder of the highway. It was collected as “broken plastic fork with possible blood,” but it didn’t meet the lab’s minimum threshold for amplification, according to the report, though it was presumed positive for human blood. In an email between the Hyde County Prosecution and the North Dakota investigators, it was deemed that the fork and the substance on it were important and they requested it to be tested. More: Read document

This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: New documents on Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg's crash released