No recall needed, School Board president to be bounced under state law upon conviction.

From my Mailbox:

Platte Man Pleads to Grand Theft by Law Enforcement

PIERRE, S.D. – Attorney General Marty Jackley and Brule County States Attorney David Natvig confirm that Brian William Biehl, 48, Platte, has pled guilty to one count of grand theft by law enforcement of seized property, class 4 felony, punishable by up to 10 years in the state penitentiary and/or $20,000 fine.

Charges stem from money taken while employed as a law enforcement officer with the South Dakota Highway Patrol.

Sentencing is scheduled for March 24, 2017 at 10:00 a.m. (CST) in Chamberlain.

Aside from being very unfortunate, one thing not mentioned in Attorney General Marty Jackley’s release is that the gentleman who has pled guilty is also the president of the Platte-Geddes School District.  As noted on KELOland:

Biehl is also school board president of the Platte Geddes School District.

Sources tell KELOLAND News that he continues to hold that position today.

Platte-Geddes Superintendent Joel Bailey says he cannot comment on Biehl’s status on the school board, calling it a personnel matter.

Biehl will be sentenced in March in Chamberlain.

Read that here.

I was curious and started looking into the need for recall, as according to Ballotpedia, the right of recall is fairly limited in South Dakota, and to my knowledge doesn’t include school board members:

In South Dakota, the right of recall extends to “the mayor, any commissioner, any alderman, or any member of the board of trustees” in municipal jurisdictions. It does not extend to members of the South Dakota State Legislature, representatives from South Dakota to the U.S. Congress or to statewide constitutional officers such as the Governor of South Dakota.

Read that here.

However, in this instance, it appears that there is an automatic disqualifier in South Dakota law which triggers a vacancy for “infamous crimes” or any offense involving a violation of the member’s official oath:

13-8-23.   Events creating vacancy on school board. A vacancy on the school board occurs if any of the following events happen before the expiration of the term of a school board member. If the member:

             (1)      Dies;

             (2)      Is removed from the board;

             (3)      Fails to qualify as a board member as provided by law;

             (4)      Ceases to be a resident of the school district or representation area where elected;

             (5)      Is convicted of any infamous crime or of any offense involving a violation of the member’s official oath;

             (6)      Has a judgment obtained against the member for breach of the member’s official bond;

             (7)      Is incapacitated and is unable to attend to the duties of the position;

             (8)      Assumes the duties of an office incompatible with the duties of a school board member;

             (9)      Resigns.

I suspect one becoming a felon, and ceasing to be a registered voter would affect this as well.