Janklow Gets 100 Days

AMA calls sentence an insult

American Motorcyclist, April 2004, Page 24

For motorcyclists, it was the trial of the decade. Bill Janklow, South Dakota’s only congressman and the state’s former governor, stood accused of second-degree manslaughter and lesser charges in the highway death of a motorcyclist last August.

In December, a jury near his home town quickly convicted Janklow of the felony manslaughter charge, agreeing with the prosecution that he had driven a car through a stop sign at a speed estimated at over 70 mph, directly into the path of motorcyclist Randolph Scott, 55, of Hardwick, Minnesota. Scott died at the scene, and Janklow, 64, who had a long history of speeding and other traffic violations, could have faced more than 11 years in prison.

But when Circuit Judge Rodney Steele sentenced the congressman on January 22, he ordered Janklow to serve only 100 days in jail. And he decreed that Janklow would be eligible for a work-release program, under which he could be out of jail for up to 10 hours a day, after a mere 30 days.

In addition, Janklow lost his drivers license for three years, will be on probation for three years, and must pay $11,000 in fines and other costs.

According to an Associated Press review of South Dakota court records dating back to 1989, 80 percent of those convicted of second-degree manslaughter have been sent to jail or prison. The average jail time was six months, and the average prison term was almost seven years.

“The AMA is extremely disappointed with this sentence,” said Edward Moreland, AMA vice president for government relations, when the ruling was announced. “This judge has handed down a judicial insult not only to motorcyclists, but to all roadway users, and specifically to the memory of Randolph Scott, the motorcyclist who paid the price for Mr. Janklow’s criminal conduct.”

For further information on the AMA's reaction, see Greg Harrison's column on page 14.

Janklow, who resigned from the U.S. House of Representatives effective January 20, entered the Minnehaha County Jail on February 7, which means his sentence will be over by May 17. During the time he spends at the Minnehaha County Jail, he will wear striped jail garb and be locked in a small concrete cell with a desk, a chair or stool, a bunk and a toilet.

When he does get out, Janklow will face a lawsuit filed by Scott’s family seeking damages for wrongful death. That suit was filed in a state court in Minnesota in part because it reduces the chances Janklow could escape liability under a legal technicality.

In a federal court, Janklow could argue that he was fulfilling his duties as a congressman at the time of the fatal crash, which might make the federal government liable.

By filing the suit in the Minnesota state court, the family has reduced the possibility that Janklow could get it reassigned to federal court. And that means the congressman may pay for his crime in dollars, even if he isn’t paying much in time.