South Dakota politics was shaken this week after one of the state's former attorneys general had his law license suspended by the state's Supreme Court. 

According to Fox59, the South Dakota Supreme Court suspended the law license of former state Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg due to actions he took during a fatal accident with a pedestrian.

The accident, the outlet noted, precipitated the downfall of his once-promising political career.

According to the state's high court, the former attorney general violated the state's "Rules of Professional Conduct," resulting in the suspension of his license to practice law.

What's going on?

The South Dakota Supreme Court came down hard on Ravnsborg as a result of his actions during the deadly pedestrian-related incident.

"Ravnsborg’s patent dishonesty concerning the use of his phone, as well as the developed forensic evidence, raise genuine questions about the integrity of his statements regarding the night of the accident," the ruling stated

"This conduct, particularly considering Ravnsborg’s prominent position as attorney general, reflected adversely on the legal profession as a whole and impeded the administration of justice."

Fox59 recapped what happened:

Ravnsborg, a Republican, was elected in 2018. He was impeached and removed from office less than two years after the 2020 accident that killed 55-year-old Joe Boever, who was walking along a rural stretch of highway when he was struck.

It added:

Ravnsborg was driving home from a political fundraiser the night of Sept. 12, 2020, when his car struck “something,” according to a transcript of his 911 call. He told the dispatcher it might have been a deer or other animal.

Relatives later said Boever had crashed his truck and was walking toward it, near the road, when he was hit.

The South Dakota State Bar's disciplinary wing had recommended a 26-month suspension of his law license, though it would have been retroactive to when he left political office in June 2022.

Doubting his remorse

The former attorney general spoke on his own behalf at the hearing, during which he expressed remorse for what had happened, but wasn't able to sell it to the court.

"I’m sorry, again, to the Boever family that this has occurred," Ravnsborg told the court. "It’s been 1,051 days, and I count them every day on my calendar, and I say a prayer every day for him and myself and all the members of the family and all the people that it’s affected. And I’m very sorry for that."

At an impeachment hearing in 2022, prosecutors suggested that Ravnsborg used his title and level of power to "set the tone and gain influence" in the aftermath of the crash.

The outlet noted that at this time, it's unclear if the former state AG will appeal the case.