Ravnsborg confident he hasn’t ‘committed any crime’

PIERRE, S.D. (KEVN) -Jason Ravnsborg is confident he hasn’t committed a crime.

The South Dakota Attorney General spoke with the press for the first time since striking and killing a pedestrian near Highmore in September. Previously, he had just released a statement.

An investigation looking into the fatal crash is still ongoing. Officials have been working with the Hyde County State’s Attorney’s Office to determine appropriate charges.

While casting an Electoral College vote for the state, Ravnsborg spoke about how he continued his daily duties as Attorney General.

“I believe I have not committed any crime. I believe that we will--when we have all the facts, not a selected amount of facts--we’ll know the full story and we’ll make a full statement,” he told a Black Hills FOX News reporter.

READ MORE: Everything we know about the Ravnsborg-Boever fatal accident

Ravnsborg was driving a 2011 Ford Taurus westbound on U.S. Highway 14 a mile west of Highmore when he struck Joseph Boever, 55, of Highmore at 10:30 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 12, according to a release from the South Dakota Highway Patrol.

The Attorney General called to dispatch the night of the accident, claiming he thought he hit a deer. Boever’s body was found in the ditch Sunday morning.

Later, it was revealed Ravnsborg was distractedly driving when he hit Boever on the shoulder of the road.

“I guess I would take great dispute that we are lying. I guess some things have come out that I do not believe accurate also, so we’ll just let the investigation run, and we’ll make a full statement when that has been completed,” Ravnsborg said.

State’s Attorney Crystal Johnson told the Argus Leader that the investigation could be complete by Christmas.

The Hyde County State’s Attorney’s Office is consulting state’s attorneys from Pennington, Minnehaha and Beadle counties to determine Ravnsborg’s charges.

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