Jackley leverages newest criminal charges into push for legislative overhaul

Attorney General pitches 'government anti-corruption act' while confirming results of latest revenue department investigation

(Jonathan Ellis/The Dakota Scout)

Attorney General Marty Jackley will ask lawmakers to pass a four-point plan to address corruption in state government following his announcement of criminal charges Wednesday against two more former state employees.

The package that Jackley intends to introduce piggybacks on unsuccessful legislation he sponsored years ago following the notorious EB-5 and Gear-Up corruption scandals that involved government employees. Some of those proposals, he said, were part of his platform in his unsuccessful run for governor in 2018.

Jackley confirmed the indictment and criminal charges against two former Department of Revenue employees during the Sioux Falls press conference, flanked by agents from the Division of Criminal Investigation. Lynne Hunsley, a revenue supervisor, is charged with five felonies and two misdemeanors related to the purchase of a new vehicle. Jackley said she allegedly lied about a trade-in vehicle in order to escape paying the state excise tax on the car.

“She was doing her own personal business, and allegedly purchasing a new vehicle,” Jackley told the scrum of reporters. “To avoid the excise tax, she indicated there was a trade-in, and there was not.”

RELATED: High-ranking South Dakota officials warned of fraud years before action