Man Whose Crash Conviction Was Overturned Files $20M Lawsuit
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) — A former inmate whose conviction in a fatal crash on Interstate 90 was overturned in 2013 has filed a $20 million lawsuit against a South Dakota Highway Patrol trooper and his supervisor, the state and others.
Oakley Engesser claims in his federal lawsuit, filed Wednesday in Rapid City, that the trooper and other defendants withheld evidence that could have prevented his 2001 conviction on vehicular homicide and vehicular battery. Engesser’s case has involved years of legal wrangling in both the state and federal court systems but comes down to one question — who was driving a red Corvette on July 30, 2000.
The crash on I-90 near Sturgis killed Engesser’s friend, Dorothy Finley of Rapid City. Authorities accused Engesser, 56, of driving drunk with Finley in the vehicle and crashing her Corvette into a minivan while speeding more than 100 mph.
Jurors were shown a video recording of a Highway Patrol interview in which Engesser agreed he could have been driving the car but said he did not remember anything after leaving a Sturgis bar.
Engesser, who now lives in North Dakota, served 11 years of his 25-year sentence. A judge in October 2013 overturned Engesser’s conviction and ordered a new trial, a ruling the state Supreme Court upheld in November. Attorney General Marty Jackley in January decided against retrying Engesser.
Witnesses came forward after Engesser’s conviction and said they believed a woman was driving the car. But Engesser claims in the lawsuit that Trooper Edward Fox was responsible for investigating the crash and was told by two witnesses that a woman was driving the car.
“(The witness) specifically told Trooper Fox that the red Corvette, driven by Dorothy Finley, came within a few feet of him as it was skidding down the road. (The witness) clearly saw that a woman was driving and that a man was in the passenger seat,” according to the lawsuit. Engesser also argues Fox “lied at various hearings claiming he was unable to, ‘get any information from any witnesses as far as whether it was a male or female or any information at all about the driver.'”
Engesser also claims that Fox “at no time” informed him that at least two people had said they witnessed Finley driving.
In an attempt to reach out to Fox, who was sued in his official capacity, Highway Patrol spokesman Tony Mangan said the department can’t comment on pending litigation. Attorney General Marty Jackley wasn’t immediately available to comment, and a spokeswoman for Jackley said the state had not been served with the suit as of Thursday afternoon.
Aside from the state, the trooper and his supervisor, the lawsuit also names three individuals formerly associated with the Meade County state’s attorney office, including now-private attorney Jennifer Utter.
As of Thursday afternoon, Utter also had not been served, but said she believes this type of lawsuit “would not be unusual.”
“If a prosecutor is acting within the law and within the scope and duties of their position, then there is this concept of immunity,” said Utter, who as a state’s attorney in 2000 helped prepare the case for indictment. “However, we have a great system, which allows a person in his position to test every avenue that they wish and pursue their rights to due process and I fully embrace that process.”
Engesser is asking for $20 million in punitive damages and attorney fees.
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