THE LUCK OF THE IRISH WON’T GET YOU HOME SAFELY, BUT A DESIGNATED DRIVER WILL

The Luck o’ the Irish won’t get you home safely, but a sober designated driver will! The long-established traditions of St. Patrick’s Day, like corned beef and cabbage, and shamrocks, go hand-in-hand with the tradition of drinking Irish beer. If you plan on participating in St. Patrick’s Day festivities, don’t forget to plan for a sober ride home. Volunteer to be the sober driver; plan for a sober ride home; plan for that extra guest to spend the night; collect the keys—in short, do what it takes to ensure a safe and fun-filled St. Patrick’s Day. In 2016, there were 10,497 people who lost their life in a drunk-driving crash, a 1.7% increase from 2015. Exponentially more lives were forever changed by the loss of a parent, child, friend, or loved one. In advance of the celebration, NHTSA would like to invite you to a Twitter Chat on March 14, 2018 from 3-4 p.m. ET to provide stats and information on buzzed driving prevention. Experts will be available to answer questions while you spread the word and encourage your followers to plan ahead. We’ve also got plenty of other resources available for you to help spread this life-saving message. Who: NHTSA and our team of experts What: St. Patrick’s Day Buzzed Driving Twitter Chat When: Wednesday, March 14, 2018, 3 – 4 p.m. ET Where: www.Twitter.com/NHTSAgov How: Follow the conversation using the hashtag #BuzzedDriving. Feel free to mention @NHTSAgov in any of your tweets and we will get back to as many questions and comments as we can! Remember to include #BuzzedDriving in your comments so others can follow the conversation, too. Invite your friends and followers to join us and help spread the important message about planning ahead, designating a sober driver, and not getting behind the wheel impaired. Buzzed driving is completely preventable. All it takes is a little planning. Don’t rely on luck this St. Patrick’s day—get a sober ride home. Follow NHTSA on Facebook and Twitter to keep up to date with the latest recalls and safety campaigns. NHTSA’s SaferRide app will help keep drunk drivers off our roads by allowing users to call a taxi or a friend and by identifying their location so they can be picked up. Additional Resources >> Buzzed Driving Is Drunk Driving >> Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over >> Impaired Driving Information at NHTSA.gov

US Senator Corey Booker on Criminal Justice Reform – Fair Chance Business Pledge

Washington, DC – If someone had pulled aside the signers of the Declaration of Independence 240 years ago and told them that, one day, the country they founded would be home to the largest number of imprisoned people in the world, they might have been more than a little disappointed.

US Congressman Corey Booker (official congressional photo)

Yet this is where we find our country today: The United States, founded on the basis of liberty and justice for all, suffers from that distinction. Twenty five percent of all imprisoned people on our planet are imprisoned right here in America. And the fact of the matter is that, at the federal level, the majority of those imprisoned aren’t hardened, violent prisoners. Far too many are nonviolent, low-level drug offenders.

Thanks to policies enacted by Congress, our federal prison population has exploded by nearly 800 percent over the past the 30 years. And to pay for it, we’ve had to increase our prison spending by almost 400 percent. But the fact that these polices were enacted by our government in the first place should serve as a reminder that we have the agency to change them.

Momentum is building across America — in states, in the federal government, in both political parties — to change this misapplication of justice that so grossly misrepresents our priorities as a nation.

A diverse coalition of individuals, groups, and organizations — ranging from Democrats to Republicans to law enforcement officials and clergy — have come together to call for a comprehensive change in the trajectory of our justice system. And under President Obama’s leadership, the collective vision of these groups has found a home and a voice in the White House.

I have been proud to stand by President Obama as he has taken courageous steps in recent years to make our justice system more just.

Today, the White House is announcing that over 300 companies and organizations have signed the Fair Chance Business Pledge, a commitment to eliminate unnecessary hiring barriers facing people with a criminal record. Along with this step and a series of Administrative actions to enhance the fairness and effectiveness of the criminal justice system, he’s shown that the federal government can lead the way to progress.

President Obama has created a legacy of bold action that we must carry on to elevate the cause of criminal justice reform, from Congress to statehouses across the country.

But the conversation can’t stop there, and neither can the work. We must once again declare that we are a nation of independence, rooted in the spirit of interdependence. What happens to any of us, happens to all of us — and we won’t get where we want to go faster by leaving anyone behind.

I look forward to standing shoulder to shoulder with you in this fight to reclaim our criminal justice system in the years to come.

Thank you,
Cory Booker
U.S. Senator

South Dakota Gov. Daugaard To Appoint Jeffrey Connolly As Seventh Circuit Judge

November 29, 2016

PIERRE, S.D. – Gov. Dennis Daugaard announced today that he will appoint Jeffrey Connolly of Rapid City as a circuit court judge in South Dakota’s Seventh Circuit Court.                                                                     

“Jeff is an outstanding attorney and will be an excellent circuit judge,” said Gov. Daugaard. “I thank him for leaving his private practice to serve the public in this important role.

Connolly will succeed Judge Wally Eklund, who is retiring at the end of the year. The Seventh Circuit includes Custer, Fall River, Oglala Lakota and Pennington counties.

“I am humbled and honored by the confidence Gov. Daugaard has placed in me,” said Connolly. “I look forward to serving the people of the Seventh Circuit and the State of South Dakota.”

Jeffrey Connolly (submitted photo)

Connolly is an attorney at Gunderson, Palmer, Nelson and Ashmore in Rapid City, and has been with the firm since 2007. Prior to joining the firm, Connolly was a clerk for the United States Court for the District of South Dakota, working for Hon. Karen Schreier and Hon. Andrew Bogue. Connolly’s practice includes civil, criminal and family law, including public defense. He has served as a presiding officer for judicial complaints for the Oglala Sioux Tribal Council, and as a special prosecutor for the Rosebud Sioux Tribe. 

Connolly is a 1996 graduate of Itasca Community College in Grand Rapids, Minnesota, and 1998 graduate of the University of Wisconsin – Madison, and a 2006 graduate of the University of South Dakota School of Law, where he was an editor of the South Dakota Law Review.

Connolly has taught legal courses as an adjunct, and is a member of the board of directors for Dakota Plains Legal Services. He has served as president of the Pennington County Bar Association and as the chairman of the State Bar’s Social Media Committee. He is also a member of the Rapid City Public Parks Foundation Board of Directors and a lifetime member of the Mount Rushmore Society.

Connolly and his wife, Katie, have one son.