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Thursday, December 4, 2014 | A5
Vucurevich family in court again
Jonathan Ellis
Argus Leader
A circuit court judge will
decide in the next couple of
weeks whether one of the
state’s wealthiest men owes
more than $1.6 million to a
Sioux Falls developer.
Judge Robin Houwman,
of the 2nd Circuit Court,
has been asked by developer
Ted Thoms to enter a judgment against Tom Vucurevich. Thoms is seeking $1.6
million plus interest, attorney fees and other expenses
related to an agreement that
Vucurevich signed with
Thoms in September 2013.
That agreement bought
out Thoms’ claim in bankruptcy court against Kent
Vucurevich, the son of Tom
Vucurevich. Thoms was
among the creditors who
forced Kent Vucurevich into
an involuntary bankruptcy
filing in 2011 in what is the
largest personal bankruptcy
filing in state history with
creditors claiming as much
as $70 million.
The bankruptcy case,
which is a separate action
in federal court, is currently under appeal after
the bankruptcy judge ruled
against Kent Vucurevich by
not discharging his debt.
Tom Vucurevich is the
son of John Vucurevich,
who built a banking empire
and established a foundation in his name that has
donated millions to charity.
John Vucurevich, who was
from Rapid City, died in
2005 at 92. Tom Vucurevich took over the family
business.
Thoms and Kent
Vucurevich were business
partners on development
deals, and the two owned
the Sioux Falls Storm
indoor football team. But
Kent Vucurevich’s dealings with Thoms and other
developers, banks, investors
and business partners went
south when the real estate
market crashed in 2008.
Those who alleged they
were owed money forced
Kent Vucurevich into an
involuntary bankruptcy filing.
Tom Vucurevich agreed
to buy out Thoms’ claims
in an agreement last year
between Thoms and Arbors
Edge Land Holdings, a
company controlled by Tom
Vucurevich. The agreement
called for Thoms to receive
a promissory note for
$1.58 million, to be paid at
$158,000 a year. The agreement called for the elder
Vucurevich to pay attorney
fees, and it established penalties for missed payments.
A lawyer for Thoms filed
for summary judgment,
asking Houwman to declare
that Tom Vucurevich and
Arbor’s Edge breached the
agreement. Wilson Kleibacker told Houwman in a
hearing this week that Tom
Vucurevich and Arbor’s
Edge were in default.
B u t M a r k O ’ L e a r y,
a lawyer representing
Arbor’s Edge and Tom
Vucurevich, argued it
would be wrong to grant
summary judgment
IN BRIEF
because there were disputed issues that needed
to be resolved through discovery and litigation.
“ T h e re a re ge n u i n e
issues of fact here about
w h a t wa s go i n g o n ,”
O’Leary said.
For example, O’Leary
said that an audit of what
was paid to Thoms was
more than what the promissory note called for, and
he suggested that Kent
Vucurevich, who negotiated side deals and extensions with Thoms, did not
have his father’s authority
to do so.
But Kleibacker said that
any payments made to
Thoms were for late fees,
attorney fees and other
fees, and not money on
the promissory note. As
evidence, they presented
emails from Kent Vucurevich, which implied that he
agreed.
“The math is simple,”
Kleibacker said. “It’s not
something you need a CPA
to handle.”
»» From A1
Cameras
Bush said he would wait
and see what conditions
would be attached to seeking federal funds to upgrade
his department’s camera
system.
A few miles north in
Belle Fourche, Police Chief
Scott Jones said his dozen
officers have been using
body cams since spring
2013, and he’s sold on the
idea of recording every
police incident.
“My job as a chief is to
make sure my officers are
doing their job and not
violating guidelines,” Jones
said. “These devices make
sure that the public aren’t
victims of the police.”
The cameras are lighter
than most of the equipment
officers carry, Jones said,
but they’re far tougher than
a cellphone with video ability. One even survived a car
wash, he said, while others
have been knocked around
in ways that would destroy
a regular smartphone.
The $800 units aren’t
perfect, Jones said, but they
work. The battery can handle a 12-hour police shift
and, when fully charged, up
to four hours of video.
In addition to dismissing false charges against
officers and providing evidence for court proceedings, Jones said camera
footage has been used to
show officers how they can
perform more effectively in
certain situations.
Belle Fourche officers
are required to turn on
their body camera every
time there is a request for
service, Jones said. In the
5 percent of cases that
require the footage in court,
he said, “We just burn a
DVD and turn it over to the
states attorney’s office.”
In view of the life expectancy of new technologies,
Jones said, he “absolutely”
would apply for a federal
grant to buy additional
camera equipment.
Western South Dakota’s
largest police force, Rapid
City’s, does not use body
cams, but is calculating
the costs of equipping its
120 officers and overall
expenses of long-term
digital storage.
“Prior to Ferguson, having body cameras was not
an issue; post-Ferguson,
it’s in the national spotlight,” Rapid City Capt. Dan
Rud said. “We have started
doing research, discussing
them with other agencies
that use body cams. But to
outfit our patrol officers,
of whom we have about
75 who work the streets,
we’re talking a lot of money
to outfit them with body
cameras.”
But Rud added that he
thought Rapid City officers
would be wearing them “in
the near future.”
“I think the officers
will like them,” Rud said,
“ because they see the
benefit from them just as
they’ve seen benefits from
the dash (cameras) installed
in our 29 patrol units.”
Deadwood Police also
do not yet employ body
cams, relying on dashboard
Josh Morgan, Journal staff
Belle Fourche Police Officer Jeremy Biegert, 33, on Wednesday wears his body camera as he
patrols a neighborhood in Belle Fourche. Body cameras were issued to Belle Fourche officers
in spring 2013.
cameras and two Main
Street surveillance cameras
to capture questionable
activities, said Chief Kelly
Fuller. But, Fuller said, he
expected Deadwood to soon
join the technology revolution.
“Small departments like
ours deal with limited budgets so sometimes it takes
time for that technology
to saturate,” he said. “I’ve
done preliminary research
and I can see the positives
of body cameras.”
Next door at the Lawrence County Sheriff ’s
Office, Chief Deputy Paul
Hansen said his department was exploring the
effectiveness and costs of
body cams long before the
incident in Ferguson.
“It’s a budget concern,”
Hansen said. “We want
to make sure we have the
right stuff.”
I f fe d e ra l m o n ey i s
available, Hansen said,
“I’m sure every department will look at it, as will
we.”
Up the hill in Lead, City
Administrator Mike Stahl
said the town’s Police
Department has dash
cams, but not the money
right now for body cams.
In the Southern Hills,
Custer County Sheriff Rick
Wheeler said his agency
tried inexpensive equipment, then won a $11,500
state grant to equip all 11
deputies with body cams.
“Our officers have been
wearing them for about
six months, and we make
it mandatory that they
wear them,” Wheeler said.
“It’s almost expected in
the court system anymore,
because the cameras tell
the story.”
In addition to protecting officers from false
accusations, footage from
body cams aid his deputies in writing accurate,
detailed reports on incidents, he said.
“These things can fill
in the gaps,” Wheeler said,
“and help us make a lot
more solid case.”
He said he doubts he
would compete for federal
grants; rather, he wants
other agencies to get the
equipment.
Down the road in Hot
Springs, interim Police
Chief Michael Close, who
officially assumes command of his seven-member force on Saturday, said
he was impressed with the
results of the body cams
his department uses, but
t h e l ow- g ra d e e q u i p ment needs replacing, so
he would pursue a federal
grant.
He said he has seen the
benefits of even a substandard system.
“There have been a few
instances where, if we
didn’t have them, it would
b e o u r o f f i ce r ’s wo rd
against someone else’s,”
605-787-6748
Police use stun
gun on man
A routine traffic stop
for expired license plates
turned into a tussle when
a passenger who ran from
the officer was shocked
with a Taser on Tuesday.
The excitement started
when a Rapid City police
officer stopped a car for
expired license plates
around 11:30 a.m. near
North Maple Street and
Surfwood Drive. Someone
jumped from the backseat
of the car and ran away.
The officer chased and
caught up with Newton
Two Two, 32, Rapid City.
Two Two fought with the
officer, who used his Taser
to subdue him.
Two Two was arrested
on outstanding warrants
for driving under the
influence, hit and run and
consuming in public. He
faces an additional charge
for obstructing police. His
bond is set at $1,000.
The car’s driver, Dugan
Fast Wolf, 23, Rapid City,
was charged and arrested
for possession of marijuana.
Drivers in the Canyon
Lake neighborhood will
have to plan a little more
time for their morning and
evening commutes as construction begins Wednesday on Canyon Lake Drive.
Lanes of traffic will be
narrowed there between
Evergreen Drive and Minnekahta Drive for the rest
of the month. Construction is scheduled formally
between December 3 and
December 31.
The work is being done
by R.C.S. Construction.
For more information, call
342-3787.
Decision could
come in Feb.
PIERRE | U.S. Sen. John
Thune says a final decision
on an expansion of training airspace for bombers
from Ellsworth Air Force
Base in South Dakota
could come as soon as
February. The Republican
senator says the Air Force
is expected to make its
decision on the proposed
expansion of the Power
River Training Complex
late next month. The Federal Aviation Administration then would consider
it. Thune says he’s worked
with the agency to get an
answer in about 45 days.
Minnesota tries to
keep beetles away
ST. PAUL, MINN. | Minnesota
regulators have proposed
a quarantine in hopes of
keeping mountain pine
beetles out of the state.
The beetle has devastated huge swaths of
forest in the Rockies, and
scientists fear the insects
could threaten the majestic pines of Minnesota
and other Great Lakes
states someday. Living
specimens have not been
found in Minnesota so
far, but dead beetles have
been found twice in wood
transported to Minnesota.
Mark Abrahamson, an
entomologist for the state
Department of AgriculForest use permits ture, said the proposed
quarantine would ban
on sale Friday
freshly cut logs from states
Day use passes for infested with the mounmany Black Hills National tain pine beetle that have
Forest recreation sites are the bark still on them.
available for half-price for
one day only on Friday, Rings found in
Dec. 5.
Premium passes that kettle claimed
include access to the SIOUX FALLS | A South
Sheridan and Pactola lake D a k o t a w o m a n h a s
complexes are $15. Stan- claimed the engagement
dard passes, on sale for ring and wedding band
$10, give holders access to found in a Salvation Army
all day use areas except the red kettle.
lakes.
Katie Christie of Sioux
Passes are sold at the Falls was reunited with her
following Forest Service lost jewelry Wednesday
offices: Bearlodge Ranger after the Salvation Army
District in Sundance, put out an alert Tuesday
Wyo., Northern H ills looking for the owner of
Ranger District in Spear- the rings. The jewelry was
fish, Mystic Ranger Dis- found in a red kettle at the
trict in Rapid City and the downtown Sunshine Foods
Forest Supervisor’s office in Sioux Falls last week.
in Custer.
Christie took off the rings to
Mailed requests for apply hand lotion. She says
the passes must be post- she put them in her coin
marked between Dec. 3 purse, but forgot they were
and 5 and sent to FRM, there when she dumped
P.O. Box 1168, Hill City, change into the kettle.
S.D. 57745. Included a
check for the appropriate —Journal staff and wire
reports
amount.
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Milo Dailey of the Butte
County Post contributed to
this story.
A R a p i d C i ty m a n
is facing drug-related
charges after he reportedly
drove off after his vehicle
hit another vehicle Tuesday.
According to Rapid
City police, Derek Jones,
29, was behind the wheel
when his vehicle collided with another vehicle
around 2:45 p.m. at St.
Joseph Street and West
Boulevard. Jones drove off
after the collision.
Police found his vehicle
at the corner of Third and
Quincy streets, where they
charged and arrested him
for third offense driving
under the influence, possession of methamphetamine, possession of drug
paraphernalia and leaving
the scene of an accident.
Jones remains in the
Pennington County Jail
under a $30,000 bond.
Construction
begins today
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Close said. “They have
had a great impact,” Close
added. The body cameras
“see everything we see,
and a jury can see everything as well.”
Meanwhile, Spearfish
police officers probably
will be wearing state-ofthe-art cameras before
the year is out, Chief Pat
Rotert said Wednesday.
“We’ve been working
toward it for several years,”
Rotert said, “but we were
waiting for the right product. We were looking at it
as a tool for evidence collection and a way to protect us from liability issues
way before the Ferguson
incident.”
Spearfish recently
spent $6,000 to equip its
patrolmen with 14 new
body cams compatible
with the dash-cam system.
“It either happened a
certain way, or it didn’t,”
Rotert said. “The footage
from these cameras provides an objective view
instead of a subjective
view.”
Driver faces
drug charges
605.574.2868
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