South Dakota is short on lawyers, and it is impacting lower income, rural defendants more than anyone else in the state.
But for State Supreme Court Chief Justice Steven Jensen, it is not enough to give University of South Dakota Knudson School of Law graduates a ticket out of the Bar exam.
The proposal last year to provide for “diploma privilege” was brought by Rep. Mary Fitzgerald (R-St. Onge). Fitzgerald’s daughter, a graduate of USD’s School of Law, has been unable to clear the Bar exam after numerous attempts.