Federal Judge Approves Settlement in ACLU’s First Amendment Challenge to South Dakota’s Anti-Protest Laws

The American Civil Liberties Union, the ACLU of South Dakota and the Robins Kaplan law firm filed the case on behalf of four organizations: Dakota Rural Action, Indigenous Environmental Network, NDN Collective and the Sierra Club; and two individuals: Nick Tilsen with NDN Collective and Dallas Goldtooth with Indigenous Environmental Network. All are planning to protest the Keystone XL pipeline and/or encourage others to do so.

The lawsuit challenged unconstitutional provisions of several South Dakota laws, including the “Riot Boosting” Act, that threatened activists who encourage or organize protests, particularly protests of the Keystone XL pipeline, with fines, civil liabilities, and/or criminal penalties of up to 25 years in prison.

Under the terms of the settlement, Gov. Kristi Noem and Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg will send a letter to the state’s attorneys in each county, telling them to direct law enforcement in their jurisdictions not to enforce the unconstitutional provisions of the laws. They also will compensate plaintiffs for attorneys’ fees.