SD lawmaker charged with felony for damaging a county road got a $1,750 misdemeanor
Rep. Travis Ismay, R-Newell, was indicted by a Butte County grand jury in June 2026 on a Class 6 felony for intentionally damaging a public road, punishable by up to two years in prison. The incident came three days after he won his June 2 primary. On Aug. 21, 2026, under a plea deal, he pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor and was ordered to pay $1,750 in restitution and $78 in court costs. A statement from the new Butte County state's attorney said Ismay graded the road outside his home believing it was in poor shape, and the county had to send highway workers to fix it after reports it was unsafe to travel. House Majority Leader Scott Odenbach said the misdemeanor carries no repercussions he knows of for a House member. Ismay is unopposed in the Nov. 3 general election.
On Friday, Ismay was sentenced to pay $1,750 in restitution and $78 in court costs after entering a plea of “nolo contendere” to a misdemeanor charge of destruction of a highway.
The indictment states Ismay was responsible for intentionally digging up, removing or destroying a public highway, bridge or a driveway laid out by authority of law or bridge.
Agreed statement said he 'took action to improve the roadway, not destroy the roadway'; he praised the prosecutor's 'common sense' approach.
No outcome recorded yet.