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Bill Janklow was a pillar of South Dakota politics for over 30 years. He served first as governor of South Dakota, then as a United States congressman.
He's also an NDMF.
Last year, he blew through a stop sign and killed motorcyclist Randy Scott. On Thursday, he was sentenced to 100 days in jail on second-degree manslaughter. Circuit Court Judge Rodney Steele ruled that Janklow would serve the first 30 days in jail, then be assigned to a daytime work-release program, which Judge Steele said would give him an opportunity to teach.
Oh yeah. Did I mention he's a Republican?
So let me get this right: If you're a Republican congressman and you squish someone flat with your car, you get to teach for seventy days after breaking rocks for 30. But what subject should he teach?
Driver's Ed. Of course!
Just think of the "special" things he'll teach them..."when you decide to nail a guy on a little motorcycle, hit 'em head on, but if he's on a big motorcycle be sure to hit him with the corner of your car, so it's cheaper to fix." And even more important considering Janklow's driving record--he makes Elwood Blues look like a candidate for the Safe Driving Award--is the binary nature of the gas pedal in his car: all the way down or all the way up.
Now if this was Tom Daschle, there'd be no doubt as to the nature of his punishment: prison for ninety-eight and a year and we'll call it even, Tommy Ninety-Nine. But NDMF Bill, who shouldn't even be allowed behind the wheel of a golf cart, can kill someone deader'n hell and get a hundred days in the slammer--not penitentiary, but county jail, and it's basically thirty days in jail and seventy in a free hotel with really good locks on the doors. I bet they'll even let him bring his own pillow.
Why aren't they giving this guy three-to-five like everyone else who does this gets?
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