State v. Seidschlaw

WOLLMAN, Chief Justice.

Appellant was charged with two counts of murder as the result of an automobile accident. The trial court dismissed the murder counts at the close of the State’s case but allowed the case to proceed on two counts of first-degree manslaughter. Appellant was found guilty by a jury on both counts and was sentenced to twenty-five years’ imprisonment on each count, the sentences to run consecutively. We reverse and remand.

During the early morning hours of December 29, 1979, appellant was driving a motor vehicle in Sioux Falls when his erratic driving behavior attracted the…