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‘Don’t do that’: Attorney general says guilty verdict in state theft trial sends a message • South Dakota Searchlight [1]
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Date: 2025-04-03
PIERRE — South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley said Thursday that a woman’s conviction for stealing $1.8 million from the state should send a message.
“Don’t do that,” Jackley said during a press conference after the announcement of the verdict.
At the end of a three-day trial and an hour of deliberation, a Hughes County jury found 68-year-old Lonna Carroll guilty on two felony counts of grand theft. She’ll be sentenced later.
Jackley said he also hopes the case sends a message to potential whistleblowers.
“That they can come forth to us, that we will take action on it, and we will do everything that we can to protect those employees that are doing the right thing,” he said.
Carroll’s conviction is the highest-profile outcome in a recent wave of white-collar prosecutions in South Dakota state government, which have also spurred reforms and increased scrutiny on departmental financial controls.
During the trial, Jackley’s prosecution team laid out a paper trail illustrating Carroll’s scheme, played her recorded confession, and showed a document she signed saying she committed the crimes.
Carroll formerly worked as an administrative assistant for Child Protection Services in the Department of Social Services. Her crimes were discovered by a department employee after Carroll had retired and moved to Algona, Iowa.
Carroll was found guilty of submitting fraudulent financial requests on behalf of children no longer in the state’s care, depositing the funds into accounts opened under their names, and withdrawing the money in cash for herself. Prosecutors said she did that 215 times between 2010 and 2023, stealing a total of $1,777,665.73.
She faces up to 25 years in prison and a $50,000 fine for one count of aggravated grand theft, and 15 years in prison and a $30,000 fine for the other count.
Defense makes its case
Carroll’s defense attorney, Timothy Whalen, argued the state bore responsibility due to lax oversight. He also contended that the statute of limitations should have prevented the prosecution.
Whalen had Logan Aukes, who manages Williams & Company CPAs in Sioux Falls, testify as an expert auditor. He said the compartmentalized nature of responsibilities within the state department created an environment where employees could look around and say, “I’m not really being looked at in anything I do.”
Prior testimony explained that Child Protection Services has three tiers of approval for payment requests, and Carroll was authorized for all three levels.
Whalen said that because “my client was authorized,” the charges don’t fit the behavior.
Jackley called that absurd. He said there is no question the department left the door open for Carroll. But he said that leaving a door unlocked does not give someone the right to go through it.
Afterward, when asked why the case went to trial, Whalen said Carroll exercised her constitutional right after plea discussions failed to result in a resolution.
Asked whether an agreement was ever close, Whalen responded that there were plea offers back and forth, “for pleading to one count, two counts, different recommendations of sentence.”
“My client made the decision,” Whalen said.
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[1] Url:
https://southdakotasearchlight.com/2025/04/03/dont-do-that-attorney-general-says-guilty-verdict-in-state-theft-trial-sends-a-message/
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