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- Republican North Dakota state Rep. Jason Dockter has been charged with a misdemeanor over a state-owned constructing owned by firms he is tied to.
- While obscure, the grievance alleges Dockter voted “on legislative bills appropriating money to pay for property he had acquired a pecuniary interest in.”
- Dockter has pleaded not responsible in the case, and is scheduled to be tried on May 3.
A North Dakota lawmaker faces a misdemeanor charge in connection with a state-leased constructing he has possession ties to.
Republican state Rep. Jason Dockter, of Bismarck, was charged final month with speculating or wagering on official motion. While the grievance gives few particulars, it says Dockter broke the legislation by “voting on legislative bills appropriating money to pay for property he had acquired a pecuniary interest in” and cites testimony from the state Ethics Commission’s govt director.
Prosecutor Ladd Erickson confirmed the charge includes a constructing leased in 2020 beneath the late legal professional normal, Wayne Stenehjem.
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Dockter is a co-owner of firms that personal and renovated the constructing, which was leased by the legal professional normal’s workplace to deal with divisions of the workplace. Dockter was pals with Stenehjem, however has stated the connection was not an element in arranging the lease.
The constructing incurred a building value overrun of over $1 million beneath Stenehjem, who died in January 2022. Current Attorney General Drew Wrigley disclosed the fee overrun, which was lined by varied legal professional normal funds, in June 2022 — surprising lawmakers, who raised issues about belief and the way the constructing mission was dealt with.
Republican North Dakota state Rep. Jason Dockter chairs a legislative assembly on Tuesday, Aug. 22, 2023. (AP Photo/Jack Dura, File)
Soon afterward, data requests from the media revealed that Stenehjem’s assistant had directed the deletion of his state authorities e-mail account days after his dying, in addition to that of his chief deputy after he resigned months later.
Those deletions added to the general public uproar and Stenehjem’s assistant resigned across the time reporters came upon.
Wrigley has stated his workplace recouped about $625,000 after reconciling the preliminary estimate of the overrun with the constructing proprietor, however it’s unclear what the ultimate quantity is.
Wrigley stated his workplace has offered “every bit of information that is available to us and will continue to do the same up ahead. Like everyone else, we await the results of the process playing out.”
The controversy led to new leasing transparency and e-mail retention legal guidelines by the Legislature, and in addition probes by North Dakota’s state auditor and a Montana investigator.
Dockter, who has served in the North Dakota House since 2012 and was reelected in 2022, declined to touch upon the charge. A lady who answered the cellphone at Dockter’s legal professional’s workplace stated his legal professional can also be not commenting on the case.
Dockter has pleaded not responsible in the case and is scheduled for a jury trial on May 3.
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The misdemeanor carries a most penalty of practically a 12 months in jail and/or a $3,000 positive.
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