Monday's Scores|
|By The Associated Press|
|Boys Basketball|
 Aberdeen Roncalli 70, Mobridge-Pollock 59
 Bridgewater-Emery 54, Dell Rapids St. Mary 44
 Canistota 58, Irene-Wakonda 37
 Chadron, Neb. 49, Hot Springs 39
 Freeman 64, Bon Homme 57
 Platte-Geddes 63, Andes Central 43
 Strasburg-Zeeland, N.D. 62, Herreid/Selby Area 52
 Viborg-Hurley 65, Scotland 18
 Wakpala 86, Timber Lake 51

|POSTPONEMENTS AND CANCELLATIONS|
 Elkton-Lake Benton vs. Castlewood, ppd.
 Iroquois vs. Estelline, ppd. to Dec 15.
 Arlington vs. Florence/Henry, ppd. to Jan 26.

|Girls Basketball|
 Baltic 60, Parker 52
 Beresford 55, Dakota Valley 45
 Chadron, Neb. 74, Hot Springs 23
 DeSmet 70, Wolsey-Wessington 14
 Ethan 42, Mt. Vernon/Plankinton 21
 Groton Area 57, Tiospa Zina Tribal 30
 Hanson 68, Parkston 59
 Langford 39, Great Plains Lutheran 28
 Lennox 42, West Central 38
 Milbank JV 55, Waubay 48
 Sioux Falls Christian 47, McCook Central/Montrose 33
 Wagner 60, Tripp-Delmont/Armour 37

|POSTPONEMENTS AND CANCELLATIONS|
 Elkton-Lake Benton vs. Castlewood, ppd.
 Arlington vs. Florence/Henry, ppd. to Jan 26.
 Lake Preston vs. Clark/Willow Lake, ppd.
 

South Dakota's good name is on the line over promises that Gov. Dennis Daugaard made behind the scenes to provide tax relief to two business projects.

The problem facing the governor is that a majority of South Dakota voters last month rejected the new business-grants program that he hoped would provide the money to pay for those promises.

Now his solution is to ask the Legislature for $5 million instead.

The money would assist France-based Bel Brands for a 400-employee cheese plant at Brookings and Baldwin Filters for further expansion of its Yankton manufacturing operations.

State commissioner of economic development Pat Costello said Monday the final amount might be higher because of the size of the cheese project.

Both Bel and Baldwin are receiving a variety of state and local financial assistance.

A combination of politics and timing snagged Daugaard as he worked to convince the companies to put jobs in South Dakota rather than elsewhere in the nation or Mexico.

The chain of events reaches back to 2010, when the Legislature decided to repeal South Dakota's construction-tax refund program for large business projects, after the previously confidential amounts of refunds started to be publicly known.

Then-Gov. Mike Rounds signed the repeal without a replacement. To allow time for a transition, the Legislature decided the refunds would end this year on Dec. 31.

That allowed Daugaard upon taking office in 2011 to propose a different type of subsidy program.

Daugaard wanted business grants that would be controlled by a state board appointed by the governor and funded through 22 percent of contractor excise tax revenues.

The Legislature's Republican majorities last year approved the business-grants program so that it would take effect Jan. 1, 2013, upon expiration of the refund program.

But South Dakota Democratic Party chairman Ben Nesselhuf successfully circulated petitions to refer the grants legislation to a statewide vote.

Nesselhuf took out the referendum petition on April 6, 2011. The state agreements were completed with Bel on June 3, 2011, and with Baldwin on July 12, 2011. Nesselhuf's petitions were accepted by the secretary of state on July 18, 2011.

Last month 57.6 percent of South Dakota voters said no to Daugaard's business-grants program, leaving the governor and his commitments in no-man's land.

Spokesman Tony Venhuizen said Monday the governor was committed throughout the process to using money from state government's Future Fund instead if necessary.

The Future Fund, created in 1987, siphons a small amount from employers into an economic development grant program that the governor controls.

Venhuizen said the Future Fund would be "pretty limited in its availability as a tool in the near term" if the Legislature doesn't appropriate the $5 million.

Future Fund grants totaled more than $12.8 million in 2010 and exceeded $13 million in 2011.

The governor wants the additional $5 million put into the Future Fund within the existing 2013 general state budget, so that he can tap it without setting up another program.

As a budget amendment, the Legislature's rules would allow the money to be transferred to the Future Fund on a simple majority, rather than the two-thirds majority vote needed for special appropriations.

To estimate the amounts for Bel and Baldwin, state officials used the now-expiring formula under the state's construction-tax refund program.

The formula relied on a sliding scale, linking the size of the project to the percentage of taxes refundable.

Commissioner Costello said Baldwin's amount was calculated at about $236,000 while Bel's would be about $4.5 million.

Costello said the state's liability to Bel "can be significantly more depending on their final construction and equipment cost."

The weekend blizzard in Aberdeen not only caused several events to be canceled Saturday and Sunday but it left more than 100 student-athletes, parents and coaches stranded in different cities,

Here were some of the teams that were stranded on Sunday because Interstate 29 and other roads were closed:

• Two Aberdeen pee wee hockey teams (11- to 13-year-olds) were stranded in Brookings. Each team had about 12 players.
• The Aberdeen bantam hockey team (13- to 15-year-olds) was stranded in Marshall, Minn., after playing a tournament there. There were 15 players, two coaches and parents.
• The Aberdeen Cougar hockey junior varsity team was stranded in Sioux Falls after playing two games in Sioux Center. There were about 15 players plus coaches and parents.
• Two Aberdeen girls soccer teams were stranded in Sioux Falls after a three-day tournament. The teams were the under 14 years old team and the under 12 years old team. There were 10 girls on each team plus coaches and parents.

All of the teams returned to Aberdeen Monday

"It was both good and bad," said George Schriver, the father of two daughters who played in the Sioux Falls soccer tournament. "We had fun after we were forced to stay another night in the hotel. The kids went swimming and they had a lot of fun."

While Sioux Falls missed the brunt of the storm, with only two inches of snow recorded over the weekend, Interstate 29 north of Sioux Falls was closed because of 11 inches of snow in Brookings. High winds created near white out conditions.

Aberdeen received 8.4 inches of snow Saturday and Sunday, according to the National Weather Service.

Ryan Mack, one of parents of a pee wee hockey team player, said that there was little choice on trying to make it back to Aberdeen.

"We didn't want to risk anything," he said. "Especially after seeing on the news about 15 cars in the ditch."

While there had been weather warnings starting on Thursday none of the tournaments or games were canceled.

"The weather kind of snuck up on us," Mack said. "This is winter."

While snow and high winds have stopped, temperatures were brutally cold on Monday. The low was 17 degrees below zero Monday morning and temperatures had reached only nine degree by 3 p.m., according to the National Weather Service. Temperature rose into double digits throughout the afternoon and early evening.

The high temperature Tuesday is expected to be 27 degrees with a high of 32 degrees on Wednesday, according to the weather service.

 The proposed amount in the governor's budget for each student is $4,625.65. That's a 3 percent increase from what was allotted last year, which was $4,490.92.

 A one-time cash infusion helped the school district last year, said Aberdeen Public School District Superintendent Gary Harms. The total amount received ended up being $4,590.20.

 To Harms, that means this upcoming year's budget actually proposes an increase of less than 1 percent.

 "We just have to do something to bring the funding up," said school board member Duane Alm. "It'd certainly be nice to get rid of those one-time funds and work for a long-term solution."

 For school board member Brad Olson, it's about the dollar amount, not the percentages.

 "The reality of the situation is we only have that many dollars to work with this year as a school board," he said.

 Harms said it doesn't seem like there will be more one-time funds available this upcoming fiscal year.

 "I'm not going to get upset yet," Harms said. "Not until we discover what the legislature does."

 The district saw more students, this year he reminded board members.

 "We have been blessed with increased enrollment, but per-student allocation presently is, in my opinion, inadequate," he said.

 The proposed per-student allocation is less than the dollar amount in state aid funding for the 2009 fiscal year.

 Cuts were made to state funding during the 2011 legislative session following a freeze in funding amounts the year before.

 "I just wanted to bring to light some of the figures brought to me," Harms said.

 The reason the district is able to complete major projects, like the Potter shop building, is because of community support that goes into the capital outlay fund, said board member Mike Miller.

 "People need to understand that there are different checkbooks," he said.

 Per-student allocations go into the general fund and cannot be moved around to other areas easily.

 In other news:

•  Amanda Mages and Taige Tople, two officers with Aberdeen Central High School's chapter of Students Against Drunk Driving, presented statistics to the board on alcohol-related fatalities. December is National 3D Month, which is a campaign to prevent drugged and drunk driving. Students will be promoting their message at school and extracurricular events.

•  Holgate Middle School principle Greg Aas presented a report on the school's peer tutoring program. The program, which is part of the Intensive Care Unit that gives extra help to students who are missing assignments, allows students to help their classmates. Eighth-grader Daymon Steuck, 13, talked to the school board about his duties as a peer tutor.

The Aberdeen City Council struck a compromise Monday on the issue of landscaping requirements in city parking lots.

 Under an amendment put forward Dec. 3, any existing business that has improved the green space of 20 percent of its total lot size could seek an exemption from the requirement that islands be built in its parking lot. 

 At Monday's meeting, the council decided that such a waiver should apply only to lots with a contiguous hard-surfaced area totaling 35,000 square feet or less. That amendment was suggested by council member Jennifer Slaight-Hansen.

  The council also approved a definition of what constitutes improved landscaping, as supplied by City Attorney Adam Altman.

  In addition, Slaight-Hansen's amendment also refined the 20 percent idea that councilman Todd Campbell suggested Dec. 3. Instead of city forester Aaron Kiesz, the three-member forestry committee will decide if 20 percent of a business' property has been suitably improved to waive the landscaping requirement.

 At Monday's meeting, Kiesz said he liked the idea of the forestry committee ruling on the 20 percent issue. A decision by the forestry committee could be appealed to the City Council.

 Campbell approved of the changes. He said he's not trying to help a business get around the ordinance. He could think of only a dozen businesses, at most, to which the 20 percent rule would apply. It would also apply only to businesses that have landscaped their property as of the date the ordinance is passed.

 Mayor Mike Levsen said he would have voted against the ordinance as it was constituted last week. He wasn't ready to say goodbye to the concept of greenery inside parking lots. The changes approved Monday, he said, meant that businesses will still have to build islands in "humongous pasture-sized parking lots." Steps taken at Monday's meeting, he said, produced a good middle ground that he could live with.

 A football field, he said, measures 45,000 square feet.

 The council approved the first reading of the ordinance Monday. The second reading is set for Dec. 17.

 One number has been the subject of discussion the last two meetings. Currently, if a business has a hard-surfaced area of 5,000 square feet or less, all the landscaping can go on the perimeter of the lot. City administrators suggested that landscaping could be on the perimeter if the lot is 10,000 square feet or smaller. At the Dec. 3 meeting, the council agreed on Campbell's idea that the number increase to 15,000 square feet.

 On Monday night, Slaight-Hansen made a motion to return that number to 10,000 square feet. That motion failed by a 5-4 vote. Voting in favor of the motion were Clint Rux, Tom Agnitsch, Slaight-Hansen and Jeff Mitchell.

 The council also discussed changing the makeup of the forestry committee, which now consists of members of the Parks, Recreation and Forestry Board. It's not that the current members don't do a good job, Laure Swanson said. But it would be good to include people who aren't members of the Parks Board.

 At the beginning of the meeting, City Engineer Robin Bobzien gave a report on the plowing following the weekend snowfall. There were a few breakdowns, but overall the cleanup was not bad, he said.

 Just less than 250 vehicles were towed Monday, he said. That number did not approach a couple of snowstorms last year and the year before, when nearly 500 vehicles were towed.

 More than 1,300 people have signed up for the city's text alerts, which is helping to spread the word, Bobzien said.

 All the residential and the downtown commercial area were plowed Monday. Work on the parking lots was done Monday night, he said.

Prairie Business Magazine has named 10 people from the Aberdeen area to its annual list of 40 business leaders under age 40.

The magazine, based in Grand Forks, N.D., published the award winners along with biographical descriptions in its December issue.

Aberdeen area winners and descriptions from the magazine include:

Kory Anderson, 29 - president, Horsch Anderson, Anderson Industries, Anderson Brothers Farms.
 Anderson began working as an engineering manager for Horsch Anderson in Andover in 2005. He launched Anderson Industries in Aberdeen in 2006 and has steadily expanded the business, most recently through the acquisition of a Mapleton, N.D., company in 2011. Additionally, he and his brother formed Anderson Brothers Farm in 2011, a farming business that raises corn and soybeans.

Derrick Dinger, 32 - managing director, Northwestern Mutual.
Dinger became managing director for Northwestern Mutual in 2009 and has since grown his office from three representatives to 10. Production has more than doubled. In 2012, he received the Emerging Leader award from the Aberdeen Area Chamber of Commerce. He is an active member of the Wolves Club Board of Trustees and a committee member for Northern State University Athletics.

Scott Eisenbeisz, 36 - director of clinic operations for Sanford Health Aberdeen Clinic.
Eisenbeisz became the clinic director at Sanford Aberdeen in 2010 and oversees a medical staff of more than 40 providers. Previously he served in a variety of administrative roles within Sanford Health, most recently as director of primary care. In that position he worked with rural health clinics, quality payment programs, the Diabetes Health Coach program and electronic health record projects.

Randy Grismer, 38 - general manager, Comfort Inn.

In addition to his role as general manager of the Aberdeen Comfort Inn, Grismer operates a restaurant bar and event facility at the Ward Plaza Hotel. He helped create the Aberdeen Hotel Alliance, a self-taxing authority for the town's hotels, generating more than $300,000 annually for marketing and events. He has also held leadership roles with the Aberdeen Area Chamber of Commerce and Convention and Visitors Bureau. He is a board member on the James River Water Development District.

Jennifer Klitzke, 35 - administrative assistant, United Way of Northeastern South Dakota.
 Klitzke has worked in the nonprofit community for 12 years. At United Way, she implemented new donation and accounting software upgrades. In 2010, she received the Emerging Leader award from the Aberdeen Area Chamber of Commerce. Her community involvement includes leading the Kids Voting Aberdeen committee.

Matt Prehn, 36 - principal business relationship manager, Wells Fargo Bank.
 Prehn has spent 12 years at Wells Fargo Bank. As principal business relationship manager, he oversees its business banking team members. He has served for nine years as a member of the Aberdeen Sertoma Club and eight years as a member of the Hub Area Habitat for Humanity. He has spent two years on the board of directors at the United Way of Northeastern South Dakota and is a member of the Aberdeen Parks and Recreation board of directors.

Emily Richardt, 31 - director of public relations, committees and programs, Aberdeen Area Chamber of Commerce.
 Richardt recently joined the Aberdeen Area Chamber of Commerce after having spent 10 years as a journalist. During her time spent as a reporter, she received several awards, including a Pulitzer Prize in public service, journalism's highest honor, as part of the staff of the Biloxi (Miss.) Sun Herald for its coverage following Hurricane Katrina. While working at the Aberdeen American News she was named South Dakota's young journalist of the year in 2006.

Jennifer Slaight-Hansen, 39  - director of sales and marketing for Wooden Mallet.
 Slaight-Hansen joined Wooden Mallet in 2008.  Since joining the company, she has renegotiated dealer contracts, resulting in a 25 percent cost savings and opened more than 50 new accounts, comprising nearly 30 percent of the current year's sales. She is also a founding member of the Aberdeen Downtown Association.  She has served as a Aberdeen City Council member since 2009.

Val Wagner, 35 - CEO for Wagner Farms in Dickey County, N.D.

Wagner and  her husband manage a family farm and ranch. She is a vocal advocate for rural North Dakota and American agriculture and served previously on the American Farm Bureau Federation's National Young Farmer and Rancher Committee. She is working to make a profitable farming operation so that her four sons and generations to come can continue to work on a family farm. She writes a column for the American News.

Nicole Walter, 33 - director of member services and events, Aberdeen Area Chamber of Commerce.
Walter joined the Aberdeen Area Chamber of Commerce in 2003 as an administrative assistant and has since served as project coordinator and membership director. She obtained an Institute for Organization Management certificate in 2010 through the U.S. Chamber and implemented a membership perks program at the local level in 2011. She is extensively involved in community service activities in the areas of youth, education and community development.

Calvin D. Phillips is Northern State University's new vice president of student affairs.

 Phillips, 47, recently held a position at the University of Texas-Pan American in Edinburg, Texas, as associate vice president of student affairs and dean of students. He has also held higher education positions in Pennsylvania, North Carolina and Iowa.

 He received a doctorate in administration and leadership studies from Indiana University of Pennsylvania, a master's degree in college student personnel from Slippery Rock University in Pennsylvania, and a bachelor's degree in secondary education social studies from Oklahoma State University.

 A native of Mercer, Pa., he was hired to fill the position after a nationwide search.

 Phillips and his wife, Sharia, have four sons: Keegan, 8; Cole, 7; Caden, 6; and Collin, 5. Phillips' 16-year-old daughter, Shania, lives in Indianapolis.

The Brown County Register of Deeds office is collecting items to benefit the Aberdeen Area Humane Society.

 Some of the items most needed by the humane society include dry dog food, dry cat food, canned kitten food, pig ears, rawhide chews, collars, cat and dog brushes, clumping cat litter, dryer sheets, bleach and hand sanitizer.

 People who want to contribute can place items under the tree in the Register of Deeds office until 4 p.m. Dec. 21. The office is in the Brown County Courthouse Annex, 25 Market St., Aberdeen. Each year, the office puts up a tree and collects gifts for a different organization.

The Orange Leaf frozen yogurt shop will open Wednesday at 10 a.m. in the Lamont Building on 205 Sixth Avenue S.E.

 The new shop will offer 16 flavors of frozen yogurt and more than 30 toppings. Customers serve themselves and pay for their yogurt creations by weight.

 Orange Leaf, a national chain with headquarters in Oklahoma City, has 209 franchises nationwide. The Aberdeen franchise is owned by Brad Baloun, Byron Itterman, Dennis Batteen, Bruce Cutler and Duane Thurow.

 Kristine Hinman will manage the shop. Previously she worked as the guest service manager at the Hampton Inn.

 In addition to its regular flavors, such as vanilla,  seasonal frozen yogurt flavors will be offered, said Baloun. The flavors for Christmas are gingerbread, eggnog and English Toffee, he said.

 Store hours are 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. seven days a week.

 This is the first frozen yogurt shop in Aberdeen. A Cherry Berry Frozen Yogurt Shop is coming to Aberdeen in February, a franchise developer announced a month ago. Thunder Road also will offer frozen yogurt during the summer.

A Webster man has been sentenced to 10 years in prison after pleading guilty to a charge of sexual contact with a child younger than 16.

 In addition to the prison term, Matthew R. Kvernevig, 30, must register as a sex offender, comply with recommendations of a psychosexual evaluation, not have contact with the victim and pay $104 in court costs.

 The charge stems from improper contact with a child in April. Kvernevig and the victim were acquainted, a court official said.

 The crime is a felony punishable by as much as 15 years in prison and a $30,000 fine.

 In other court news:

• Justin C. Habeck, 28, of Aberdeen was sentenced to four years in prison after admitting he violated probation rules. He was given credit for 358 days served.

 Habeck was on probation for an aggravated assault conviction. He broke probation rules by reckless driving on May 11 and, three days later, an impaired driving incident resulting from his inhaling fumes from an air canister like those used to clean keyboards, according to court paperwork. His suspended imposition of sentence, which would have kept the assault from his record, was revoked. He must pay any outstanding fines and fees.

 Aggravated assault is a felony punishable by as much as 15 years in prison and a $30,000 fine.

• Martin Kimball, 51, of Aberdeen was given a 10-year suspended prison term after previously pleading guilty to possession of methamphetamine. He must spend 60 days in jail and pay $5,104 in fines and fees, continue aftercare and make restitution of $756 for testing costs.

 The crime is a felony punishable by as much as 10 years in prison and a $20,000 fine.

• Jessica M. Pigors, 35, of Aberdeen was given a two-year suspended prison term after admitting she violated the terms of her probation. She must spend 29 days in jail. She must pay $70 in testing costs and a $750 fine.

 Pigors was on probation as the result of a third drunken driving charge in a 10-year span. That's a felony punishable by as much as two years in prison and a $4,000 fine. She broke probation rules by drinking alcohol, according to court paperwork. Her suspended imposition was revoked.

• Darlene L. Napton, 30, of Aberdeen was given credit for time served after previously pleading guilty to two counts of third-offense drunken driving in a 10-year span. On one count, she was given credit for 90 days served. On the second charge, she was given credit for 97 days served. In each case, a two-year prison term was suspended.

 She must continue with aftercare and pay $104 in fines and fees on each case and a combined $195 in testing costs. She must spend two years on probation. Each charge is a felony punishable by as much as two years in prison and a $4,000 fine.

The Aberdeen Police Department is so serious about catching criminals that it's offering rewards - mystery rewards.

 Police declined to disclose the amount of rewards being offered in two cases, the first involving several vehicles and one business window shot by BB guns or air rifles and the other related to a string of burglaries.

 Why so secretive about the rewards?

 Is it because the money hasn't been rounded up yet? Maybe the reward is peppermint candy canes for Christmas - though that's more gift than reward?

 Maybe the mystery is part of the fun of participating?

 Would it be too cheeky to offer a reward to the person or persons who can find out what the police's rewards are?

 As far as incentives go, these might not be the most effective.

 Police did divulge the numbers to call for those who want to help catch the suspects: dispatch at 605-626-7911 or The Crime Stoppers tip line at 605-626-3500.

Rose Grey says she gets a double whammy every time Aberdeen receives significant snowfall.

 Grey and her husband, Gordon, live on Prospect Avenue Southeast at its intersection with South Wells Street.

 When snowplows come down South Wells, the drivers turn west and drive a short distance on Prospect. Before they back up, they leave snow in front of her driveway that she said makes it impossible for her to back out. The drivers then return to plowing Wells, she said. The Greys are the only homeowners on Prospect who are left with snow from the Wells snow clearing.

 Later in the day, a plow clears snow on Prospect, just as the city does on all east-west streets. Grey doesn't complain about that snow because it's a fact of life for every homeowner. But it is the second wave of snow her driveway absorbs, she said.

 "I expect to get snow like everybody else, but not from another street," she said.

 Grey said she has been complaining about the problem for years. She and her husband have lived in the house since 1986.

 City Manager Lynn Lander is familiar with Grey's concerns.

 "This isn't the first time I've been down there," he said. "She has a high level of concerns, and I like Rose, but I think her expectations exceed the norm sometimes."

 Much of the snow problem, Lander said, is because the Greys live on a dead-end street. The plow driver coming south on Wells can't simply stop, Lander said. If he doesn't go around the corner onto Prospect, he would leave a large ridge that would cause a problem, Lander said.

 At one time, the city tried to accommodate Grey by pushing the snow to a nearby vacated area, but Grey criticized the effort "for creating a dam for the snow runoff in the spring," Lander said.

 Lander believes the normal plowing on Prospect should clean up the snow in front of Grey's driveway. But Grey said the Prospect plowing pushes more snow "up on the driveway" and on the sidewalk.

 The Greys are also hurt by the fact that they live on a corner and have a curbside sidewalk, Lander said. Those attributes don't favor her in snow removal, he said.

 Lander said the snow in front of her driveway comes from only the portion of Wells that her home adjoins, but Grey believes the snow comes from a larger part of Wells.

 Lander said he doesn't know what else to do "other than hauling the snow away from her house, which I will not do because I will not treat her any different than anyone else throughout the municipality."

 In the past, the city cleaned out leaves that Grey said caused a drainage problem, Lander said. Grey said that drainage is a problem in the area.

 Grey and her husband, she said, are not getting any younger. They are in their late 60s.

 As Lander sees it, "We have made a considerable effort trying to make her happy."

People interested in reserving a campsite at the Wylie Park Campground are reminded that reservations for the 2013 camping season will begin at 7 a.m. Jan. 7.

Reservations may be made by calling 605-626-3512 or 888-326-9693 or in person by stopping in at the Parks, Recreation and Forestry Department office at 225 Third Ave. S.E. 

For further information, contact the Parks, Recreation and Forestry Department office at 605-626-7015.

A former Aberdeen man admitted today to using his cellphone to show improper images to a minor.

Timothy A. Shortbull, 53, who now lives in Valley City, N.D., pleaded guilty to a count of sexual exploitation of a minor. He will not be sentenced until presentence and psychosexual evaluations are finished.

The prosecuting attorney agreed to ask for no more than a five-year prison term with half of that time suspended. His defense attorney said she will ask for a more lenient sentence.

Jodi Brown, Brown County state's attorney, said that on Dec. 27, Shortbull went through the same checkout line at Kessler's five times and, on at least one occasion, showed cellphone images of naked women to a 17-year-old female clerk.

In exchange for his guilty plea, a second charge of sexual exploitation of a minor was dismissed. Usually, the crime is punishable by as much as two years in prison and a $4,000 fine. But because Shortbull has a previous felony, he faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a $10,000 fine.

People interested in reserving a campsite at the Wylie Park Campground are reminded that reservations for the 2013 camping season will begin at 7 a.m. Jan. 7.

 Reservations may be made by calling 605-626-3512 or 888-326-9693 or in person by stopping in at the Parks, Recreation and Forestry Department office at 225 Third Ave. S.E.

 For further information, contact the Parks, Recreation and Forestry Department office at 605-626-7015.

When the Khet family's car went into a ditch and rolled several times, it could have resulted in a tragedy, trooper Dan Hup of the South Dakota Highway Patrol said.

 But because everyone wore a seat belt, the only lasting impact of the accident was a destroyed vehicle, he said.

 On Saturday, the Highway Patrol presented the "Saved by the Belt Award" to Baw Khet, Eh Khet, Lah Khet, Gay Khet and Lay Dah, all of Aberdeen, during a ceremony.

 People receive the award if an accident investigation shows that people wore their seat belts and that the seat belts prevented serious injury or death. It is given to show people throughout South Dakota the importance of wearing a seat belt.

 On Oct. 21, the Khets were eastbound on 148th Street in Spink County when their car began to fish tail after it crossed a bridge near the intersection of 148th Street and 392nd Avenue, Hup said. It went into a nearby ditch and rolled several times before it stopped.

 Four of the five people in the car were hospitalized, but they were released shortly after, Hup said.

 It was determined that their seat belts kept everyone safe and inside the vehicle while it rolled, Hup said.

- Reporter Scott Feldman