South Dakota Codified Laws 23-1A-5. Signature under oath on complaint–Traffic ticket issued by law enforcement officer
Any person may sign a petty offense complaint for an offense which occurred in his presence. A petty offense complaint shall be signed under oath. It is sufficient if a law enforcement officer, in lieu of signing the petty offense complaint under oath, signs the following statement printed or written on a complaint or summons for a petty offense on a uniform traffic ticket: “I declare and affirm under the penalties of perjury that this complaint or summons has been examined by me, and to the best of my knowledge and belief, is in all things true and correct.” Any person who signs this statement as provided for in this section, knowing the statement to be false or untrue, in whole or in part, is guilty of perjury.
Terms Used In South Dakota Codified Laws 23-1A-5
- Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
- Oath: A promise to tell the truth.
- Oath: includes affirmation. See South Dakota Codified Laws 2-14-2
- Person: includes natural persons, partnerships, associations, cooperative corporations, limited liability companies, and corporations. See South Dakota Codified Laws 2-14-2
- Petty offense: A federal misdemeanor punishable by six months or less in prison. Source: U.S. Courts
- Summons: Another word for subpoena used by the criminal justice system.
- written: include typewriting and typewritten, printing and printed, except in the case of signatures, and where the words are used by way of contrast to typewriting and printing. See South Dakota Codified Laws 2-14-2
Source: SL 1977, ch 193, § 4; SL 2015, ch 134, § 1.