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10 Days for LeBeau Death Certificate; 31 for Benda’s

For the record:

  1. 20-year-old male dies of gunshot wound in Sioux Falls. Minnehaha County Coroner Ken Snell is able to declare cause of death homocide, gunshot wound to the abdomen, in ten days.
  2. 59-year-old male dies of gunshot wound near Lake Andes. Charles Mix County Deputy Coroner declares cause of death suicide, gunshot wound to the abdomen, in 31 days, an unusually long time between death and certificate.

Granted, the former was likely easier to investigate, given a witness and young, scared perpetrators. But the ten-day turnaround on the Sioux Falls investigation is just one more example of why public suspicion about the Lake Andes death is justified.