A defeated Republican candidate for the South Dakota House of Representatives was arrested in Pennington County Sunday for allegedly committing second-degree rape.
Bud Marty May, 37, of Kyle is being held with no bond at the Pennington County Jail in Rapid City for second-degree rape, which South Dakota law defines as rape through the use of force, coercion, or threats of immediate and great bodily harm against the victim or other persons within the victim's presence, accompanied by apparent power of execution. He was booked into the jail at 4:03 a.m. Sunday.
If charged and convicted of the class 1 felony, May could face up to 50 years in prison and have to pay up to a $50,000 fine.
May put his hat in the ring for one of the two House seats in District 27, which includes Bennett, Jackson, Oglala Lakota and Pennington counties. His mother, incumbent Liz May, R-Kyle, won reelection with 26.71% of the vote. Incumbent Peri Pourier, D-Pine Ridge, was also reelected with 28.96% of the vote. Norma Rendon, who ran as a Democrat, received 22.17%. Bud May came in last place, receiving one less vote coming in at 2,349, 22.16%.
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The details of May's possible rape case are unclear at this time. He appeared in Pennington County Court on Monday morning via video conference from the jail before Magistrate Judge Sarah Morrison for two misdemeanor charges of driving without valid insurance and with expired plates in September. Morrison set a dispositional conference for 1 p.m. Dec. 8 for May to meet with prosecutors and present proof of registration and insurance.
May told the judge he was under the impression he was appearing for his recent arrest on the alleged rape. Morrison informed him he will appear before the court at 10 a.m. Tuesday if the state chooses to move forward with charges and that he can legally be held in the jail for up to 48 hours before appearing in court, excluding holiday and weekends.
May has three outstanding warrants with the Oglala Sioux Tribe Department of Public Safety originating from before the election. Two are from Sept. 15 and one is from Oct. 26. Publicly available information does not show what the warrants are for.
Liz May did not return requests for comment regarding her son's situation.
