Friday,  Aug. 23, 2013 • Vol. 15--No. 39 • 16 of 34

News from the

Man gets 34 years in death of 2-year-old in SD

• RAPID CITY, S.D. (AP) -- A man who pleaded guilty to killing his former girlfriend's 2-year-old daughter in Rapid City has been sentenced to 34 years in prison.
• Twenty-four-year-old Edward Berges initially faced murder and other charges in the death last August of Evelyn Molnar. He pleaded guilty in May to manslaughter and was sentenced Thursday.
• Authorities say Berges became frustrated while watching Molnar and struck her in the head, causing her death.
• The child's mother, Nicole Randall, spoke during Berges' sentencing, saying she will be haunted for the rest of her life but forgiving Berges "so we can move ahead."
• Berges will have to serve at least half of his sentence before being eligible for parole.

Sinai Lake Association members want land rezoned

• BROOKINGS, S.D. (AP) -- Members of the Sinai Lake Association want the Brookings County Commission to return their land to agricultural status.
• The Brookings Register reports (http://bit.ly/150KRO4 ) that much of the land surrounding Lake Sinai in eastern South Dakota was rezoned in 2007 to natural resource district, which prevents landowners from building on the land, planting agricultural crops or doing other things.
• Jack Otta, president of the Sinai Lake Association, told the county commission no one in the association knew about the change until recently, when a landowner was told he couldn't build a cabin on his land.
• Members of the county commission say on Sept. 3 they will discuss the county Planning and Zoning Board's recommendation to give that landowner a variance for building a cabin on his land near the lake.

Northern State unveils new sculpture garden

• ABERDEEN, S.D. (AP) -- Northern State University is unveiling five new sculpture pieces for its campus in Aberdeen.
• The works by Vietnamese artist Tuan Nguyen will be displayed in a new sculpture garden in Baumgart Plaza, west of the Johnson Fine Arts Center.

(Continued on page 17)

© 2013 Groton Daily Independent • To send correspondence, click here.