Pierre man enters plea in child-in-van case

PIERRE (AP) — A South Dakota man accused of stealing a van with a 2-year-old girl in the back seat and crashing it has pleaded no contest to grand theft and drunken driving charges.

Thirty-five-year-old Jason Driving Hawk of Pierre told Judge Mark Barnett that he doesn't remember what happened during the incident last Nov. 17.

Authorities say Driving Hawk took a van that was unlocked and running outside a Pierre convenience store and later flipped the vehicle and knocked down a light pole. Neither he nor the girl was hurt.

The media reports that Driving Hawk faces up to 11 years in prison when he is sentenced on March 20.

Tags: drunken driving, news, updates, state, crime, child, theft, dui