SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) — Billionaire banker and philanthropist T. Denny Sanford plans to ask the South Dakota Supreme Court to bar the release of affidavits used to issue search warrants into a child pornography investigation, his lawyer said Friday.
The notice came after Judge James Power refused to first release the affidavits to Sanford’s legal team before they became public. Sanford attorney Stacy Hegge argued they couldn’t evaluate whether to appeal unless they reviewed the documents, the Sioux Falls Argus Leader reported.
The Argus Leader and ProPublica have been working to get the documents for two years.
After Sanford’s lawyers said they would meet Monday’s deadline to appeal, Power followed up on an earlier promise to keep the documents sealed until Sanford has exhausted all legal options. He has not been charged.
State investigators in 2019 began searching Sanford’s email account, as well as his cellular and internet service providers, for possible possession of child pornography after his accounts were flagged by a technology firm.
The South Dakota attorney general’s office declined to file charges against Sanford following the probe, saying it found no prosecutable offenses within the state’s jurisdiction.
The 86-year-old Sanford is worth an estimated $3.4 billion. He made a fortune as the founder of First Premier Bank in South Dakota, which is known for issuing high-interest credit cards to those with poor credit.
He has donated greatly to the hospital that carries his name, Sanford Health, which is based in Sioux Falls and has major medical centers in Fargo and Bismarck, North Dakota, and Bemidji, Minnesota.