UPDATE: Ellis did apologize for his tweet yesterday, and in his defense, Hagen did have a brother die, even if it was a step brother.

If you’ve been following the Eric Hagen trial, you’ve noticed that J. Ellis has been tweeting for the Argus Leader. Did you catch the tweet yesterday that stated Eric Hagen’s brother might be dead?

That’s pretty sloppy journalism.  According to a foot soldier who knows the Hagen family what made it truly a living nightmare is that Eric Hagen is from this area.  His aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents were all alerted to that tweet and had several hours of crying and anguish before they could reach Eric’s only brother to confirm he was alive and ok.  He travels a lot and lives in L.A., so it was very plausible Eric’s brother could have died and his relatives not been notified yet. With Ellis being part of the press pool, he may have had access to alternative information. While he does say that it ‘needed to be confirmed’ it should not have been tweeted at all until he knew for sure.
I’m starting to wonder if anyone at the AL even gives a rip anymore.
Oh, and BTW, not only is Eric’s Brother still alive, Eric is a free man;

Eric Hagen was acquitted Wednesday by a jury in Flandreau that needed only a couple of hours to deliberate. Hagen and his company consulted with the Flandreau Santee Sioux in 2015 on the project.The tribe eventually torched its crop amid fears of a federal raid, and Hagen was charged with several counts related to marijuana possession.

Hagen says the state overstepped its authority in bringing the case. He says he “never once thought that I was guilty.”

Oh the irony of this case compared to when Fatty Patty Powwers was running his political trinket business out of the SOS’s office. Jackley tries to charge Hagen with possession of a product the tribe owned, because Jackboots knew he couldn’t go after the tribe. When Stan Adelstein accused Pat Powerless, as sitting deputy SOS, of ‘borrowing’ intellectual property from the state to help his personal political consulting business, Jackley finds Mr. Fish & Chips NOT GUILTY of stealing (money or other materials from the state). Something he wasn’t accused of to begin with.
And this guy wants to be governor. LMFAO.

10 Thoughts on “UPDATE: Ellis probably should have ‘confirmed’ this before tweeting it

  1. An other example of social media challenging the ethics of journalism as a profession. They use to wait for three confirmations before print. Now, journalists are increasingly being forced into the frenzy of 24-7 coverage and news reporting, in order to hopefully be relevant and first on the story… How sad. I cannot believe that papers don’t have a greater editing control over their reporters’ Tweets.

    As far as the AG, what happens if he loses the GEAR-UP cases, or at least one of them? My hunch is, that Butler’s brilliance as a defense attorney will most likely damage collaterally the AG’s gubernatorial ambitions once more….

  2. The Don on May 24, 2017 at 6:12 pm said:

    One again the Argus wins…the race to the bottom. What at one time was a respectable journalistic enterprise is now little more than an alarmist tabloid, struggling to maintain relevancy. A truly sad state of affairs and Sioux Falls deserves better!

  3. Ellis does a great job and is truly a good person. I’m sure he does feel bad.

    Jackley played way to sly on this and is going to have some answering to do during his poloticing. My guess is pot is legal in this state within 6 years.

  4. The D@ily Spin on May 24, 2017 at 8:08 pm said:

    Marijuana (some form and/or use) is legal in 30 states and nearly legal in others. South Dakota (an agriculture state) will likely be last. Then, it’ll be because there’s no room in prison for those unconsciously crossing the state. Today, there’s proof a form of weed for childhood diseases formerly untreatable. The AG was bitter about introducing pot production to Indian reservations. He lost. Reservations are sovereign. He has no jurisdiction. I’d like to see legal and ethical punishment for bringing unsubstantiated charges.

  5. grudznick on May 24, 2017 at 8:35 pm said:

    Ellis is a sloppy hack. National Enquirer level. Wait, that’s the same as Argus level.

  6. The Don on May 24, 2017 at 8:42 pm said:

    Jackley will be fine. The stoners and losers who would have a beef with this prosecution would never have voted for him anyway. Most S. Dakotans actually appreciate when the law is enforced.

  7. Theresa stehly on May 24, 2017 at 9:40 pm said:

    I have been watching Argus reporting closely for the past 11 years. Jonathan Ellis has always done fair and balanced work. I believe the citizens of this community have a stronger voice because of his willingness to tackle the status quo and show both sides. He does his homework. The Argus is fortunate to have him.

    For years I lobbied the decision makers at the Argus to cover City Hall/Council issues more intensly . Now..it is happening. There has never been such a comprehensive effort by a large number of reporters to let people know about what is happening in government in our community.
    We all need to work together with respect to keep people engaged and informed.

  8. Come on, “The Don”. Anybody who criticizes this prosecution is a “loser”?

  9. Curt on May 25, 2017 at 1:55 am said:

    OK, Mr ‘the Don’, Jackley probably need not worry about losing the votes of those ‘stoners and losers’. But beware a government that is willing to use its power and wealth to crush a person or company that refuses to knuckle under to threats and intimidation. You may never be personally subjected to such tyranny, but be careful – these crimes of ‘conspiracy’ are open to all sorts of imagination and interpretation.

  10. The D@ily Spin on May 25, 2017 at 11:25 am said:

    If you grow up with a step brother, he’s your brother. You’d introduce him as such. Perhaps an honest mistake. Ellis writes factual and accurate. He’s not a mayor groupie like Whitney. I get the feeling he’d like to report corruption and misrepresentation at city hall but gets held back because the city advertises legal in the Argus.

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