Section 22-30A-16 - Ignorance and honest claim of right as affirmative defenses to theft.
22-30A-16. Ignorance and honest claim of right as affirmative defenses to theft. It is an affirmative defense to a prosecution for theft that the defendant:
(1) Was unaware that the property taken was that of another; or
(2) Acted under an honest and reasonable claim of right to the property involved or that the defendant had a right to acquire or dispose of the property as he or she did.
Source: SDC 1939, § 13.4009; SDCL, § 22-38-10; SL 1976, ch 158, § 30A-5; SL 1977, ch 189, § 62; SL 2005, ch 120, § 66.