Man Charged in Scuffle with Legislators in Court

    FORT PIERRE, S.D. (AP) - A Minnesota man has made his first
appearance in a South Dakota court after being charged with assault
for a scuffle with state lawmakers.
     Circuit Judge John Brown set a preliminary hearing for Nov. 18
for 41-year-old Mark Bardwell of Zimmerman, Minn. The judge also
continued Bardwell's bond at $10,000.
     Bardwell is charged with aggravated assault and simple assault
for the Friday night fight with some South Dakota legislative
leaders at a bar in a Fort Pierre motel.
     House Republican Leader David Lust of Rapid City says Bardwell
acted erratically, briefly pulled a knife out of a sheath, and then
tried to punch House Speaker Val Rausch of Big Stone City. Lust
says several lawmakers then tackled Bardwell and held him to the
floor until law officers arrives.