Insurance Info Sought in South Dakota Bar Attack

A judge has ordered a man convicted of an assault outside a Mitchell, S.D., bar last September to reveal whether he had insurance at the time of the attack.

The Daily Republic of Mitchell reports that 35-year-old William Watkins was sued in July in connection with his attack on Clint Dreyer of Fargo, N.D., outside Thirsty’s Bar.

Federal Judge Karen Schreier last week ordered Watkins to disclose any liability insurance he may have had when the attack occurred. Watkins must disclose the information by Oct. 2, the order says.

Watkins was sentenced to eight years in prison in February and was ordered to pay more than $650,000 in restitution for medical bills and other expenses. Dreyer suffered permanent brain injuries in the assault.

Bar manager Thomas Somerville pleaded no contest in April to a reduced charge of disorderly conduct for grabbing Dreyer by the throat and shoving him to the ground inside the bar.

Somerville was given a suspended 30-day jail sentence and ordered to pay $566 in fines and court costs.