PIERRE (AP) – South Dakota lawmakers weighing impeachment of the state's attorney general will start their investigation by hiring legal counsel to guide their probe.

The House's investigative committee met for the first time Wednesday as they delve into Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg's conduct surrounding a fatal car crash last year.

Ravnsborg, a Republican who was elected to his first term in 2018, pleaded no contest in August to a pair of misdemeanors in the crash that killed 55-year-old Joseph Boever, who was walking along a rural stretch of highway when Ravnsborg struck him with his car. Ravnsborg has insisted that he did not realize he killed a man until he returned to the scene the next day and discovered his body.

The House's investigation is expected to take months as they look into the crash investigation. During their first meeting, lawmakers reviewed state law on impeachment, but held off on any further action until they could hire an attorney.

“We are looking for somebody that’s very educated in the constitution ad in state law,” said House Speaker Spencer Gosch, the Republican who is overseeing the committee.

Gosch said he wants to hire an attorney quickly, but did not give a timeline for when that would happen.