Justice
Total 83 Posts
Two federal judge seats remain open in South Dakota despite busy caseload
For the past 20 months, South Dakota’s U.S. District Court has had a judicial vacancy waiting to be filled by President Joe Biden’s administration, prompting political scrutiny of the process and a shuffling of workloads for other federal judges.
Now the situation enters a new realm of
Serenity Dennard disappearance: 2019 mystery still causing misery
One of the biggest mysteries in all of South Dakota — the unknown fate of 9-year-old Serenity Dennard — elicits one singular emotion more than any other for those who loved, cared for or searched for the precocious girl who disappeared from a Black Hills youth home more than four years ago.
Back to school or off to jail: Legislators seek update to South Dakota juvenile justice assessment system
One of the key tenets of juvenile justice reform in South Dakota – keeping low-level youth offenders out of custody in favor of rehabilitative services and a return to public school attendance – is causing headaches for South Dakota education officials, who say they are not equipped to deal with habitual offenders
CEO of large SD non-profit agency remains in his job despite federal sexual harassment settlement
Editor’s note: This article is the result of a reporting collaboration between South Dakota News Watch Content Director Bart Pfankuch and Kristi Hine, editor of the True Dakotan newspaper in Wessington Springs.
WAGNER, S.D. – The director of one of the largest non-profit social service agencies in South Dakota
Dangerous, potentially deadly distracted driving remains a hard habit to break in South Dakota
South Dakota lawmaker Doug Barthel, a former police chief in Sioux Falls, tried to make state roadways safer from distracted drivers by spearheading passage of a law in 2020 to restrict cell phone use behind the wheel.
The South Dakota law allows cell phone use in a vehicle, but only
In contrast to some elected leaders, poll shows SD voters support more gun restrictions
Editor’s note: This is the third in a series of articles based on a July 2022 statewide poll conducted by South Dakota News Watch and the Chiesman Center for Democracy at the University of South Dakota, and is the latest segment in the ongoing “South Dakota Matters” series of
Statewide poll shows referendum on recreational marijuana legalization in SD could fail in November
Editor’s note: This is the second in a series of articles based on a July 2022 statewide poll conducted by South Dakota News Watch and the Chiesman Center for Democracy at the University of South Dakota, and is the latest segment in the ongoing “South Dakota Matters” series of