South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation
Report: State court system fields fewer criminal cases
The number of criminal case filings dropped in South Dakota in fiscal year 2023, continuing a five-year slide in criminal caseloads. The drop in caseloads appears in the state Unified Judicial System’s annual report, released this week. The drop is a contrast from the arrest figures in the state Division of Criminal Investigation’s annual “Crime […]
Spike in complaints against officers prompts potential change to discipline process
The state has seen a 132% increase in investigations against law enforcement officers and 911 operators since 2016, and is on pace to field 13% more of the formal complaints that can spark such investigations this year. Hank Prim, of the state Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI), shared the numbers with the South Dakota Law […]
Court documents outline cause of shuttered child porn investigation of T. Denny Sanford
Nearly four years ago, detectives in South Dakota launched an investigation to determine if the state’s richest man had shared or received child pornography through email. One year ago, then-Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg issued a statement declaring that T. Denny Sanford had committed “no prosecutable offenses within the district of South Dakota.” On Thursday, after […]
Convicts could pay for cell phone searches under lawmaker proposal
People convicted of crimes based on evidence from their cell phones, tablets or computers may soon pay an additional fee to help fund the detectives who sifted through their digital lives. Senate Bill 54 would tack on up to $95 in fees for cases that hinge on digital investigations. During Tuesday’s Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, […]
Drug crimes, violent crimes drop for 2021 in South Dakota
Drug arrests have dropped 25% in South Dakota over the past five years. That’s one of the major takeaways from “Crime In South Dakota 2021,” the annual report from the state Attorney General’s Office that aims to compile arrest reports from all state law enforcement agencies. The 2021 report includes data from 101 agencies, representing […]
Noem budget sets aside $3.5 million for state fingerprint, criminal history database
Lawmakers in Pierre will soon be asked to send $3.5 million to the Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI) to update the software that catalogs arrest and fingerprint records that date back to 1937. The ask is among the one-time line items tucked into Gov. Kristi Noem’s 360-page proposed budget. The software upgrades to the DCI’s […]
Former DCI supervisor returns to lead state law enforcement agency
A longtime law enforcement officer and former second-in-command at South Dakota’s top detective agency will now serve as its leader. Attorney General-Elect Marty Jackley announced Monday that Dan Satterlee will serve as director of the Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI). Satterlee was assistant DCI director during much of Jackley’s first stint as Attorney General, which […]