While South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem said she was inspecting the state’s National Guard troops in Texas this week, a delegation from the state was set to meet in a trade gathering with buyers, agriculture industry leaders and government officials in Mexico.

South Dakota has significant trade relationship with Mexico, and, according to Noem, an adversarial relationship with Mexican drug cartels she has said bring a large amount of drugs into the state.

Continue reading “Why is South Dakota interested in trade, drugs in Mexico?” →

It’s hard to imagine a less contentious or more innocent word than “and.”

But how to interpret that simple conjunction has prompted a complicated legal fight that lands in the Supreme Court on Oct. 2, the first day of its new term. What the justices decide could affect thousands of prison sentences each year.

Continue reading “Six thousand drug traffickers’ sentences hinge on Supreme Court’s interpretation of ‘and’” →

In arguments before the Eighth Circuit Wednesday, lawyers for the state of Iowa fought to uphold two state laws designed to protect livestock production facilities from undercover investigations aimed at publicly exposing animal cruelty.

In defending the 2021 statute that makes it a crime to use a camera or electronic surveillance device while trespassing, Deputy Attorney General Leif Olson told the panel of judges that trespassers cannot cloak their illegal actions in the practice of journalism.

Continue reading “Iowa defends ‘ag-gag’ laws before federal appeals court” →

Governor Kristi Noem has appointed Robert “Bob” Perry as Secretary of the Department of Public Safety. Craig Price, the current secretary, will retire from state government.

Perry’s appointment will be effective on Sept. 22.

“Craig Price has been an outstanding leader and public servant throughout his law enforcement career. His experience, insight, and discernment have been incredibly valuable to me while serving as governor,” said Noem. “We have seen many unprecedented challenges over the past several years here in South Dakota including floods, storms, violent protests, and a worldwide pandemic. Craig was always a steady hand who brought calm to every situation and focused on finding solutions. He has been one of my closest advisors and a dear friend. He has my highest respect. May God richly bless him in his retirement from the State of South Dakota.”
Continue reading “Robert Perry named South Dakota Secretary of Public Safety” →

A panel of state lawmakers has wrapped up work on ideas that could help ease financial strain on South Dakota counties.

The final list on Wednesday from the Legislature’s Study Committee on County Funding and Services included eight proposals and two resolutions.

The chairs, Republican Rep. Roger Chase and Republican Sen. Randy Deibert, will deliver a report of the work to the Legislature’s Executive Board. If the board approves it, the Legislative Research Council would then assemble drafts for the 2024 session that opens January 8.

Continue reading “State lawmakers propose ways to help South Dakota counties” →

Other than Hawaii, every U.S. state has a state police force. Although there is some variance, state troopers in each state perform basically the same tasks.

State troopers are tasked with enforcing traffic laws on state-controlled roads and highways. They give first aid to victims of vehicle accidents, provide backup support to local, county, and federal law enforcement agencies, and oversee road closures during evacuations, serious  weather conditions, and vehicle crashes. State troopers have arrest powers and carry firearms.

Continue reading “What It Takes To Join the State Police, in Every State” →

Several Mondays each year, Michael Jacobsma heads to the Sioux County Courthouse for court hearings involving criminal defendants he represents.

There’s a good chance the Orange City attorney will have hearings scheduled in O’Brien County at the same time. Perhaps Lyon and Osceola counties, too. Or maybe Plymouth, Clay or Woodbury counties — or all of them.

Known as court service days, when judges across Northwest Iowa hear motions, conduct pretrial conferences and take up other matters in criminal cases, Mondays routinely present Jacobsma and other private attorneys, who, like him, have agreed to accept judges’ appointments to represent defendants who can’t afford a lawyer, with a dilemma. How to make it from one county to another for all those hearings?

Continue reading “Iowa faces shortage of court-appointed attorneys” →

Continue reading “AG Releases ‘22 ‘Crime In South Dakota’ Report” →

This fall, a federal judge in Manhattan will consider whether to turn over control of Rikers Island from the city government to a court-appointed receiver who would be responsible for improving jail conditions. The decision comes amid continuing civil rights violations and systemic dysfunction. Since 2015, Rikers has been operating under a “consent decree,” which empowers the judge to enforce a negotiated plan to improve conditions inside the jail complex. Twenty-seven people have died in city jails under the current mayoral administration—eight this year alone.

Rikers is far from the only part of the criminal legal system under federal scrutiny. At any given time, some of the largest police departments and jail systems in the United States are operating under consent decrees. Jurisdictions under these agreements are required to change their unlawful practices, which in some cases have led to discrimination or death, with progress enforced by a federal court and often tracked by a court-appointed monitor. If a jurisdiction repeatedly fails to comply with the requirements of the agreement, it can be held in contempt of court and, in extreme cases of noncompliance, the court could even decide to turn over control of the department to another party.

Continue reading “Consent Decrees: Everything You Need to Know” →

The South Dakota chapter of Americans for Prosperity hosted a sit-down discussion with guest speakers at the Hampton Inn in Sioux Falls on Thursday. Among the guest speakers were Senator John Thune and Lincoln County Sheriff Steve Swenson and the central topic of their discussion was immigration and the southern border. Members of the AFP and multiple state leaders just got back from McAllen, Texas to see challenges at the border first-hand. They brought their stories from the trip to encourage open discussions on an important topic.

“Visiting with the private business folks of the water district, the gentleman that we visited with was saying that we have everything that we need to be able to solve this issue, to make our border safe, and to do immigration legally, but we don’t have the political will,” said the state director for the AFP South Dakota chapter, Keith Moore.

Continue reading “Americans for Prosperity in South Dakota discuss solutions at the United States’ southern border, impacts on South Dakota” →