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South Dakota loses federal funds for prison rape elimination amid fears of national impact
John Hult/South Dakota Searchlight The South Dakota Department of Corrections has lost access to more than $25,000 in federal funding meant to aid in the investigation and prevention of sexual assaults in prisons and jails. [Read More…]
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Hail Hunters headed north from Pierre
A group of meteorologists and scientists studying hail in severe thunderstorms made an overnight stop in Pierre Wednesday night. ICECHIP 2025 stands for In-situ Collaborative Experiment for the Collection of Hail in the Plains. Using [Read More…]
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POET Bioprocessing – Mitchell Awards $4,000 in Community Impact Grants
POET Bioprocessing – Mitchell awarded grants totaling $4,000 to two local organizations. The funds were donated through POET’s 2025 Community Impact Grant Program, which awards grants to a variety of causes throughout the more than [Read More…]
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Rapid City diving into the sports complex game
Emily DeCock/South Dakota News Watch Rapid City, South Dakota, leaders plan to build a new indoor sports complex that will cost around $50 million and provide South Dakota athletes with a venue on the west [Read More…]
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Sioux City Iowa man found guilty of 2023 murder
A 43 year old man from Sioux City, Iowa has been convicted of first-degree murder in a 2023 stabbing death in Dakota Dunes. Alfredo Castellanos-Rosales was found guilty June 25th, by a Union County jury. [Read More…]
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Transgender rights group aims to expand activist-founded database of LGBTQ-friendly businesses
John Hult/South Dakota Searchlight A South Dakota nonprofit focused on transgender rights will curate and maintain what’s been a volunteer-run, searchable database of businesses friendly to LGBTQ+ patrons. The Transformation Project and the database, known as Dorothy’s [Read More…]
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Prison task force is offered sites east of Box Elder, near unbuilt hog operation in Sioux Falls
John Hult/South Dakota Searchlight Land that Sioux Falls economic development boosters had once hoped to see anchored by a $500 million slaughterhouse is now on offer as a men’s prison site. Also a prison site [Read More…]
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Legislative group studies South Dakota’s high incarceration rate, overrepresentation of Indigenous prisoners
Makenzie Huber/South Dakota Searchlight SIOUX FALLS — The overrepresentation of Native Americans in state prisons, a lack of rehabilitation programming, and a need for more intervention to keep people out of prison are the biggest [Read More…]
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First West Nile Detection of Season in Minnehaha County
The South Dakota Department of Health has confirmed the first West Nile virus mosquito pools of the season have been detected in Minnehaha County. Officials urge individuals across the state to take simple steps to protect themselves [Read More…]
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Two dozen South Dakota State Prison inmates charged in connection with a disturbance on May 27th
Attorney General Marty Jackley says 24 inmates have been indicted on charges in connection to the May 27 disturbance at the Penitentiary that left 14 inmates injured. “The defendants orchestrated violent assaults that endangered both [Read More…]
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Two charged related to drug overdose deaths in the South Dakota State Penitentiary
Two individuals have been indicted on charges related to the drug overdose deaths of two South Dakota Penitentiary inmates that have occurred this year at the Penitentiary. “We are holding individuals accountable for distributing illegal [Read More…]
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Governor commits funding to revive training program for inmates
Joshua Haiar/South Dakota Searchlight South Dakota Gov. Larry Rhoden is giving new life to a training program for inmates that was shelved recently. “Being Open for Opportunity means investing in people and believing in second chances,” Rhoden [Read More…]
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Patzer Recognized with First Avera Queen of Peace Hospital DAISY Award
Avera Queen of Peace Hospital is pleased to announce that Amanda Patzer, RN, is the first recipient of our new quarterly nurse recognition program called the DAISY Award. The DAISY Program honors and celebrates the [Read More…]
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Gun-industry companies and groups give $2 million to help build state-owned shooting range
Seth Tupper and Joshua Haiar/South Dakota Searchlight A list of donors to a state-owned shooting range under construction north of Rapid City includes $2 million from gun-industry companies or organizations. The $20 million, 400-acre complex [Read More…]
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‘This is an investment’: opponents lambaste proposed state cut to needy family benefits
Nikki Gronli, former USDA Rural Development state director, speaks at a state Department of Social Services public hearing regarding cuts to TANF benefits at the Sioux Falls One Stop on June 20, 2025. (Makenzie Huber/South [Read More…]
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Drowning victim identified
Davison County authorities have identified a body recovered in the James River east of Mitchell as a man who apparently drowned. In a news release Davison County Sheriff Steve Harr says around 4:15 Friday afternoon, [Read More…]
ABC National News
U.S. has struck 3 Iranian nuclear sites, Trump says, joining Israeli air campaign
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Saturday that the U.S. military struck three sites in Iran, directly joining Israel ’s effort to decapitate the country’s nuclear program in a risky gambit to weaken a longtime foe amid Tehran’s [Read More…]
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Prison group stuck between local opposition and limited space
John Hult/South Dakota Searchlight On June 3 in Pierre, a gaggle of Mitchell city leaders delivered an unambiguous message to the state’s prison construction work group. The city council, mayor, county commission, sheriff and various [Read More…]
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South Dakota Legislature removes lawmaker addresses from website after Minnesota shootings
Makenzie Huber/South Dakota Searchlight South Dakota legislative leaders recently ordered the removal of lawmakers’ home addresses from the Legislature’s website in response to the shootings of two lawmakers and their spouses in Minnesota. The decision is about personal safety, [Read More…]
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Residents stand ready to help plan the future of Watertown
Bart Pfankuch/South Dakota News Watch WATERTOWN, S.D. – Lindsey Schwinger isn’t sure how she can help chart a positive future for the city of Watertown, but she is certain she wants to try. Schwinger, 38, [Read More…]