The South Dakota Attorney General’s Office has formed a Jurisdictional Cooperation Commission to explore ways that law enforcement agencies can work better together. South Dakota is home to a complicated tapestry of overlapping jurisdictions that can create headaches for law enforcement officials.
The commission hopes to identify straightforward ideas to foster trust between agencies that can be implemented without requiring new legislation. The commission will make recommendations to the Attorney General as well as to tribal authorities and starts from a firm position that no ideas that infringe on tribal sovereignty will be considered.
“This work is long overdue,” said Joe Brings Plenty, a commission member who sits on the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribal Council and formerly served as CRST Police Chief. “There are many places in the state where our law enforcement agencies work well together but, sadly, there are places where the levels of trust and cooperation are not robust. Hopefully with this commission we can start a new era in South Dakota.”
The commission plans to convene in February and establish a timeline for presenting recommendations to the Attorney General and tribal authorities.
Members of the Attorney General’s Jurisdictional Cooperation Commission:
- Mark Vargo, Co-Chair, Pennington County State’s Attorney
- Tatewin Means, Co-Chair, Executive Director, Thunder Valley Development Corp. and Former OST Attorney General
- Zach Pahlke, Tripp County State’s Attorney
- Tucker Amiotte, Jackson County Sheriff
- Cheryl Bogue, Assistant City Attorney, City of Sioux Falls
- Joe Brings Plenty, Councilmember and former Chief of Police, Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe
- Don Hedrick, Chief of Police, Rapid City
- Dylan Kirchmeier, Roberts County State’s Attorney
- Allison Morrisette, MMIP Coordinator, Attorney General’s Office
- Seth Pearman, Attorney General, Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe
- Shane Penfield, Perkins County State’s Attorney
- Rep. Tyler Tordsen District 14
- Marty Jackley, South Dakota Attorney General
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