Latest news with #DivisionofCriminalInvestigation
Yahoo
26-06-2025
- Yahoo
Overdose deaths, gang violence draw charges in some — not all — recent prison incidents
South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley speaks at a press conference on prison violence on June 24, 2025, in Sioux Falls. (John Hult/South Dakota Searchlight) SIOUX FALLS — Attorney General Marty Jackley announced a flurry of criminal charges Tuesday in a series of incidents that have played out since February on the grounds of the South Dakota State Penitentiary. Two people stand accused of providing the drugs that killed two of the four inmates who've overdosed this year in South Dakota prisons. The charges in the overdose deaths of 20-year-old Anthony Richards and 39-year-old Jason Garreau were unsealed Tuesday. Legislative group studies SD's high incarceration rate, overrepresentation of Indigenous prisoners An inmate allegedly supplied the synthetic marijuana that killed Richards in February at the penitentiary's Jameson Annex. The methamphetamine and cocaine that killed Garreau in the penitentiary in May was allegedly delivered hand-to-hand by an on-site visitor who lives in Sioux Falls. There are two other suspected prison overdose deaths under investigation, Attorney General Marty Jackley said Tuesday at the Law Enforcement Center in Sioux Falls. Charges may come soon in those cases, which involved the May 18 death of 24-year-old Joshua Arrow and the June 10 death of 42-year-old Nicholas Skorka. Jackley said the state's still awaiting toxicology results in those cases. Also unsealed Tuesday were felony assault and rioting indictments for 24 inmates reportedly involved in a 40-man gang skirmish at the Jameson Annex on May 27 that injured 14 and sent four to the hospital. There were nine gangs involved in that fight, Jackley said. The violence was 'coordinated' by the gangs, he said, but he declined to say if any of the eight inmate victims who are named in the indictments were targeted specifically. Two of the people whose names are listed as assault victims were themselves charged for felony rioting, defined under South Dakota law as an incident in which three or more people break things or hurt others on purpose. 'I'm going to suggest to you that of the 24 indicted, they might all be taking the position that they're victims,' Jackley said, noting that the Division of Criminal Investigation concluded that only eight of those involved could legally be classified as such. The number of gangs involved – nine – is 'probably more than I'm normally involved with in a particular investigation,' Jackley said. But he also said he recognizes that 'there is gang prevalence at the penitentiary.' The charges relate to some, but not all, of the recent high-profile prison grounds incidents. An inmate broke the nose of a female correctional officer in late March at the penitentiary. Another, unrelated bout of violence at the Jameson Annex between inmates came hours later. On May 7, a male correctional officer was injured by an inmate at Mike Durfee State Prison in Springfield. None of those incidents has drawn charges. Fight breaks out at penitentiary one month after similar violence that injured officer Several investigations have commenced this year into situations like those, Jackley said, as well as into a prison drug ring the Department of Corrections announced it had broken up. A late May press release on that investigation said criminal charges would follow 'if warranted.' The attorney general declined to say Tuesday if more charges were imminent in any of those situations. 'Like all investigations, you may reach a point where you're prepared because there's probable cause and a reasonable likelihood that a jury would convict, where you move forward, but those investigations are not at that charging decision stage,' Jackley said. He did suggest that autopsy results in the overdose deaths of Arrow and Skorka would be necessary to make the call in those specific cases. After Tuesday's press conference, Jackley spokesman Tony Mangan told South Dakota Searchlight that the state is waiting for final reports in the officer assault cases. The Department of Corrections, meanwhile, suspended in-person visits in Sioux Falls in response to the drug ring investigation. That decision has led to some consternation among inmate families, some of whom planned to hold the latest in a series of protests against the DOC Tuesday evening. The charges and investigations this year have taken place as state officials consider sites for a new men's prison to replace the oldest parts of the penitentiary. The first meeting of the Project Prison Reset task force came days after the late March assaults. Penitentiary and Jameson Annex inmates were on a security lockdown when the task force members toured the grounds for that April 2 meeting. The officer in Durfee was attacked a week and a day after the group met in Springfield. The next task force meeting is scheduled for July 8 in Sioux Falls. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Yahoo
Another man found dead in his cell at South Dakota State Penitentiary
People hold signs at a protest on May 23, 2025, at the South Dakota State Penitentiary in Sioux Falls. (John Hult/South Dakota Searchlight) The state is investigating another death in Department of Corrections custody. Nicholas Skorka, 42, died at the South Dakota State Penitentiary on Tuesday, according to a press release. The release did not list a cause of death for Skorka. He is the 10th person to die in the department's custody this year and the fourth that will be subject to scrutiny by the state Division of Criminal Investigation, the investigative arm of the Attorney General's Office. 10 injured in prison violence days after protests over security and inmate treatment The death certificate for one of the investigated cases, that of 20-year-old Anthony Richards, lists the cause of his February death as an overdose of 'synthetic cannabinoid 5F-ADB,' a drug sometimes referred to as K2. Two other inmates, 39-year-old Jason Garreau and 24-year-old Joshua Arrow, died days apart late last month. Arrow's official death certificate has yet to be filed; Garreau's was filed last week and lists methamphetamine toxicity' as his cause of death. Wednesday's release did not say if Skorka's death is being investigated as drug-related. An autopsy for Skorka, whose body was found in his cell, will take place Thursday. 'DCI will do a thorough investigation, and we will determine what additional action is needed pending the results of that investigation,' Attorney General Marty Jackley said in the release. On May 29, Department of Corrections spokesman Michael Winder sent a notice saying the department had busted a drug ring at the penitentiary. Its staff seized shipments of drugs intended for delivery to Sioux Falls inmates via the mail and parcels delivered by visitors to inmates. 'If the results of the investigation warrant prosecution,' that day's news release said, 'criminal charges will be sought.' Jackley's spokesman Tony Mangan told South Dakota Searchlight on Wednesday that no charges have been filed for actions tied to the drug ring or in-custody deaths. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
30-05-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Structure fire; Prison assaults; High weekend temps
SIOUX FALLS S.D. (KELO) — Here are this morning's top stories with KELOLAND On the Go. A structure fire could be seen on the northeast side of Sioux Falls on the 2200 block of West 8th Street. We were able to capture the smoke through our downtown Sioux Falls live cam. Structure fire burns apartment in north Sioux Falls The Division of Criminal Investigation is looking into reports of several assaults on the South Dakota State Penitentiary's campus this week. This latest incident concerns Project Prison Reset task force members for a number of reasons. Task force reacts to inmate assault reports Temperatures will be rising into the weekend, well into the 80s in most locations. We do expect a few scattered hits of rain in central SD tomorrow morning. Smoke arrives this weekend; Thunderstorms likely next week Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
30-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Task force reacts to inmate assault reports
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) — The Division of Criminal Investigation is looking into reports of several assaults on the South Dakota State Penitentiary's campus this week. This latest incident concerns Project Prison Reset task force members for a number of reasons. 'Where we're at today, that opportunity for those inmates to injure a correctional officer exists, and we need to eliminate that,' South Dakota Republican Representative Greg Jamison said. Jamison said Tuesday's reports reflect the challenges prison staff face when it comes to separating inmates inside the current men's prison facilities. In a news release, Attorney General Marty Jackley says, ' Evidence suggests that the assaults are gang related.' 'One of the challenges with the prison is to separate those gang members or opposing gang members, if you will, so they never wind up in the same area at the same time because these fights are probably inevitable,' Jamison said. South Dakota Republican Senator Jim Mehlhaff worries the current facilities are not safe for staff or prisoners. 'Just the design of it. Blind corners and dead ends,' Mehlhaff said. 'It's difficult to put prisoners where they need to be because of the overcrowding.' The issue is what sometimes leads to inmate fights. 'Imagine you're in a space, as you can appreciate, in a crowded area, and all of a sudden you start pushing and somebody pushes back. It turns into a fight pretty easy,' Jamison said. 'That overcrowding piece has just got to get fixed, and the new prison is going to eliminate that.' It's one of the task force's top priorities when it comes to building a new men's prison. Having more rehabilitation resources is important, too. 'We don't want to take people off the streets and just hold them indefinitely and put them back out on the streets to recidivate again,' Mehlhaff said. 'A new prison is going to be a safer place for the employees. That's one of the things I'm hopeful for and I'm looking for,' Jamison said. 'The current setup right now is not a safe place.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
02-04-2025
- Yahoo
Carroll trial Day 2: DCI explains investigation into $1.7 million
PIERRE, S.D. (KELO) — Prosecutors laid out on Wednesday morning how the state Division of Criminal Investigation and the state Department of Legislative Audit concluded that Lonna Carroll allegedly stole more than $1.7 million from the South Dakota Department of Social Services while she was employed there. 5 witnesses testify as DSS embezzlement trial begins DCI supervisory special agent Matt Glenn said a search of a Pierre storage unit rented by Carroll was packed with containers of clothes as well as boxes of receipts and personal bank statements that indicated she was 'spending way more than she was making from her state job' as a financial program assistant in the Division of Child Protection that paid $21.09 per hour. Glenn told the jury that the receipts showed purchases costing hundreds of dollars were paid in round amounts of cash. Another witness, intelligence analyst April Pontrelli, presented a report looking at Carroll's deposits and spending from 2010 through March 2023 when Carroll retired. Pontrelli said Carroll's deposits substantially increased beyond her annual salary during that period, as did her spending. A special report prepared by the Department of Legislative Audit covering March 2017 through December 2022 found that Carroll requested more than $930,000 of special purchases for accounts of children who had been in the department's care and then authorized those requests to be paid. Kelly Mikkelsen testified about the Legislative Audit report. Carroll's defense attorney Timothy Whalen said that was a lot of money rolling through a handful of those children's accounts. He asked Mikkelsen, 'Something that should have raised an eyebrow?' Mikkelsen answered, 'Possibly, yes.' Whalen then asked whether Child Protection Services director Pam Bennett should have been responsible for catching Carroll's actions. 'Yes,' Mikkelsen said. Next Whalen asked whether others in the office should have been responsible. 'Everybody's responsible,' Mikkelsen said. Whalen asked Mikkelsen if he had any personal knowledge that Carroll circumvented policies and procedures. 'Through our special review, I think she did,' Mikkelsen said. He told Whalen that Carroll shouldn't have had authority to make requests and then approve them. He added that the person approving requests shouldn't be allowed to deposit the check, as Carroll did. Prosecutor Nolan Welker then followed up on Mikkelsen's statement that everyone was responsible for following the rules. 'Did that include Lonna Carroll?' Welker asked. 'Yes,' Mikkelsen said. Carroll's trial resumed Wednesday afternoon and is scheduled to continue through Friday. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
