South Dakota Criminal Records

Criminal records in South Dakota provide a legal summary of an individual's criminal history in the state. State departments and law enforcement agencies compile these records, which list detention, judgments, and prison sentences.

The South Dakota Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) makes criminal records public in South Dakota, and the Attorney General is the one who is responsible for keeping these records.

A criminal record in South Dakota contained the following information:

• Subject's personal information (name, sex, age, and race)
• Any aliases
• Physical descriptors
• Fingerprint
• Mugshot
• Driver's license number
• Current and previous addresses
• History of arrests
• Current and previous warrants
• Status as a sex offender
• Arresting Agency

The information in a person's criminal record depends on their crime. But in South Dakota, the following offenses are likely to appear on a person's criminal history.

Felonies

In South Dakota, felony records entail harsher punishments, beginning with more than a year in prison. Like those of every other state, South Dakota's written laws divide felony records into different classes, which are:

Class A Felonies

This type of felony carries life imprisonment and a $50,000 fine or, worst scenario, the death penalty. Only first-degree murder falls into this category.

Class B Felonies

This category includes crimes like second-degree murder and first-degree aggravated kidnapping. Those who commit these offenses will face life imprisonment and pay $50,000 fines.

Class C Felonies

The penalty for this felony is life imprisonment and a fine of $50,000. Terrorism, first-degree rape, and first-degree manslaughter are some examples of records under this category.

Class 1 Felonies

Those with a record of this felony will go to prison for 50 years and have to pay a $50,000 fine. Human trafficking with torture, second-degree rape, and selling meth to a minor are all examples of crimes that fall into this category.

Class 2 Felonies

Class 2 felonies include burglary in the first degree, setting fires, and stealing. If someone committed a felony record of this type, they could go to jail for 25 years and pay a $50,000 fine.

Class 3 Felonies

For this felony, the punishment is 15 years imprisonment and a fine of $30,000. Some examples of Class 3 felonies include shooting at an occupied building or vehicle, aggravated assault, and killing someone while driving.

Class 4 Felonies

Anyone convicted of this felony faces ten years in jail and a $20,000 fine. Rioting with force or violence, selling child pornography, and stealing drugs are all crimes in this category.

Class 5 Felonies

This felony comes with $10,000 and five years in prison. It includes crimes like promoting prostitution, making threats against public officials, and stalking someone more than once.

Class 6 Felonies

Hate crime, falsifying evidence, and having a gun with an altered serial number come under this category. Whoever commits these crimes will have to pay a $4,000 fine and spend two years imprisonment.

In South Dakota, how long does a felony stay on your record? A felony record will remain on your criminal record for life unless expunged.

Misdemeanor

Like all other states, South Dakota divides misdemeanor records into groups based on their seriousness: Class 1 misdemeanors and Class 2 misdemeanors.

Class 1 Misdemeanors

It is the most severe sort of misdemeanor in South Dakota. It carries a maximum sentence of one year in prison and a $2,000 fine. Some of the most common crimes in this class are:

• Drug possession
• Simple assault
• Failure to disperse a riot or unlawful assembly
• Stalking
• Hiring prostitute
• First-degree petit larceny
• Joyriding

Class 2 Misdemeanors

This form of misdemeanor in South Dakota is the least serious compared to Class 1 misdemeanors. It entails a punishment of up to 30 days in jail and a $500 fine. Among the crimes in this class are:

• Second-degree petit larceny
• Marijuana use in a car
• Disorderly behavior
• Indecency in public
• Misrepresenting age by a minor

In South Dakota, a record of a misdemeanor will stay on a person's criminal record for life unless expunged. However, if you were guilty of a misdemeanor, you can have your record expunged ten years after the final disposition and if you met the qualifying requirements.

Criminal Driving Violations

In South Dakota, criminal traffic driving violation records are either felony traffic violations or traffic misdemeanors. The South Dakota Department of Public Safety (SDDPS) classifies some crimes as felony traffic violations, which are often more severe and result in heavier punishments than traffic misdemeanors.

Felony Traffic Violations

Some examples of felony traffic violations in South Dakota are DUI causing death or serious bodily injury, vehicular homicide, and hit and run that result in death or injury.

DUI Causing Death or Serious Bodily Injury

This driving offense is a felony record if any of the following are true:

• The perpetrator has a blood alcohol content (BAC) of 0.08% or above and kills another person (Class 3 felony punishment)
• The perpetrator's BAC is 0.17% or above, and they hurt someone seriously (Class 4 felony punishment)

Vehicular Homicide

This driving offense in South Dakota is a Class 3 felony with a $30,000 fine and 15 years imprisonment. If more than one person dies, it carries a Class 2 felony punishment.

Hit and Run Resulting in Death or Injury

In South Dakota, this type of criminal driving offense is a felony record if any of the following is true:

• The crime causes the victim's death (Class 3 felony punishment)
• The victim has severe physical injuries (Class 5 felony punishment)

Traffic Misdemeanors

Traffic misdemeanor records in South Dakota are usually less severe than felony charges. In this state, misdemeanor penalties vary by severity. It includes DUI and reckless driving.

A first offense of DUI possesses a sentence of 30 days in jail and a fine of $500. On the other hand, a second DUI offense is a Class 1 misdemeanor that comes with a $2,000 fine and a year in jail.

How long do criminal driving violations stay on your record? In South Dakota, serious violations like DUIs stay on your record for ten years. Most other violations, however, remain on your record within three to five years.

Sexual Offenses

South Dakota has statutory rape laws that punish anyone who commits a sexual act on a child under 16. This state divides its records of sex offenses into separate categories, which are:

First-degree Rape

This kind of sexual crime is a Class C felony, which means that the person who did it could go to prison for 15 years to life imprisonment, pay a $50,000 fine, or both. When a person of any age sexually touches a child under 13, they are guilty of this crime.

Fourth-degree Rape

This sexual offense is a Class 3 felony with a $30,000 fine, 15 years in jail, or both. It includes sexual contact between a child under 13 and a person three years older than the victim.

Sexual Interaction With a Child Younger Than 16

This sexual offense includes sexual interaction between adults and minors under 16. Sexual contact with a child under 16 could be a Class 3 felony or a Class 1 misdemeanor if:

• The victim is younger than 13 (Class 3 felony)
• The victim is 13, and the defendant is five years older (Class 1 misdemeanor)

People convicted of a sexual offense in South Dakota must register as sexual offenders by state law. Depending on the degree of your sex crime, you may remain on the sex offender registry for the rest of your life.

If you want to know about sex offenders in South Dakota, visit the state Sex Offender Registry, a public database run by the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigations (SDDCI). This database is available to the public and has information about people guilty of sex-related crimes in South Dakota.

Like other states, South Dakota allows criminal expungement based on the crime's statute of limitations or the offender's age.

This state has many laws that pertain to the procedure of having one's record expunged, but a judge will only authorize it in three situations:

• When a person got arrested but not charged.
• When the prosecutor drops all the charges against an individual.
• When a person is found not guilty in a court.

Who Is Eligible for Expungement in South Dakota?

In South Dakota, you must meet at least one of the following requirements to be eligible for expungement:

• You must be at least 75.
• Your crime is no longer illegal in South Dakota.
• Your record happened at least ten years after probation ended.
• Your offense does not result in incarceration.

South Dakota Expungement Process

If you commit a crime eligible for an expungement, here are the typical steps to get your record expunged in South Dakota.

• File a motion with the court clerk who handles the criminal matter.
• Pay the civil filing fee of $70.
• Include a Case Filing Statement form with the motion.
• At least 14 days before a hearing, a prosecutor must receive an expungement motion.
• If the defendant and prosecutor agree, there will be a hearing.
• Upon expungement, the court sends a nonpublic record to the SDDCI.
• List the records you want to remove in the motion.

Inmate records in South Dakota contain comprehensive data on the situation of a current or former criminal in the state. The South Dakota Department of Corrections (SDDOC), which runs the state's prisons and jails, usually keeps and updates these records.

The public may visit the SDCOC website to get inmate records using the Offender Locator. To obtain inmate records from this statewide online database, the requester must enter the inmate's full name and DOC number.

Most South Dakota Inmate Records have the following information:

• Inmate's personal information (name, date of birth, sex, and race)
• Any aliases
• Booking photo
• DOC ID
• Weight and height
• Convicted crimes
• Incarceration date
• Assigned facility
• Date of the expected release
• Status in prison
• Parole Office
• Sentence summary

An arrest record in South Dakota contains legal information regarding an individual's arrest history. It describes a person's arrest, detention, or investigation due to violating the South Dakota Codified Laws.

In this state, an arrest warrant is a court order to appear in court. Officers of the law in South Dakota use warrants to search an individual, seize assets, or do other things specified in the document.

When someone gets arrested in South Dakota, the officer usually takes them to a local jail and holds them there for the booking process.

Booking in this state refers to the procedure of inputting data about an arrested person into the database of a law enforcement agency. Thus, the agency making the arrest will get the person's fingerprints, pictures, personal information, and information about the alleged crime.

In South Dakota, law enforcement agencies make and keep track of arrest records. To get these records, interested parties must send them a formal request.

Most of the time, a South Dakota Arrest Record has the following information:

• Arrestee's personal information (name, gender, race, and age)
• Fingerprints
• Booking photo
• Residential address
• Officer's name
• Narrative of a police officer
• The arresting agency
• Information about bail or a bond
• Criminal charges

In South Dakota, most employers obtain criminal records as part of a thorough background check before hiring a candidate.

Employers in this state can use the Computerized Criminal History (CCH) system, run by the SDDCI, to examine a person's history.

This system keeps track of the details of everyone arrested for a misdemeanor or felony. These checks, however, are solely based on fingerprints.

To access these records in this state, interested parties must contact the Identification Department of SDDCI to receive a free state applicant fingerprint card.

The person making the request must also fill out the applicant's details on the fingerprint card, complete the Authorization and Release form, and pay the $26.75 fee. The requester should send the fingerprints and a signed authorization form to SDDCI.