FIGHT BREAKS OUT AT SOUTH DAKOTA PENITENTIARY JUST ONE MONTH AFTER SIMILAR VIOLENCE THAT INJURED OFFICER
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (John Hult / South Dakota Searchlight) – Another round of violence erupted Sunday on the campus of the South Dakota State Penitentiary, the Department of Corrections has confirmed.
The fight between inmates came a little more than a month after two other incidents on the penitentiary campus, one of which injured a female correctional officer.
Those earlier events occurred shortly before the first meeting of a state work group debating the future of the oldest portions of the 144-year-old prison grounds in Sioux Falls. The female correctional officer was injured in the penitentiary, while the other fight took place between inmates in the maximum security Jameson Annex.
The work group toured both the penitentiary and Jameson Annex on April 2.
Michael Winder, spokesman for the department, did not say how many people were involved in Sunday’s violence, which he described via email as “a fight.” There were no “life-threatening injuries,” he wrote, and no correctional officers were injured.
“It is an ongoing investigation,” Winder wrote.
Winder did not reply to questions on the location of the violence or how it may have been quelled, but the family member of one inmate told South Dakota Searchlight that the event involved inmates in East Hall.
East Hall was the location of two nights of unrest just over a year ago at the penitentiary, which followed a temporary shutdown of tablet communications. Eleven inmates were charged with crimes for those incidents.
Most of those inmates, prosecuted by the South Dakota Attorney General’s Office, have since taken plea deals for intentional damage to property. A man charged with aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer and another charged with reckless burning await trial, court records show. One inmate was acquitted of intentional damage to property at trial after raising questions about the security footage upon which the charge was based.
As of last week, no charges had been filed by the Attorney General’s Office for the violence that took place just before the first prison work group meeting in Sioux Falls.
Loved ones behind bars told Nicole Lloyd of Sioux Falls that Sunday’s violence involved more than a dozen people, originated in the chow hall and resulted in the use of pepper spray and a lockdown of inmates across the penitentiary.
MANHUNT CONTINUES IN AFTERMATH OF OFFICER INVOLVED SHOOTING IN FALL RIVER COUNTY
NEBRASKA – Law enforcement officials continue to look for 35-year-old Cody Dittman in connection to that incident.
The search for Dittman actually started on May 1st in Nebraska.
According to court documents Dittman faces three felony charges of domestic assault, false imprisonment, and strangulation of a pregnant woman. The alleged incident took place on Thursday, May 1st in Norfolk, Nebraska.
According to an affidavit for arrest warrant, a pregnant woman reported that she argued with Dittman in a hotel room which resulted in him getting violent, pushing, slapping, restraining, and strangling her, which reportedly cut off her ability to breath.
Later that night Dittman followed the woman to her own vehicle as she tried to flee.
According to an arrest warrant issued last Friday Dittman’s bail bond is fixed at $20,000.
On Friday, Dittman became the suspect in an officer-involved shooting near the South Dakota Pine Ridge Indian Reservation into Fall River County.
The Oglala Sioux Tribe Department of Public Safety (OSTDPS) attempted a traffic stop with Dittman but he fled the scene. A shot was fired at Dittman by an Oglala Sioux Trive DPS Officer as Dittman swerved his vehicle at law enforcement.
A pursuit continued into Nebraska before Dittman fled on foot, OSTDPS police said, and police identified Dittman as the driver. Two additional people were in the vehicle that Dittman used, according to police.
On Friday, South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley confirmed that the Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI) would assist in the case. Jackley said that authorities continue to look for Dittman in Nebraska.
As of May 5, Dittman is still at large.
SOUTH DAKOTA ANNOUNCES REGIONAL TEACHERS OF THE YEAR
PIERRE, S.D. – In celebration of Teacher Appreciation Week, the Department of Education is announcing this year’s Regional Teachers of the Year.
Secretary of Education Joseph Graves is visiting each teacher’s school to recognize the winner and their efforts and celebrate with them.
The full list of winners includes:
Jenna Sinner
High school science, Webster Area School District, Webster
Gina Sershen
5th grade science, Brandon Valley Intermediate School, Brandon
Becky Haenfler
5-7 English Language Arts, Avon School District, Avon
Jennifer Anders
high school math, Harding County School District, Buffalo
Ann Anderson
5th grade, Belle Fourche Middle School, Belle Fourche
Later this summer, a panel will select one of the 5 winners as the South Dakota Teacher of the Year.
MERCURY POLLUTION PLACES TWO MORE SOUTH DAKOTA LAKES ON FISH CONSUMPTION ADVISORY LIST
PIERRE, S.D. (Joshua Haiar / South Dakota Searchlight) – State officials have added two more South Dakota lakes to the fish consumption advisory list after testing found elevated mercury levels in large walleye.
The state announced Monday that Dry Lake #1 in Clark County and Lake Henry in Kingsbury County have been added to the list.
For Dry Lake #1, health officials recommend limiting consumption of walleye over 21 inches in length. At Lake Henry, the advisory applies to walleye over 24 inches. Walleye in South Dakota can grow to more than 30 inches.
The guidance is based on mercury concentrations detected in fish tissue samples collected through the state’s annual monitoring program.
“Our commitment to public health and safety drives the annual fish sampling program,” said Department of Health Secretary Melissa Magstadt in a news release.
Mercury, a toxic heavy metal, ends up in fish across the United States largely due to atmospheric deposition. Coal-fired power plants release mercury into the air before it settles into lakes and rivers. Bacteria convert it into methylmercury and fish absorb it.
Fish consumption advisories are not enforceable bans but are issued to help people make informed choices to reduce health risks.
“We encourage everyone to check the DOH website for the latest advisories and take necessary precautions when enjoying locally caught fish,” Magstadt said.
Fish consumption advisories
In addition to Dry Lake #1 and Lake Henry, these lakes are on the state’s fish consumption advisory list:
Bitter Lake: Limit consumption of northern pike (over 30″) and any size walleye, particularly for children under age 7 and women who are pregnant, might become pregnant, or are breastfeeding.
Coal Springs Reservoir: Limit consumption of northern pike (over 25″). These tested above recommended limits for mercury.
Cottonwood Lake: Limit consumption of walleye (over 21″). These tested above recommended limits for mercury.
Dry Lake Number 2: Limit consumption of walleye (over 22″). These tested above recommended limits for mercury.
Elm Lake: Limit consumption of walleye (over 25″). These tested above recommended limits for mercury.
Hazeldon Lake: Limit consumption of walleye (over 21″). These tested above recommended limits for mercury.
Horseshoe Lake: Limit consumption of walleye (over 18″). These tested above recommended limits for mercury.
Kiesz Lake: Limit consumption of walleye (over 16″). These tested above recommended limits for mercury.
Lake Hurley: Limit consumption of Largemouth Bass (over 18″). These tested above recommended limits for mercury.
Lake Isabel: Limit consumption of northern pike (over 25″) and Largemouth Bass (over 17″). These tested above recommended limits for mercury.
Lake Minnewasta: Limit consumption of walleye (over 18″). These tested above recommended limits for mercury.
Lardy Lake: Limit consumption of walleye (over 18″). These tested above recommended limits for mercury.
Little Moreau Lake: Limit consumption of northern pike (over 26″). These tested above recommended limits for mercury.
Long Lake: Limit consumption of walleye (over 17″). These tested above recommended limits for mercury.
Lynn Lake: Limit consumption of walleye (over 25″). These tested above recommended limits for mercury.
Middle Lynn Lake: Limit consumption of walleye (over 18″). These tested above recommended limits for mercury.
New Wall Lake: Limit consumption of black and white crappie (over 13″) and Largemouth Bass (over 16″). These tested above recommended limits for mercury.
Newell Lake: Limit consumption of walleye (over 18″) and northern pike (over 18″). These tested above recommended limits for mercury.
North Buffalo Lake: Limit consumption of walleye (over 21″). These tested above recommended limits for mercury.
North Island Lake: Limit consumption of walleye (over 18″) and Smallmouth Bass (over 19″). These tested above recommended limits for mercury.
Opitz Lake: Limit consumption of northern pike (over 26″). These tested above recommended limits for mercury.
Pickerel Lake: Limit consumption of white bass (over 16”), particularly for children under age 7 and women who are pregnant, might become pregnant, or are breastfeeding.
Pudwell Dam: Limit consumption of walleye (over 18″) and Black Crappie (over 12″). These tested above recommended limits for mercury.
Reid Lake: Limit consumption of walleye (over 23″) and northern pike (over 32″). These tested above recommended limits for mercury.
Roosevelt Lake: Limit consumption of largemouth bass (over 18″) and northern pike (over 24″). These tested above recommended limits for mercury.
Scott Lake: Limit consumption of walleye (over 25″). These tested above recommended limits for mercury.
South Buffalo Lake: Limit consumption of walleye (over 21″). These tested above recommended limits for mercury.
Swan Lake: Limit consumption of walleye (over 21″). These tested above recommended limits for mercury.
Twin Lakes (Minnehaha County): Limit consumption of any size walleye, particularly for children under age 7 and women who are pregnant, might become pregnant, or are breastfeeding. Walleye tested above recommended limits for mercury.
Twin Lakes (Brookings/Kingsbury counties): Limit consumption of walleye (over 18″) and northern pike (over 19″). These tested above recommended limits for mercury.
