The Chief Justice of the South Dakota Supreme Court praises state lawmakers for passage of broad criminal justice reforms. Chief Justice David Gilbertson made his comments during the annual State of the Judiciary Address to lawmakers gathered in Pierre.
After Chief Justice Gilbertson's address SDPB's Cassie Bartlett gathered reaction from state lawmakers. Lawmakers on both sides are confident criminal justice reform legislation passed last year is making a difference. But Bartlett reports members of the House and Senate Judiciary Committees still see areas that need improvement and there are a few proposed changes in the works this session.
Recent data has showed South Dakota has some of the fastest rising crime rates in the country from 2007 to 2012. But not all lawmakers are concerned about those statistics. Senator Craig Tieszen is chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee. He says success of the criminal justice reform won’t be determined for a few years.
“When you’re talking recidivism, you don’t know if somebody’s going to go back to prison for a few years until a few years have passed. But on the other hand, we already have data regarding the number of prisoners that are taking advantage of reduced parole time. 90 percent of prisoners are reducing their parole time by behaving themselves on parole, so we have that already. We’re frustrated in waiting but it’ll come forward and we’ll be watching it closely. If it continues to be as successful as initial results, we’ll all be happy,” says Tiezen.
Tieszen says it’s nice to hear about the successes in areas like the drug courts and 24-7 program for addicts.
While state leaders give general praise to reforms made, they also note challenges ahead. South Dakota Supreme Court Chief Justice David Gilbertson says the state needs more rural attorneys.
Gilbertson is concerned that young lawyers rarely take up practice in small towns and rural areas.
“The Rural Attorney Initiative allows the state of South Dakota to take a giant step forward to stem 50 years of decline in the ability of our citizens to have reasonable access to legal services. I have observed that South Dakota is becoming a state with islands of justice provided by larger cities and a sea of justice denied in rural areas,” says Gilbertson.
In the annual State of the Judiciary address, Chief Justice Gilbertson praises the state legislature for supporting reforms that seek to lure more young lawyers to rural areas. In part the Rural Attorney Initiative pays back the school loan debt for qualifying attorneys who agree to locate in a rural area.
Gilbertson says South Dakota is the first state in the nation with this approach and other states are following suit.
Gilbertson also says the state is also making headway in a new pilot program aims to help veterans find treatment instead of punishment for low-level crimes. He says veterans who commit misdemeanors can be routed to special programs rather than jail.
“In cases where the judge, prosecutor and defense deem it appropriate—the veteran may be directly diverted to a rehabilitation program within the VA, with the option that the misdemeanor charge be dismissed if the veteran successfully completes the program,” says Gilbertson.
Gilbertson says veterans courts are now operating pilot projects in Sioux Falls, Watertown, and Hot Springs. He says, besides helping veterans, the programs aim to reduce prison population and save taxpayer dollars.