FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:  Wednesday, April 3, 2019
CONTACT:  Tim Bormann  (605) 773-3215

PIERRE, S.D. – Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg today announced that the U.S. Department of Justice has completed its audit and review of the state’s implementation of the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA), Title I of the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006.

South Dakota was just the 4th state to implement the act in 2010.  To date only 17 states and 4 territories have substantially implemented SORNA.  In addition, South Dakota, through the Division of Criminal Investigation, has joint powers agreements with the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, the Crow Creek Sioux Tribe, the Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe, and the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, to share sex offender registration information.  The state’s sex offender registration application and website is also shared with the Lower Brule Sioux Tribe, the Oglala Sioux Tribe and the Rosebud Sioux Tribe.  The Sisseton-Wahpeton Oyate and the Yankton Sioux Tribe use their own registry applications and the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe forwards its registration information to the DCI for inclusion in the South Dakota registry.

South Dakota has worked closely with the U.S. Department of Justice and its Office of Justice Programs which provides federal leadership to the Office of Sex Offender Sentencing, Monitoring, Apprehending, Registering, and Tracking (SMART).  The March 2019 audit report was the first comprehensive review of the program in-state since the initial implementation.

“I am incredibly proud and pleased with all the hard work done by my office, and the agencies across South Dakota that oversee sex offender registration,” said Ravnsborg.  “It is good work like this, in conjunction with the tribes and our federal law enforcement partners, that help us all KEEP SOUTH DAKOTA SAFE.”

The full implementation review process began in August of 2018 and went through the SMART Office Substantial Implementation Checklist-Revised which covers 14 sections that address SORNA requirements.  The final report indicates whether South Dakota meets SORNA requirements, does not meet SORNA requirements, or deviates from SORNA requirements in a way that does not substantially disserve SORNA requirements.  The review accomplishes this based upon a complete overview of South Dakota’s publicly available state laws and practices related to sex offender registration.

The report states that “South Dakota has performed exceptional work in substantially implementing SORNA and enhancing its sex offender registration and notification system.”

The full report can be accessed at: SORNA REPORT 2019

-30-