FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026

Contact: Tony Mangan, Communications Director, 605-773-6878

Attorney General Jackley Announces Former State Employee

Arraigned On Five Counts of Falsifying Investigative Reports

PIERRE, S.D. – South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley announces that a Spearfish woman has been arraigned on four felony counts and one misdemeanor count of falsifying investigative reports while an employee of the South Dakota Department of Social Services’ Child Protective Services.

Nova Collins, 56, was arraigned Tuesday in Lawrence County Circuit Court. The crimes occurred in early 2025.  

Collins is charged with one felony count of Forgery, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison; one felony count of Offer of Forged or Fraudulent Evidence, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison; one felony count of Falsification of Evidence, which carries a maximum sentence of two years in prison, one felony count of Offering False or Forged Instrument for Filing, Registering or Recording, which carries a maximum sentence of two years in prison, and one misdemeanor count of Falsification of Public Records by a Public Officer or Employee, which carries a maximum sentence of one year in the county jail.

The case is being prosecuted by the Attorney General’s Office’s Public Integrity Program, which is part of the Division of Criminal Investigation.  

Collins’ next court appearance is scheduled for Feb. 17. She has been released on a $500 bond. The defendant is presumed innocent under the U.S. Constitution.

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