SB78

South Dakota's drug trafficking penalties get tougher for dealers caught with certain indicators of larger-scale operations. Currently, manufacturing or distributing Schedule I or II drugs is a Class 4 felony, but this bill upgrades it to a mandatory Class 3 felony with a minimum 5-year prison sentence if the person possesses three or more specific items or amounts—like $1,000+ in cash, weapons, bulk packaging materials, manufacturing equipment, or customer lists. The new law removes the judge's ability to suspend or reduce these sentences.