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revise the penalty for the ingestion of certain controlled substances.

This bill reduces the penalty for possessing Schedule III or IV controlled substances in your body from a Class 6 felony to a Class 1 misdemeanor, though the court can still impose up to two years of probation. Second offenses remain a Class 1 misdemeanor with a mandatory minimum of ten days in jail, while third or subsequent offenses within ten years stay as a Class 6 felony.

exempt any person suffering from a severe mental illness from capital punishment.

SB 159 would prohibit South Dakota from executing anyone diagnosed with a severe mental illness, even if they have been convicted of a capital crime. This change would align South Dakota law with a principle already recognized in federal constitutional law that executing people with severe mental illness violates standards of human decency. The bill essentially creates a new exemption to capital punishment based on mental health status.

revise provisions related to driving under the influence.

This bill changes how driver's licenses are suspended for people convicted of driving under the influence by allowing courts to issue restricted driving permits for essential activities like work, school, and medical testing—rather than imposing a complete license revocation. For first-time offenders, the court gains flexibility to revoke licenses for 30 days to one year, while for repeat offenders, licenses can be partially restored after completing a chemical dependency program. The changes shift from mandatory full suspensions to a system where people can maintain limited driving privileges for necessary purposes.

establish mandatory sentences for certain driving while under the influence violations.

This bill requires mandatory minimum sentences for people convicted of a fourth driving under the influence offense within ten years. Judges must impose a Class 5 felony conviction and revoke the driver's license for at least two years, and if someone drives without a license during that period, they must serve at least twenty days in jail with no option to suspend the sentence.

revise provisions on aiding, abetting, or advising.

South Dakota law now limits sentences for people who aid, abet, or advise in a crime—they cannot receive a longer sentence than the person who actually committed the crime, unless they committed separate crimes on their own. The bill also allows courts to reduce sentences after the fact if someone who helped with a crime was sentenced longer than the person who committed it.

revise provisions regarding eligibility for parole for certain persons sentenced to life imprisonment.

SB172 changes who can be considered for parole if they were sentenced to life in prison in South Dakota. The bill modifies the eligibility rules in state law to allow certain people serving life sentences to potentially apply for parole under new conditions specified in the updated statute.

revise provisions regarding out-of-service motor carrier violations.

This bill creates a new, less serious violation for commercial truck drivers whose employer's operation is subject to an out-of-service order, making it a Class 2 misdemeanor instead of a Class 1 misdemeanor that applies when the driver or vehicle themselves is under the order. The bill distinguishes between violations based on who or what is actually subject to the order, allowing for different penalty levels depending on the circumstances of the violation.

Commending the Social Distance Powwow for promoting traditional songs, dance, and a sense of community in the virtual world amidst a global pandemic.

SC817 is a ceremonial resolution that commends the Social Distance Powwow for keeping Native American cultural traditions alive during the COVID-19 pandemic by hosting virtual songs, dances, and community gatherings. This bill does not change any state law—it simply expresses the South Dakota Senate's appreciation for the event's cultural significance.

prohibit eligibility for a suspended imposition of sentence for the crime of rape.

South Dakota law currently allows judges to suspend sentences for first-time felons if the judge believes it serves justice, but this bill eliminates that option for people convicted of rape. Anyone convicted of or pleading guilty to rape will now serve their full sentence and cannot have it suspended, even as a first offense.

clarify bond or pre-trial release upon sobriety program participation.

This bill clarifies that courts can require defendants to participate in the 24/7 sobriety program as a condition of bond or pre-trial release, but only if the court determines the defendant can afford the program's costs. The bill also prohibits jailing someone simply because they cannot pay for the sobriety program.

make an appropriation to support the teen court grant program and to declare an emergency.

South Dakota allocates $500,000 to the Office of the State Treasurer to fund teen court grant programs, which provide alternative justice options for young offenders. The bill declares an emergency so the funding takes effect immediately rather than waiting for the next budget cycle, and any unspent money will be returned to the general fund according to state procedures.

establish an interim committee regarding alternative programming for juvenile offenders.

SB 198 creates a temporary committee to study and recommend alternative programs for young offenders in South Dakota's juvenile justice system. The committee will examine options beyond traditional incarceration to help rehabilitate youth offenders.

establish a parole hearing requirement for certain inmates.

Inmates convicted of four or more felonies must now have a parole hearing before they can be released, where the parole board will decide if they've been rehabilitated, are not dangerous, have employment lined up, and have followed prison programs. If an inmate is denied parole at their initial hearing, they get another chance to be considered at least every two years after that. Inmates can choose to skip the hearing if they want.

revise provisions related to counseling for domestic abuse defendants.

South Dakota courts will now require defendants convicted of domestic abuse crimes to complete counseling that covers specific topics—power and control, accountability, emotional regulation, and correcting thinking errors—rather than generic "family violence" counseling. The law allows individual counseling to satisfy this requirement and lets courts recommend group counseling when available. This change ensures domestic abuse defendants receive more targeted, structured counseling focused on the root causes of abusive behavior.

revise the automatic removal of certain convictions from a background check record.

This bill expands when minor criminal convictions are automatically removed from public background check records in South Dakota. Under this change, petty offenses, municipal violations, and Class 2 misdemeanors are removed after five years with no further convictions, and Class 1 misdemeanors for marijuana possession are also automatically removed after five years—meaning people can legally deny these convictions ever happened when applying for jobs or housing. The actual court records remain available to law enforcement and courts for prosecution purposes, but the general public cannot access them.

establish a means for certain Department of Corrections inmates to earn credit against fines or costs ordered by the sentencing court.

Inmates without valid Social Security numbers can petition the court at sentencing to reduce their fines or costs, arguing they won't be able to earn prison wages without one. If the court finds good cause for the reduction, the inmate can then earn credits toward their fines and costs through work assignments in prison, at the standard institutional pay rate. Disciplinary work assignments don't count toward these credits.

authorize the Department of Corrections to purchase certain real property, construct a community work center for offenders committed to the Department of Corrections, to make an appropriation therefor, transfer funds from the budget reserve fund, and to declare an emergency.

South Dakota is authorizing the Department of Corrections to buy land and build a new community work center for inmates. The state will appropriate funds for this construction project and transfer money from the budget reserve fund to pay for it, declaring the project an emergency to expedite its implementation.