Search Bills

Provide immunity for off-duty law enforcement officers who perform a citizen's arrest or assist with a lawful arrest.

Off-duty law enforcement officers are now shielded from criminal charges and lawsuits when they make a citizen's arrest or help someone else make a lawful arrest. This new immunity applies only when the officer is acting in their personal capacity while off-duty, not as part of their official job responsibilities.

Authorize a law enforcement officer to temporarily detain an individual who is reasonably suspected of committing a crime and to provide a penalty therefor.

This bill gives law enforcement officers the legal authority to briefly stop and question someone they reasonably suspect of committing a crime, and requires that person to provide their name (and optionally their address and birth date). The detention can last no longer than 60 minutes and must stay in the immediate area where the stop occurred, unless the person is arrested; refusing to give your name becomes a Class 2 misdemeanor offense.

Prohibit political subdivisions from interfering with immigration enforcement.

South Dakota cities and counties are prohibited from creating rules that prevent their employees from reporting immigration status information to federal authorities or cooperating with federal immigration enforcement. Any local ordinance or policy that interferes with such cooperation or grants unauthorized legal status to individuals would be void and unenforceable.

Provide immunity for security personnel of a religious organization.

This bill protects volunteer security personnel at churches, synagogues, and other houses of worship from being sued for civil damages when they provide security services—including using force to protect people at religious gatherings. The immunity applies whether the security personnel use deadly force or other types of force, but does not protect them if their actions were unreasonably reckless, grossly negligent, or intentionally harmful.

Modify requirements for a vehicle approaching a vehicle that is stopped or occupying the shoulder of the highway with warning lights flashing.

South Dakota drivers approaching a stopped emergency vehicle with flashing lights must now follow specific safety rules: merge into the farthest lane on multi-lane highways or slow down by at least 20 mph on two-lane roads, starting at least 300 feet before the vehicle. The bill expands these requirements to cover emergency vehicles using amber, yellow, or blue warning lights (not just red), and violations remain a Class 2 misdemeanor with a minimum $270 fine.