Teaming Up For Safety

    Law enforcement officials in rural areas often have their work cut out for them. Though people might assume that there is not much going on ‘in the sticks,’ that is not usually the case. Small and sometimes understaffed departments have to serve large areas and face all kinds of issues from vehicle accidents to natural disasters to drug enforcement. In an effort to serve the citizens better, several entities in northeastern South Dakota have banded together to form a special team. 
    On Nov. 16, the Northeast South Dakota Multi-Jurisdictional Criminal Enforcement Team (NESD MJCET) was formed. The task force consists of members from the Marshall County Sheriff’s Office, Roberts County Sheriff’s Office, Sisseton Police Department, Spink County Sheriff’s Office, Brown County Sheriff’s Office, and Day County Sheriff’s Office.
    Marshall County Sheriff Sam Swanson said the effort has been underway for about a year to get this team together. “There is a similar team in the Mobridge area,” he explained. “So we are building off that idea.” 
    According to a press release, the Enforcement Team was established for agencies to assist each other with proactive drug enforcement, criminal interdiction and enforcement efforts. 
    “Most of these sheriff’s offices and departments have a limited amount of people,” said Swanson. “And sometimes, we need extra hands. With this team, we can work across county lines and help each other.” 
    Members of the MJCET were sworn in by Judge Lovrien of the 5th Judicial Circuit. From Marshall County, Deputies Austin Steiner, Ian MacDonald, David Hunter and Josh Zweber now can help serve the above mentioned  jurisdictions.
    Swanson further described the logistics of the team from a local standpoint. “The team will work in three hour windows on planned operations. We are not talking about our guys going to Roberts or Day Counties for full shifts, and we will always still have an officer in the county.” 
    He added that considering what is happening at home, he can elect not to send personnel given the situation. Swanson also said that this will not cost the county any extra as they are not paying for more help but rather are in a mutual agreement. 
    The team conducted their first operation on Nov 16 in Roberts County. In a three-hour span, they arrested seven individuals who were booked into the Roberts County Detention Center. During the operation, officers from the NESD MJCET encountered marijuana and fentanyl use and possession. There were three fugitives apprehended (one who had been on the run since 2021), and two were arrested for DUI. There were two traffic related citations and five traffic related warnings issued.
    Though other counties might seem busier than Marshall, Swanson stresses that he can foresee the task force being beneficial in this area as well. “We have certain areas of concern where we could use officers to saturate an area. I can see this being useful locally in the near future,” said the sheriff. 
    Swanson is happy to see the enforcement team come to fruition. “I think it will go a long way in helping with crime and public safety in general,” he emphasized.