SIOUX FALLS (AP) – Minnehaha County Sheriff Mike Milstead says his office can provide more information to the public about crimes after a voter-approved fix to the “Marsy’s Law” victims’ bill of rights took effect this week.
Some South Dakota law enforcement agencies are still reviewing their responses, while others have made policy changes based on the new amendment. Voters in June overwhelmingly approved the changes, which were aimed at fixing bureaucratic problems Marsy’s Law created for police and prosecutors.
The original Marsy’s Law amendment voters passed in 2016 guaranteed crime victims and their family members the right to privacy, protection from harassment or abuse and timely notice of trial, sentencing and post-judgment proceedings. The privacy provisions curtailed the information that some law enforcement agencies released to the public to help solve crimes, and officials said prosecutors’ offices had to track down and notify a broader swath of victims about their cases.
The new changes require victims to opt in to many of their rights and specifically allow authorities to share information to help solve crimes. Milstead said the sheriff’s office will now in most cases be able to release the names of businesses where crimes occur, which had generally stopped after the original Marsy’s Law took effect.
“I think it’s a big deal,” Milstead said. “The eyes and the ears of the public are so valuable to us that hindering us being able to use them in an effective way has been a burden.”
In Pennington County, State’s Attorney Mark Vargo’s office will have a telephone line for victims to call, but staff will no longer try to contact each one. Vargo said he thinks fewer people will opt in to their rights, and he hopes some of those resources can be repurposed.
“We will no longer be hunting down victims in the morning. We will no longer be reaching out and attempting to find them,” he said. “The constitutional amendment does place the requirement on them of opting in.”
Some agencies haven’t taken immediate action since voters approved the amendment. Sioux Falls police spokesman Sam Clemens said attorneys are reviewing the changes, while state Department of Public Safety spokesman Tony Mangan said agency officials haven’t yet made any decisions.
Five states – California, Ohio, Illinois, North Dakota and South Dakota – have a Marsy’s Law on their books. South Dakota was the first to alter its law, though Montana voters passed a Marsy’s Law in 2016 that the state Supreme Court later overturned, citing flaws in how it was written.
They’re named after Marsalee “Marsy” Nicholas, a California college student who was stalked and killed in 1983 by an ex-boyfriend. Her brother, billionaire Henry Nicholas, has bankrolled the ballot measures.
