Court Services Information
The Seventh Judicial Circuit has a staff of court services officers trained to provide assistance to judges, offenders and the community at large.
Court services officers conduct pre-dispositional reports, pre-sentence investigations and recommend to the sentencing judge plans for dealing with juvenile and adult offenders who may be placed on probation. In preparing these plans, the court services officer takes into account public safety, victim and community restoration, and identifies ways to increase offenders' skills so that they can be productive citizens. The officers also provide in-state probation supervision, interstate compact supervision, counseling and/or community referral services to those placed on probation. Working with various government and private providers, court services is able to offer intensive probation and community based services as an alternative to committing individuals to the Department of Corrections or the South Dakota State Penitentiary.
The Seventh Circuit Court Services Office supervises a probation caseload consisting of adult felony cases, adult misdemeanor cases, adult intensive supervision cases, juvenile cases and juvenile intensive cases. The office is also responsible for conducting investigations and supervision for all criminal and juvenile cases that are processed through the Seventh Circuit Court. Some of the duties included in the investigation and supervision of these cases are:
- Drug testing and screening, collection of DNA samples and other tests.
- Pre-sentence investigations, often called PSIs, which summarize a defendant's life history, previous offenses, if any, and the likelihood of re-offense or successful rehabilitation.
- In the juvenile arena, social case studies are completed which contain information similar to a PSI.
- Monitoring compliance with all court-ordered conditions.
- Conducting a validated risk tool to determine clients risk and criminogenic needs.
- Providing intervention to impact the criminogenic needs.
- Alcohol monitoring, SCRAM monitoring, restitution planning and payment tracking, and other monitoring and tracking services.
- Juvenile diversion programs, alternative treatment programs, and other compliance and assessment programs and techniques.
- Referrals for evaluations, assessments and testing as required.
