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SOUTH DAKOTA HIGHWAY PATROL ROLL CALL
PERIOD ENDING 1/30/10

Fatalities	0	DUI Arrests	49
Injury Accidents	20	Felony DUI Arrests	0
Non-Injury Accidents	56	Misd. Warrants Served	23
Misd. Drug Arrests	42	Felony Warrants Served	2
Felony Drug Arrests	0	Other Felony Arrests	0
Overweight in excess of 5,000 lbs.	2	Drivers Placed Out-of-Service	30
Vehicles Placed Out-of-Service	49

ABERDEEN DISTRICT

January 24th:

Trooper Berndt responded to a one-vehicle rollover on US 12, west of Webster. The driver of an eastbound 2006 Sterling straight truck had drifted over to the shoulder of the road and then, suddenly, swerved across the road, causing the truck to enter the median and roll. The driver was wearing a seatbelt and had to be extricated from the vehicle. He received life-threatening injuries and was taken to the Sanford Hospital in Webster by Christianson Ambulance. Witnesses stated that the truck had been weaving from lane to lane for ten miles. The crash remains under investigation. The Day County Sheriff’s Office, Day County Emergency Management, Webster Police Department, and Day County Fire and Rescue assisted at the scene.

 

Troopers DeVaney and Stearns responded to a one-vehicle rollover on US 12 at the Bath corner. The driver of an eastbound Suzuki XL7 lost control of the vehicle on the icy roadway, causing it to slide into the ditch and roll. Both the driver and the passenger were wearing seatbelts and received only minor injuries. They were transported by Aberdeen Fire and Rescue to Avera St. Luke’s Hospital. The Brown County Sheriff’s Office assisted at the scene.

 

January 26th:

Trooper Peterson responded to an injury crash on Riverside Drive and Columbia Avenue in Morningside. The driver lost control of her vehicle on the icy road, causing it to enter the west ditch, roll and strike a utility pole. The driver and passengers left the scene.  They reported the crash to the owner of the vehicle. After further investigation, Trooper Peterson was able to determine the driver and the occupants of the vehicle at the time of the crash. One passenger received minor injuries. The driver was cited for no driver’s license, overdriving road conditions and failure to report the crash. The northeast part of Huron was without electricity after the utility pole was struck. Northwestern Energy was called to repair the utility pole and restore power to the area. The Beadle County Sheriff’s Office, Huron Police Department, and Huron Ambulance assisted at the scene.

 

Trooper Peterson stopped a vehicle in Beadle County for a moving violation and discovered that the driver had three active warrants for insufficient funds checks out of Codington, Spink, and Hamlin Counties. The driver was taken into custody.  She posted bond for her warrants.

 

January 27th:

Trooper Meland assisted a Roberts County Deputy in responding to a domestic assault in Claire City. A female had assaulted her boyfriend. She was taken into custody without incident.

Trooper Jensen and the Brown County Sheriff’s Office responded to a residence in Frederick. A man called 911 stating that an individual, with whom he had been in an argument, had followed him home from the Frederick Bar and was trying to break into his house. The man then stated that he locked himself in the bathroom, because the intruder was now in his house.  When the officers arrived, they found a 16-year-old male in the residence.  He stated that he was a friend of the caller and was just bringing the food that the caller had forgotten at the bar. The extremely intoxicated 31-year-old caller came out of the bathroom and recognized the 16-year-old.

 

January 28th:

Sergeant Sorensen responded to an injury crash on US 83, south of Fort Pierre in Stanley County. When a motorist pulled over to the side of the highway to put some additive in his gas tank, the driver of a northbound semi crested the hill and upon seeing the driver standing alongside the vehicle, attempted to change lanes, but clipped the pedestrian with the rear of his trailer. The pedestrian received serious non-life-threatening injuries.

January 29th:

Troopers Gruman, Cerny, and Meland were taking a meal break at the Perkins Restaurant in Watertown when Trooper Gruman noticed an injured elderly gentleman enter the restaurant. The man had fallen on the ice outside the building and sustained injuries to his head and hand. Trooper Gruman called an ambulance and administered first aid until the ambulance arrived. The troopers assisted medical personnel in loading the man in the ambulance.

 

Trooper Johnson investigated a two-vehicle injury crash on US 212 in Kranzburg. The female driver of a car collided into the rear of a semi as it turned left off US 212. The driver of the car received minor injuries and was cited for careless driving.

Trooper Schmiedt stopped a vehicle in Jerauld County for a moving violation and discovered that the driver had a revoked driver’s license, along with a warrant out of Hughes County for failure to pay a fine. The driver was taken into custody.

 

Lieutenant Weinmeister investigated a one-vehicle rollover, on a county road just south of Aberdeen. The driver of the vehicle lost control on the icy road, causing the vehicle to enter the east ditch and roll. Safety belts were not used and both the driver and passenger were ejected from the vehicle. Both occupants received minor injuries and were transported by Aberdeen Fire and Rescue. The Brown County Sheriff’s Office and Aberdeen Police Department also assisted at the scene.

 

January 30th:

Trooper Mohrmann investigated an injury crash on US 212, one mile east of Watertown. The driver of a westbound vehicle rear-ended another westbound vehicle. A passenger in the rear vehicle received minor injuries, but did not require medical attention. No other individuals received injuries. The driver of the rear vehicle was cited for careless driving.

 

January 31st:

While assisting the Watertown Police Department in conducting a sobriety checkpoint, Trooper Gruman arrested a male driver for DUI.  During the inventory search of the vehicle, two items of drug paraphernalia were located. The subject was charged accordingly.

SIOUX FALLS DISTRICT

January 24th:

Trooper Dale investigated an injury crash on I-90 near Kimball.  When inclement weather was causing poor visibility condition, the driver of a semi-tractor rear-ended a passenger car, causing the car to slide onto the shoulder and strike a parked Chevrolet pickup. The five occupants of the car and the driver of the pickup were transported to the hospital in Chamberlain.  All subjects involved were wearing seatbelts.  The driver of the semi-tractor was cited for overdriving road conditions.

January 26th:

Trooper Biehl stopped a vehicle on I-90 for a moving violation near Presho and noticed the odor of marijuana at the vehicle.  A search revealed ½ ounce of marijuana and drug paraphernalia.  The driver was arrested for DUI marijuana and for possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia. Three passengers were also arrested for possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia.  The juveniles were released to their parents.

January 28th:

Troopers Lubbers, Podzimek and Hanson demonstrated the Rollover Simulator at the Wagner Career Fair.

January 29th:

Trooper Himes responded to assist a female driver who had pulled over on I-29, north of Beresford. The driver had not taken her medication and was not feeling well.  An ambulance was called to the scene and the driver was transported to the hospital. 

January 30th:

Trooper Baker stopped a vehicle for an equipment violation on US 18 near Winner.  The male driver did not have his driver’s license with him.  When Trooper Baker checked the driver’s license status, he discovered that the man had two felony warrants from Missouri and nine misdemeanor warrants from South Dakota for theft and insufficient fund checks. Missouri wanted the subject held for extradition.  He was taken into custody on the warrants and was cited for no driver’s license and no seatbelt.

Trooper DeKramer noticed a vehicle parked with the parking lights activated and the passenger side door opened on South Dakota Highway 42, at the west side of Sioux Fall.  When Trooper DeKramer made contact with the female driver and female passenger, the driver stated that the passenger was sick.  Trooper DeKramer detected the odor of an alcoholic beverage coming from the vehicle.  The 18-year-old driver was subsequently arrested for DUI and the 20-year-old passenger was ticketed for underage consumption.  During a vehicle inventory, marijuana and a pipe were located in the center console.  The driver was charged accordingly.  On the way to jail, the female wanted to know if Trooper DeKramer could just throw the marijuana out and forget about it.

 

Troopers Nelson and Lubbers worked with the Mitchell Christian Health Fair installing child safety seats and demonstrating the Rollover Simulator.

 

Trooper Steen stopped a vehicle for a moving violation on I-90 and noticed an odor of marijuana coming from the driver’s person. Following an investigation, the driver was placed under arrest for DUI drugs. Trooper Kurtz assisted with an evaluation of the driver and confirmed Trooper Steen’s findings.

 

RAPID CITY DISTRICT

January 25th: 

 

Trooper Mann is assisting the Oglala Sioux Tribal Police-Highway Safety and the Bureau of Indian Affairs in investigating a two-vehicle head-on collision that occurred on BIA 27, just north of US 18. A northbound vehicle had crossed over the centerline of the ice-covered area of the road and struck a southbound vehicle head-on. The driver and the two back seat passengers of the southbound vehicle suffered fatal injuries. No occupants of the vehicles were wearing seatbelts. It appears that alcohol is involved with both drivers.

 

January 27th:

 

A semi-truck was traveling east on I-90, approximately two miles west of Kadoka, when the vehicle began to drift off the edge of the roadway.  The driver overcorrected, causing the vehicle to roll.  The semi-truck and trailer blocked both eastbound lanes of I-90 for several hours, until the truck and trailer could be put upright.  The driver was wearing his seatbelt and received no injuries.  Trooper Hamar investigated the crash.

 

January 28th:

 

Trooper Thomas responded to a call regarding a vehicle that was going the wrong way on interstate I-90, west of Spearfish. Trooper Thomas attempted to get the attention of the driver with lights and siren, but the vehicle kept going at a speed of about 40 mph. Since the median was full of snow and no location was available for Trooper Thomas to cross over, he traveled ahead of the wrong way driver, parked his patrol car, and ran across the median on foot.  He was then able to flag the violator to pull over and stop. The driver was subsequently arrested for DUI.

 

January 29th:

Troopers Lyons and Bock investigated two, back-to-back, crashes on I-90, approximately seven miles east of Sturgis. The first crash involved the driver of a westbound Pontiac Vibe, who swerved to miss debris on the road, causing the vehicle to roll into the median and come to rest on its wheels. The driver received minor injuries and was sent to the hospital. The second crash involved the driver of a Hyundai Sonata who, in an attempt to pull into the driving lane after passing a semi, sideswiped a Chevrolet Beretta that was traveling in front of the semi. The impact caused the driver of the Beretta to lose control of the vehicle and it rolled into the ditch. The driver of the Hyundai was able to keep control and pulled to the side of the road.  Both drivers were wearing seatbelts and did not receive any injuries.

January 30th:

 

The Rapid City Squad, with the assistance of the Pennington County Sheriff’s Department and the Rapid City Police Department, held a one-hour sobriety checkpoint in Pennington County. Fifty-five vehicles came through the checkpoint. Nine drivers were checked for impairment and four drivers were arrested for DUI. During the checkpoint, Trooper Miller observed the driver of a vehicle come to a stop and then back up, in an attempt to avoid entering the checkpoint. Trooper Miller caught up to the vehicle and conducted a traffic stop. The driver was later arrested for DUI.

 

Troopers Watson and Dowling responded to a one-vehicle rollover on US 16, south of Rapid City. During the investigation, it was discovered that the driver had been drinking. He was arrested for DUI.

MOTOR CARRIER

January 27th:

 

Motor Carrier Officer Moser stopped a dump truck that was transporting an improperly secured backhoe on US 85 near mile post 54. During the inspection he discovered the truck was operating on dyed fuel.

 

January 28th:

 

Motor Carrier Officer Wipf stopped a tractor semi-trailer in Kingsbury County.   The vehicle was weighed and found to be 6,850 pounds overweight.

 

A three-axle straight truck, loaded with steel, entered the Sisseton Port of Entry.  Axle two was a variable load axle and was in the raised position.  After weighing the vehicle, Inspector Dykstra discovered the drive axle was overweight by 5,920 pounds

 

January 30th:

 

A tractor semi-trailer entered the inspection site that Trooper Olauson and the Sioux Falls Mobile Team had set up on I-29 in Moody County.  While conducting the inspection of the vehicle, Trooper Olauson noticed the odor of marijuana on the passenger. The passenger was interviewed and it was revealed that she had 11 marijuana joints and other marijuana residue in her possession. She was placed under arrest and transported to the Moody County Jail.