NCJ Number
204133
Date Published
January 2004
Length
83 pages
Annotation
This report presents both the State of the South Dakota Judiciary as presented by the Chief Justice and the 2003 fiscal year report of court caseloads for the South Dakota Unified Judicial System composed of the State Supreme Court and the circuit and magistrate courts.
Abstract
In presenting the State of the Judiciary message, Chief Justice, David Gilbertson addresses the ongoing work of the State courts (Supreme Court, circuit court, and magistrate court), as well as technology, regulation of the bar, fiscal matters, personnel changes, rural/urban issues, juvenile justice, substance abuse, court services, Court-Appointed Special Advocates (CASA), equality of justice, and family-State relations. The South Dakota Unified Judicial System is comprised of two levels of courts having interrelated jurisdictions: the Supreme Court and circuit court. In addition to its own original jurisdiction, the Supreme Court provides administrative leadership for the legal and judicial system, and serves as the State’s appellate court. The circuit courts are the lower courts of original jurisdiction through which the bulk of criminal proceedings and civil litigation is processed. Employed by the circuit courts, magistrate court assists in processing misdemeanor cases and less serious civil actions. In the annual fiscal year 2003 (July 1, 2002-June 30, 2003) report on the South Dakota Unified Judicial System, comprehensive information is provided in the areas of both levels of the court system (Supreme Court and circuit court), judicial staffing, finances, receipts and disbursements, civil caseload data by county and caseload comparison, criminal caseload data classified by felony, misdemeanor, driving under the influence (DUI), and check violations, and court service caseload data including workload for both adult and juvenile services. Tables and charts