United States District Court for the District of South Dakota

The United States District Court for the District of South Dakota (in case citations, D.S.D.) is the United States District Court or the Federal district court, whose jurisdiction for issues pertaining to federal law or diversity for the state of South Dakota. The court is based in Sioux Falls with other courthouses in Rapid City, Pierre, and Aberdeen. The district was created in 1889, when the Dakota Territory was divided into North and South Dakota.

United States District Court for the District of South Dakota
(D.S.D.)
Location	Federal Building and United States Courthouse (Sioux Falls) More locations Rapid City Pierre United States Post Office and Courthouse (Aberdeen)
Appeals to	Eighth Circuit
Established	November 2, 1889
Judges	3
Chief Judge	Roberto Lange
Officers of the court
U.S. Attorney	Dennis R. Holmes (acting)
U.S. Marshal
www.sdd.uscourts.gov

Appeals from the District of South Dakota are taken to the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit (except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. government under the Tucker Act, which are appealed to the Federal Circuit).

The United States Attorney's Office for the District of South Dakota represents the United States in civil and criminal litigation in the court. As of February 26, 2021^[update] the acting United States Attorney for the District of South Dakota is Dennis R. Holmes.

Current judges

As of June 4, 2024^[update]:

#	Title	Judge	Duty station	Born	Term of service			Appointed by
					Active	Chief	Senior
16	Chief Judge	Roberto Lange	Sioux Falls	1963	2009–present	2020–present	—	Obama
17	District Judge	Eric Schulte	Pierre	1972	2024–present	—	—	Biden
18	District Judge	Camela C. Theeler	Rapid City	1975	2024–present	—	—	Biden
12	Senior Judge	Lawrence L. Piersol	Sioux Falls	1940	1993–2009	1999–2005	2009–present	Clinton
13	Senior Judge	Charles B. Kornmann	Aberdeen	1937	1995–2008	—	2008–present	Clinton
14	Senior Judge	Karen Schreier	Sioux Falls	1956	1999–2024	2006–2013	2024–present	Clinton

Former judges

#	Judge	State	Born–died	Active service	Chief Judge	Senior status	Appointed by	Reason for termination
1	Alonzo J. Edgerton	SD	1827–1896	1889–1896	—	—	B. Harrison	death
2	John Emmett Carland	SD	1853–1922	1896–1911	—	—	Cleveland	elevation to 8th Cir.
3	James Douglas Elliott	SD	1859–1933	1911–1933	—	—	Taft	death
4	Alfred Lee Wyman	SD	1874–1953	1929–1953	—	—	Hoover	death
5	George T. Mickelson	SD	1903–1965	1953–1965	1954–1965	—	Eisenhower	death
6	Axel J. Beck	SD	1894–1981	1958–1969	1965–1966	1969–1981	Eisenhower	death
7	Fred Joseph Nichol	SD	1912–1996	1965–1980	1966–1980	1980–1996	L. Johnson	death
8	Andrew Wendell Bogue	SD	1919–2009	1970–1985	1980–1985	1985–2009	Nixon	death
9	Donald J. Porter	SD	1921–2003	1979–1992	1985–1991	1992–2003	Carter	death
10	John Bailey Jones	SD	1927–2023	1981–1995	1991–1994	1995–2023	Reagan	death
11	Richard Battey	SD	1929–2017	1985–1999	1994–1998	1999–2017	Reagan	death
15	Jeffrey L. Viken	SD	1952–present	2009–2021	2013–2019	2021–2023	Obama	retirement

1. Recess appointment; formally nominated on December 16, 1889, confirmed by the United States Senate on January 16, 1890, and received commission the same day
2. Recess appointment; formally nominated on December 8, 1896, confirmed by the Senate on December 15, 1896, and received commission the same day
3. Recess appointment; formally nominated on January 11, 1954, confirmed by the Senate on February 9, 1954, and received commission on February 10, 1954

Chief judges

Chief judges have administrative responsibilities with respect to their district court. Unlike the Supreme Court, where one justice is specifically nominated to be chief, the office of chief judge rotates among the district court judges. To be chief, a judge must have been in active service on the court for at least one year, be under the age of 65, and have not previously served as chief judge.

A vacancy is filled by the judge highest in seniority among the group of qualified judges. The chief judge serves for a term of seven years, or until age 70, whichever occurs first. The age restrictions are waived if no members of the court would otherwise be qualified for the position.

When the office was created in 1948, the chief judge was the longest-serving judge who had not elected to retire, on what has since 1958 been known as senior status, or declined to serve as chief judge. After August 6, 1959, judges could not become or remain chief after turning 70 years old. The current rules have been in operation since October 1, 1982.

Succession of seats

Seat 1 Seat established on November 2, 1889 by 25 Stat. 676 Edgerton 1890–1896 Carland 1896–1911 Elliott 1911–1933 Seat abolished on January 30, 1933 (temporary judgeship expired)

Seat 2 Seat established on February 26, 1929 by 45 Stat. 1317 (temporary) Seat became permanent upon the abolition of Seat 1 on January 30, 1933 Wyman 1929–1953 Seat abolished on December 15, 1953 (temporary judgeship expired)

Seat 3 Seat established on December 9, 1953 pursuant to 65 Stat. 710 (temporary) Seat became permanent upon the abolition of Seat 2 on December 15, 1953 Mickelson 1954–1965 Nichol 1965–1980 Jones 1981–1995 Kornmann 1995–2008 Lange 2009–present

Seat 4 Seat established on February 10, 1954 by 68 Stat. 8 (temporary) Seat expired never having been filled Seat reestablished and made permanent on September 7, 1957 by 71 Stat. 631 Beck 1958–1969 Bogue 1970–1985 Battey 1985–1999 Schreier 1999–2024 Schulte 2024–present

Seat 5 Seat established on October 20, 1978 by 92 Stat. 1629 Porter 1979–1992 Piersol 1993–2009 Viken 2009–2021 Theeler 2024–present

See also

• Courts of South Dakota
• List of current United States district judges
• List of United States federal courthouses in South Dakota
• United States Attorney for the District of South Dakota

References

External links

• Official website
• United States Attorney for the District of South Dakota Official Website

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