Rapid City Arrest and Public Records | South Dakota.StateRecords.org

What are Rapid City Public Records?

In compliance with the South Dakota Freedom of Information Act, Rapid City public records may include any information generated, prepared, used, or retained by state or local agencies during official duties. Rapid City public records may consist of letters, forms, books, maps, reports, papers, tapes, symbols, photographs, data processing software, or any other form of information. There are, however, restrictions to certain public records. Some parts or the whole of such records may be restricted or redacted from public view if it contains:

Certain criminal history records
Cases involving juveniles
Certain medical records
Certain financial information
Information on a case pending investigation
Information on an ongoing investigation
Information on security
Information invading an individual's right to privacy
Trade secrets

Rapid City Crime Statistics

The Rapid City Police Department (RCPD) maintains and reports crime statistics in the city. Nevertheless, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) through its Uniform Crime Report (UCR) program gathers and provides nationwide crime reports on Rapid City and other states in the United States. According to the FBI’s uniform crime report, Rapid City reported a total number of 3003 crimes. The figure consists of 4 murder cases, 114 rape cases, 64 robberies, 358 aggravated assaults, 488 burglaries, 1646 larceny thefts, 320 motor vehicle thefts, and 9 cases of arson.

In 2018, Rapid City recorded a total number of 2693 crimes. A further breakdown of the crimes includes 2 murder cases, 99 rape cases, 65 robberies, 326 aggravated assaults, 428 burglaries, 1502 larceny thefts, 264 motor vehicle thefts, and 7 arsons.

Are Rapid City Criminal Records Public?

Not all Rapid City criminal records are accessible and available for public view. Certain records, such as criminal history records and juvenile cases, are exempted as established under the South Dakota Freedom of Information Act. Such records may, however, be available to the following specific category of employers: child or elderly care facilities, law enforcement agencies, law enforcement agencies, public utility companies, and security guard firms. Also, involved parties in a criminal record can request a copy of the record.

How to Obtain Rapid City Police Reports and Arrest Records

The RCPD through its Record Section maintains and provides access to Rapid City police reports and arrest records. Interested persons may obtain the records either in person or via mail. Requestors can make in-person requests at the Records Section, which is open from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday to Friday.

Records Section
300 Kansas City Street
Rapid City, SD 57701
Phone: (605) 394-4117

For mail requests, interested persons may address the request to:

300 Kansas City Street, Suite 101
Rapid City, SD 57701

Also, the police department charges varying fees depending on the type of requests. Some of the fees payable upon request include:

Case Reports - $8 including tax
Arrest Reports - $8 including tax
Log Entries - $1 including tax
Accident Reports - $4
Reconstruction Report - $275

How to Find Sex Offender Information in Rapid City

The South Dakota Office of the Attorney General through its Division of Criminal Investigations (DCI), maintains a searchable online sex offender registry for Rapid City and other parts of the state. The online registry provides interested persons with up-to-date information about sex offenders and their compliance status. There are three options available to find sex offender information in Rapid City: text search, map search, and neighborhood search. For Text Search, interested persons can search using the offender’s last name, first name, alias, address, county, city, and zip code. Under the map search options, interested persons may choose to use any of the three types of maps available: search by offender name, search by county, and search by city. For each of the map search options, requesters can view the map. For neighborhood search, interested persons can enter their address and zip code to search for sex offenders within the area. The required information for this search option includes address, city, state, zip code, and radius (in miles). Also, the DCI keeps records of absconders and unlocatable sex offenders.

How to Find Rapid City Inmate Records

The South Dakota Department of Corrections provides information on inmates incarcerated within the different correctional facilities located in the state. Although, the department of corrections does not guarantee the accuracy of the information it publishes as it only derives information from court records handled by the Department of Corrections and Department of Corrections. Also, the information provided does not include offenders sentenced to the county jail, probation, or other forms of supervision. Interested persons may search for offenders using any or combination of the following information: last name, first name, and DOC number.

How Do I Visit an inmate in Rapid City Jail?

The Pennington County Sheriff’s Office operates the Pennington County Jail for Rapid City and other parts of the county. Visitors are required to schedule a visit in advance before visiting. Other alternatives to physical visitation include email, telephone, and remote video visitation. The Pennington County Jail provides visitors with an onsite video option at the lobby. Visitations are allowed in the lobby from 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. Also, visitors are required to present a valid photo ID (must be government-issued) upon visitation.

Pennington County Jail
307 Saint Joseph Street
Rapid City, SD 57701
Phone: (605) 394-6116

Interested persons may also visit inmates using the home video visitation. Visitors are required to create an account and follow the step-by-step visitation guide. This service costs $7.95 for 20 minutes. Inmates can also be contacted via telephone by choosing any of the following options: advance connect, collect (direct bill), and inmate debit. The Pennington County Jail charges varying amounts depending on the inmate telephone option chosen. Inmates can also receive an email for $0.50 per message.

Court Records

The South Dakota trial court system consists of two major courts, the Circuit Court and Magistrate Court. The Circuit Courts are courts that oversee all civil and criminal cases, including cases that are above the jurisdiction of the magistrate court. On the other hand, the Magistrate Court has limited jurisdiction over certain types of civil and criminal cases. These courts oversee the proceedings in Rapid City and other parts of the state.

Pennington County Circuit Court
315 St. Joseph Street, P.O. Box 230
Rapid City, SD 57709
Phone: (605) 394-2688

Pennington County Magistrate Court
315 St. Joseph Street, P.O. Box 230
Rapid City, SD 57709
Phone: (605) 394-2688

Are Rapid City Court Records Public?

Not all Rapid City court records are available for public view. Certain records are considered confidential and restricted from the general public. As established under the South Dakota Freedom of Information Act, court records involving cases such as civil harassment, juvenile proceedings, paternity and child adoption proceedings, etc. are redacted or restricted from the public.

How to Obtain Rapid City Civil Court Records

The South Dakota Unified Judicial System (SDUJS) maintains and issues copies of civil court records of Rapid City and other cities within the state. To obtain Rapid City civil court records, interested persons are required to submit a completed record search request form to the UJS support email address. Also, requesters can search through the SDUJS' Public Access Record Search portal. Rapid City civil court records from 2003 to date are available online. Each record search costs $20 upon submission. Interested persons can search for civil court records as a guest or create an account on the portal.

How to Obtain Rapid City Criminal Court Records

Requestors can obtain Rapid City criminal court records from the SDUJS' Public Access Record Search portal. The SDUJS maintains and issues copies of criminal court records from 1989 to date. Requestors may search as a guest or create an account on the portal. Each search costs $20 upon submission. Also, interested persons may request Rapid City criminal court records by submitting a completed record search request form to the UJS support email address.

What are Rapid City Vital Records?

Rapid City vital records consist of documents or certificates containing information about life events generated by government agencies. Such records include birth records, marriage records, divorce records, and death records. Requestors may obtain copies of most vital records from the local or state agencies.

Where and How to Obtain Rapid City Divorce Records

The South Dakota Department of Health maintains and issues copies of divorce records that occur in Rapid City and other parts of the state. Divorce records, as stated by South Dakota state laws, are not available to public view. Therefore, the vital records office issues two types of divorce records: a certified copy and an informational copy. The certified copy is only issued to authorized persons, while non-authorized persons may obtain an informational copy.

Interested persons can obtain Rapid City divorce records in person or via mail request. The vital records office charges $15 for each divorce record copy. For both in-person and mail requests, interested persons are required to present a valid photo ID and submit a completed divorce record request form to: