Sioux Falls, S.D. (KELO AM) - The Minnehaha County Courthouse saw an influx of business on Wednesday, so much so that an additional judge was brought in to help move business along.
State's Attorney Aaron McGowan says close to 300 people were booked in the county jail over the weekend. Seventy-seven of those made initial appearances on Wednesday over three sessions. Misdemeanor and Felony cases were divided into afternoon sessions, while a special morning session was devoted to arrest reports and criminal complaints from Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.
The nature of the cases varies, but McGowan said many of them were felonies with the majority related in one form or another to meth. "We've seen a 100% increase in felonies in this office in the last five years. And we know from state statistics that Minnehaha County has a 65% higher arrest rate for meth than the same time last year." He added that his office currently has of 14,700 adult criminal cases open.
If you're wondering why some of the court's business wasn't handled on Monday, McGowan says the state clerks and judges had that day off as part of the weekend. Instead his staff used Monday to prepare all the paperwork for Wednesday's backlog.