South Dakota
Tribe disbands security task force, cites financial struggles • South Dakota Searchlight
FORT THOMPSON — The Crow Creek Sioux Tribe has disbanded a security task force formed a year ago after the homicide of a young man in Fort Thompson.
Task force members were not sworn law enforcement officers, but responded to public safety incidents to de-escalate situations and provide aid.
The Crow Creek tribe doesn’t have its own police force. Many of South Dakota’s tribes do have their own police departments, but Crow Creek is among the tribes without one.
Crow Creek Tribal Chairman Peter Lengkeek said the hope was to transition the task force into a federally funded, tribally managed police force.
“That was one of the goals of this,” said Lengkeek, who added that the tribe remains interested in moving toward a local force.
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Officers with the federal government’s Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) Office of Justice Services provide law enforcement services for Crow Creek and the neighboring Lower Brule Reservation. But Crow Creek leaders have argued that BIA officers aren’t always able to respond to calls in a timely fashion. The tribe declared a state of emergency after the killing of a young man in 2023 and launched its task force.
Task force members were paid by the tribe and received training from a private security firm headquartered on the Pine Ridge Reservation.
The dissolution of the task force follows the election of three new members last month to the tribe’s seven-member council. Lengkeek, who retained his seat, confirmed this week that the security task force has been disbanded.
In May, Lengkeek told South Dakota Searchlight he’d hoped to be able to fund the force through the tribe’s marijuana dispensary business and its farming operations. But he also said that “we need to get some funding” to keep the force going.
This week, Lengkeek said the endeavor was not fiscally sustainable without federal support.
Lengkeek said he met with the state’s congressional delegation, and “made them well aware of the situation in the state of emergency and asked them to take the state of emergency where it needs to go for consideration and funding.”
“None of this has happened and no communication has come back to the tribe on the status of this,” Lengkeek said.
Congressional reaction
The Department of Interior’s BIA, Lengkeek said, has yet to address the issue. Questions sent by South Dakota Searchlight to the BIA on the matter early this week had not been returned as of Friday.
Members of the state’s congressional delegation have addressed public safety in tribal areas directly in several forums and formats over the past year.
Republican Rep. Dusty Johnson and Republican Senators John Thune and Mike Rounds asked Interior Secretary Deb Haaland for more public safety funding for tribes in a June 2023 letter.
Rounds sent another letter to Interior in December, and another to the Government Accountability Office in March, in that case asking a series of pointed questions about budgets and calls for service he said have been left unanswered by Interior. In April, he sent a letter requesting a meeting on a regional BIA law enforcement training center, and he signed on to a bipartisan letter from senators in May asking for a budget increase for tribal public safety.
Also in May, he talked about tribes setting up their own ad hoc security forces during a congressional hearing.
“In response to the police shortages, some residents of tribal communities have even resorted to establishing citizen patrols to look out for crime,” Rounds told Assistant Interior Secretary Bryan Newland during a May oversight hearing by the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs.
Rep. Johnson had a virtual meeting with Crow Creek leadership last August. A spokesperson for his office pointed out that while the emergency declaration had no specific ask for funding, Johnson has also pushed for a regional law enforcement training center, and has called for a congressional field hearing on tribal land.
“Tribal communities are desperate for relief … The federal government [should honor] the commitment we made and work to meet the law enforcement needs of Indian Country,” Johnson said in a press release on the field hearing request.
Johnson’s office also referenced letters to the House Interior Appropriations Committee that directly referenced public safety emergency declarations from Crow Creek and the Oglala Sioux Tribe.
Backdrop of controversy
The launch of Crow Creek’s task force came about seven months before Gov. Kristi Noem gave a speech to lawmakers linking illegal border crossings to alleged drug cartel activity on reservations. Lengkeek and other tribal leaders pushed back on the speech and Noem’s later comments suggesting that some tribal leaders are “personally benefiting” from a drug cartel presence on their lands.
Yolanda Aguilar, Crow Creek tribal secretary, was a member of the task force and remains a member of the tribe’s suicide response team, a volunteer group that came before the security task force and will continue on in its wake.
Tribal members divided about banning Noem, united in need for better public safety
Aguilar said it’s unfortunate that the task force is over, but said she and other members won’t waste their training. If she sees a situation and she feels that she can help, she doesn’t plan to ignore it.
“I’m still going to help out,” she said. “It’s about being a good neighbor.”
Jennifer Wounded Knee, who lives near the location of the 2023 homicide that preceded the task force’s creation, said it’s a shame the group has disbanded. Wounded Knee didn’t see it as an adequate replacement for law enforcement, but it helped.
“When they would drive by, people would kind of disperse,” Wounded Knee said.
Fort Thompson resident Alphonso Drapeau said in the end, the force wasn’t able to move the needle on violence in the community.
“We’ve still got gang violence over here,” Drapeau said.
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The South Dakota Sports Hall of Fame announced on Tuesday, April 14, that its newest induction class will feature 21 people, including six who will be inducted posthumously.
The induction ceremony will be on Sunday, Sept. 13, 2026, at the Sioux Falls Convention Center. These 21 inductees will bring the total up to 418 in the hall of fame.
2026 South Dakota Sports Hall of Fame Class
- Taylor Baker: Rapid City Stevens (1998), Kansas State (2004)
- Mike Begeman: Parker (1975), Augustana (1979)
- Howard Blumhardt (posthumously): Bowdle (1946), South Dakota (1950)
- Frank Cutler: Langford (1978), South Dakota State (1983)
- Julie (Krauth) Dearring: Des Moines Roosevelt (IA) (1989), Augustana (1994)
- Laticia DeCory: Pine Ridge (1989), Utah State (1994)
- Jim Dorman: Castlewood (1970), South Dakota State (1975)
- Dan Freidel: Armour (1980), Augustana (1984)
- Barry French (posthumously): Sioux Falls Washington (1940), Purdue (1947)
- Jeff Fylling (posthumously): Lennox (1974), Augustana (1978)
- Randi (Morgan) Haines: Mitchell (2000), Dakota Weslyan (2004)
- Mylo Jackson (posthumously): Ardmore (1929), Northern State (1934)
- Greg Jimmerson: Rapid City Stevens (1993), Stanford (1998)
- Louis Koupal (posthumously): St. Wenceslaus Catholic Parochial High School (1915)
- Tim Miles: Doland, South Dakota native
- Mike Miller: Mitchell (1998), Florida
- Kent Mueller: Freeman (1976), Dakota Weslyan, South Dakota (1985)
- John Papendick: Bridgewater (1978), South Dakota State (1984)
- Thelma (Austin) Smalley (posthumously): Wagner (1926)
- Jim Sorensen: Sioux Falls Washington (1962), Augustana (1966)
- Jason Sutherland: Watertown (1993), Missouri (1997)
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) — Bergen Reilly and the Nebraska volleyball team played in her hometown, Sioux Falls, Saturday afternoon – marking a special moment for the setter.
“It feels just kind of like a full-circle moment to be able to start off my senior year back in my hometown,” Reilly said.
The Cornhuskers’ exhibition match against Iowa State sold out within minutes as fans decked out in red and white piled into the Sanford Pentagon to cheer on Reilly and the Huskers to a sweep.
“It was a lot of emotions,” Reilly said. “I would say definitely some nerves. I felt like everywhere I looked in the crowd, I saw some what I knew, which is not normal. So that was really cool. But yeah, like I said, I think just everyone knew that this was going to be special for me, and they did a really good job of making it feel that way.”
Photo Gallery: Nebraska vs. Iowa State match
“It’s always really special being in your hometown,” Nebraska head coach Dani Busboom Kelly said. “I know the Sioux Falls people, they travel to Nebraska frequently to watch us and watch her. But to do it in your hometown, where there’s a lot of pride and is pretty special for her.”
The match was the O’Gorman product’s first time back playing in Sioux Falls. To see more than 3,000 fans turn out for her return, the reigning Big Ten Player of the Year reflected on the impact she and this match have had on the community.
“Coach texted me yesterday, Coach [John] Cook, and he said when I was recruiting you, you said you wanted to put Sioux Falls on the map for volleyball,” Reilly said. “And I feel like this was another step in the right direction there. And just seeing how many people care. And it’s sold out so quick, I think that it’s really going in the right direction. And it makes me really happy to see.”
Reilly and Nebraska will be back in South Dakota in September when they visit SDSU.
South Dakota
PBR | No. 1 John Crimber goes 4-for-4, tops final three rounds to win First PREMIER Bank PBR Sioux Falls
Using his pick for an opportunity to compete head-to-head against Lights Out, who has now paired in the Championship round on seven event-winning rides this season, Crimber punctuated his 4-for-4 weekend with a round-winning 91.50 points on Western sports’ ultimate money bull.
The 20-year-old took home 196.5 UTB points for his second event win of the year and improved his lead to 220.5 points over No. 2 Sage Steele Kimzey (Strong City, Oklahoma) – the largest lead the tour’s No. 1-ranked cowboy has had over No. 2 all season.
After his shoulder dislocated on his first attempt earlier in the round, Kimzey made the most of his Round 3 re-ride dance with Jameson (89.30 points) to sneak into the short go with one ride score. However, he finished the weekend 1-for-4, unable to end Magic Potion’s PBR record-holding buckoff streak, which the bovine advanced to 59 in bucking off the only cowboy who has ever lasted 8 seconds on him in 4.51 seconds.
Claudio Montanha Jr. (Ribeirao dos Indios, Brazil) exited Denny Sanford PREMIER Center in second place as the top-performing rider to go 3-for-4. The 36-year-old cowboy wasn’t able to convert in Round 3 but rebounded in the Championship Round in thrilling fashion.
Montanha Jr. opted into a short round dance with Hard Times and matched the bull’s every move en route to recording a career-high 91.25 points.
Successful in seven of his last eight outs, he netted 110 UTB points for his season-best runner-up finish and improved from No. 18 to No. 13.
Daniel Keeping (Montague, Texas) recorded a season-high third-place finish in Sioux Falls after becoming the first man to go 3-for-3 Sunday. Keeping bested Tecovas Triple Aught for 88.20 points in Round 3 to earn the second selection in Sunday’s bull draft.
The top-ranked contender in this year’s YETI Championship bull race, No. 1 Pegasus, tossed Keeping to the ground in 4.06 seconds to end the rider’s perfect showing while defending his spot atop the world title hunt.
Keeping earned a crucial 91.5 UTB points and advanced from cutoff bubble territory at No. 32 all the way up to No. 20 courtesy of his clutch weekend.
Luciano De Castro (Guzolandia, Brazil) finished in fourth place as the third and final rider to produce a 3-for-4 slate.
The veteran began his afternoon by going the distance atop Best Bet (87 points) to punch his ticket to Sunday’s short round. Castro later survived the requisite 8 aboard Ice Tray and earned but declined a re-ride, opting to keep his 72.15 points and end his weekend with a 245.50-point aggregate score.
He gained 61 UTB points for his fourth-place finish and improved from No. 26 to No. 19.
Dener Barbosa (Paulo de Faria, Brazil) rounded out the Top 5.
Barbosa parlayed his career-high 93.10-point ride on Pegasus in Round 1 on Friday night with an 84.85-point conversion atop Rip in Round 3 to earn fifth-place honors.
He took home a critical 64 UTB points, advancing from No. 45 to No. 38 with two events remaining before the tour invades Cowtown Coliseum and Dickies Arena for the PBR World Finals (May 7-17) in Fort Worth, Texas.
Ransom earned the YETI “Built for the Wild” Bull of the Event title for bucking off Brady Fielder (Clermont, Australia) in 5.63 seconds during the opening round.
Several of this year’s YETI World Championship Bull contenders produced 45-plus-point scores throughout the weekend, including Ransom (46.15), Eyes On Me (45.60), Red Demon (45.40), Fire Zone (45.15) and No.1 Pegasus (45.60, 45.30), who remains atop the title race standings.
PBR’s Unleash The Beast next bucks into Metra Park – First Interstate Arena in Billings, Montana, for PBR Billings April 17-18.
Action for PBR Billings, the penultimate event of the 2026 regular season, starts at 6:45 p.m. MT, with Round 1 coverage set to begin on Paramount+ at 7 p.m. MT.
Unleash The Beast – First PREMIER Bank PBR Sioux Falls
Denny Sanford PREMIER Center – Sioux Falls, South Dakota
Event Leaders (Round 1-Round 2-Round 3-Round 4-Event Aggregate-Event Points)
1. John Crimber, 86.95-89.4-89.95-91.5-357.80-196.5 Points.
2. Claudio Montanha Jr., 86.95-87.7-0-91.25-265.90-110 Points.
3. Daniel Keeping, 89-86.65-88.2-0-263.85-91.5 Points.
4. Luciano De Castro, 0-86.25-87-72.15-245.40-61 Points.
5. Dener Barbosa, 93.1-0-84.85-0-177.95-64 Points.
6. Alex Cerqueira, 0-88.55-87.7-0-176.25-52 Points.
7. Daylon Swearingen, 88.55-86.05-0-0-174.60-37 Points.
8. Alex Junior da Silva, 87.75-86.65-0-0-174.40-33.5 Points.
9. Sage Steele Kimzey, 0-0-89.3-0-89.30-23 Points.
10. Jess Lockwood, 89.15-0-0-0-89.15-21 Points.
11. Eduardo Aparecido, 88.85-0-0-0-88.85-18 Points.
12. Cort McFadden, 88.25-0-0-0-88.25-14 Points.
13. Kase Hitt, 0-87.7-0-0-87.70-16.5 Points.
14. Bob Mitchell, 0-87.35-0-0-87.35-15 Points.
15. Julio Cesar Marques, 0-0-87.15-0-87.15-15 Points.
16. Bruno Carvalho, 0-0-86.95-0-86.95-13 Points.
17. Alan de Souza, 0-86.8-0-0-86.80-14 Points.
18. Marco Rizzo, 0-85.85-0-0-85.85-9 Points.
19. João Ricardo Vieira, 0-84.45-0-0-84.45-8 Points.
Brady Fielder, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Paulo Eduardo Rossetto, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Maverick Smith, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Kaiden Loud, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Koltin Hevalow, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Cassio Dias, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Thiago Salgado, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Kaique Pacheco, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Lucas Divino, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Manoelito de Souza Junior, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Mauricio Gulla Moreira, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Andy Guzman, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Mason Taylor, 0-0-0-0-0.00
JaCauy Hale, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Elijah Jennings, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Damien Krushall, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Romario Leite, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Zane Cook, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Macaulie Leather, 0-0-0-0-0.00
2026 Professional Bull Riders Unleash The Beast Standings
(Place, Rider, Events, Wins, Top 5’s, Points, Total Winnings)
1. John Crimber, 16, 2, 6, 899.50, $193,100.00
2. Sage Steele Kimzey, 14, 3, 4, 679.00, $178,737.62
3. Leandro Zampollo, 14, 0, 6, 595.50, $121,150.12
4. Brady Fielder, 16, 2, 4, 593.00, $151,204.17
5. Alex Cerqueira, 16, 0, 3, 502.50, $87,565.00
6. Paulo Eduardo Rossetto, 16, 1, 6, 492.00, $106,855.00
7. Dalton Kasel, 14, 2, 4, 488.50, $130,098.33
8. Clay Guiton, 8, 0, 4, 409.50, $89,715.48
9. Cort McFadden, 13, 0, 2, 406.00, $50,280.48
10. Keyshawn Whitehorse, 15, 1, 1, 405.00, $71,991.67
11. Julio Cesar Marques, 15, 0, 3, 392.00, $73,105.48
11. Marco Rizzo, 16, 1, 3, 392.00, $94,090.00
13. Claudio Montanha Jr., 16, 0, 3, 389.00, $68,182.14
14. Maverick Smith, 15, 0, 2, 367.00, $64,708.33
15. Daylon Swearingen, 12, 1, 1, 362.50, $109,300.00
16. Cassio Dias, 16, 1, 1, 340.50, $64,240.48
17. Kaiden Loud, 15, 0, 3, 336.00, $54,613.33
18. Bob Mitchell, 13, 0, 2, 303.00, $41,731.67
19. Luciano De Castro, 14, 0, 3, 249.00, $37,952.98
20. Daniel Keeping, 15, 0, 1, 247.00, $35,475.00
21. Koltin Hevalow, 16, 0, 1, 246.50, $40,933.33
22. Jess Lockwood, 6, 1, 1, 236.00, $69,325.00
23. Andrew Alvidrez, 15, 1, 1, 229.00, $60,883.33
24. Thiago Salgado, 14, 0, 0, 224.00, $33,500.00
25. Callum Miller, 14, 0, 2, 209.00, $25,197.14
26. Felipe Furlan, 10, 0, 3, 197.00, $39,197.14
27. Kaique Pacheco, 16, 0, 1, 195.50, $18,225.00
28. Bruno Carvalho, 11, 0, 0, 190.50, $7,600.00
29. Alan de Souza, 15, 0, 1, 190.00, $19,650.00
30. Jose Vitor Leme, 10, 0, 1, 181.50, $25,350.00
31. Eduardo Aparecido, 15, 0, 1, 181.00, $31,890.00
32. Hudson Bolton, 8, 0, 1, 173.00, $38,062.50
33. Kase Hitt, 13, 0, 1, 147.00, $16,132.14
34. Lucas Divino, 11, 0, 1, 141.00, $15,050.00
35. Afonso Quintino, 15, 0, 0, 127.00, $11,307.14
36. Manoelito de Souza Junior, 11, 0, 1, 112.00, $18,000.00
37. Kade Madsen, 5, 0, 0, 106.00, $3,150.00
38. Dener Barbosa, 2, 0, 1, 100.00, $10,000.00
39. João Ricardo Vieira, 12, 0, 0, 92.50, $6,683.33
40. Trace Redd, 5, 0, 1, 87.00, $15,800.00
41. Mauricio Gulla Moreira, 16, 0, 0, 86.00, $11,100.00
42. Austin Richardson, 8, 0, 0, 80.50, $12,875.00
43. Andy Guzman, 11, 0, 0, 78.00, $11,550.00
44. Alison dos Santos, 9, 0, 0, 65.00, $5,100.00
45. Alex Junior da Silva, 4, 0, 0, 62.50, $3,775.00
Photo courtesy of Bull Stock Media
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