RAPID CITY, S.D. – South Dakota’s Unified Judicial System will hold a series of public forums this week to gather feedback on a proposal to merge the Fourth and Seventh Judicial Circuits in western South Dakota.
The forums are scheduled for Wednesday in Rapid City, Sturgis, and Lemmon. Court officials will provide an overview of the proposal and then take questions and comments from the public.
The proposed merger is intended to improve operational efficiency within the state court system. The Fourth Judicial Circuit currently serves Butte, Corson, Dewey, Harding, Lawrence, Meade, Perkins, and Ziebach counties, while the Seventh Judicial Circuit includes Custer, Fall River, Oglala Lakota, and Pennington counties.
State court officials say additional information, including answers to frequently asked questions about the proposal, is available through the Unified Judicial System’s website.
Residents interested in the plan are encouraged to attend one of the public meetings and share their input.
