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Attorney Jeffrey Montpetit knew that obtaining a video of a South Dakota Highway Patrol trooper’s actions after a 2015 DUI arrest in Clay County would be critical to his client’s civil case alleging excessive use of force by the officer.
As a lawyer, Montpetit was able to view the video that showed Trooper Cody Jansen restrain Troy Rokusek in the Clay County Jail by pulling both his arms behind his back in a disabling move called a “double chicken wing.” According to court documents, Jansen then threw Rokusek face first into the ground, breaking off two of his teeth.
In his official report, Trooper Jansen said Rokusek resisted arrest, which would have justified the violent takedown maneuver. But after Rokusek sued Jansen, a judge ruled that the video did not corroborate Jansen’s claims. In September 2018, the state of South Dakota made a $100,000 payment to settle Rokusek’s civil case.
South Dakota Highway Patrol dashcam image of an officer-involved shooting incident on April 1, 2025. Troopers say the suspect, Samir Albaidhani — who is circled in red — fired several shots at law enforcement officers during an arrest attempt. (Photo: DCI/South Dakota Highway Patrol via SDPB)
The Rokusek lawsuit wasn’t the only time Montpetit has tried to obtain videos to support civil cases filed against authorities in South Dakota. And in each instance, it was challenging to get videos that show what really happened during interactions between law enforcement and the public.
“A lot of times in South Dakota, it’s just damn near impossible to get any of these videos because of the way that their statutes are written,” said Montpetit.
While it can be difficult for lawyers to obtain copies of videos from police dashboard, body or facility cameras, it is nearly impossible for the public or media to see video evidence in South Dakota.
State statutes in South Dakota provide law enforcement agencies and prosecutors with near-complete discretion on whether to release a wide variety of police records – including videos – for public review.
David Bordewyk, executive director of the South Dakota NewsMedia Association, said South Dakota public records laws are among the weakest in the nation, giving law enforcement agencies in particular the right to deny public or media access to records in almost all cases.
“It’s a very weak law in regard to law enforcement,” Bordewyk said. “It’s extremely broad and it allows law enforcement to legally keep just about anything and everything from the public.”
While neighboring states allow public access to common police records such as incident reports and probable cause affidavits, and police videos in some cases, South Dakota laws give law enforcement agencies wide discretion on what is released or not.
South Dakota is one of 13 states that has not passed some form of legislation to regulate the maintenance and public release of policy body camera videos, according to the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press.
Experts say releasing videos to the public and media improves transparency, increases accountability of officers and can ultimately lead to increased public trust in law enforcement.
South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley said he supports government openness but added the release of law enforcement records could have negative effects on both police agencies and the public.
In an interview with News Watch, Jackley said that as the state’s top law enforcement officer he understands that there is a desire for government openness but also a duty by law enforcement to protect the rights of both victims and defendants while upholding the fairness of the legal system.
“I’ve tried to be as transparent as I can without affecting public safety, privacy and the sanctity of the courtroom,” he said.
South Dakota News Watch tested the state’s open records law by filing formal public records requests in an effort to obtain videos from eight law enforcement agencies.
To determine which records to request, News Watch reviewed numerous state investigative reports regarding officer-involved shootings to locate cases in which dashboard or body camera video evidence was specifically mentioned as part of the material reviewed by investigators.
None of the agencies agreed to provide the video evidence to News Watch, including from a closed 2016 case in Pennington County in which the defendant, Abraham Fryer of Sturgis, was shot and killed by a deputy.
Jackley said there are three avenues for videos in high-profile cases to become public – either in a criminal or civil trial or through an open examination by the state Law Enforcement Training Commission, which reviews some police actions in South Dakota.
This story was produced by South Dakota News Watch, an independent, nonprofit organization. Read more stories and donate at sdnewswatch.org and sign up for an email to get stories when they’re published. Contact content director Bart Pfankuch at [email protected].
