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A Watertown man has been convicted of three charges in connection with an officer involved shooting that occurred Dec. 5, 2024, in the parking lot of the Yankton High School.
Andrew Jondahl
Andrew Jondahl, 41, was convicted by a Yankton County Circuit Court Jury Friday, January 30, on two felony counts of Aggravated Assault on a Law Enforcement Officer, and one misdemeanor count of Possession of a Firearm on Public Elementary or Secondary School Premises. He faces a maximum prison sentence of at least 50 years combined on the felony counts when he is sentenced at a later date.
“This defendant’s actions put the lives of law enforcement officers and the public at risk,” said Attorney General Jackley. “The actions of the law enforcement officers that evening kept the outcome from becoming even more tragic.”
Jondahl arrived at Yankton High School just before 5:30 p.m. on December 5, 2024, for a wrestling event that included Watertown High School, according to Yankton Police. Police said over the next hour, Jondahl was seen moving around the gymnasium and hallways, walking in a staggering manner. At one point, Jondahl was seen on video surveillance vomiting on the floor in front of the stands where he was seated, police said.
Eventually, Jondahl was seen being assisted out of the gymnasium by a friend and a family member, police said. Jondahl was later observed outside the school, staggering around while he attempted to locate his vehicle. He eventually got to his vehicle and sat in the front driver’s seat, police said. His cell phone and vehicle keys were taken by a family member. A family friend met Jondahl at his vehicle to speak with him, and the friend reported that Jondahl was seated in his vehicle with a long gun across his lap. The friend offered to give Jondahl a ride home, which he refused. Jondahl then made comments about self-harm while the firearm was across his lap, according to police reports.
The reporting party called 911 at 7:43 p.m. and officers arrived on scene a short time later. Officers spoke with the reporting party, and with Jondahl’s family members. Officers were told that Jondahl was a recovering alcoholic, that he had firearms in the vehicle, and that he had made self-harm comments.
Officers then approached Jondahl’s vehicle from behind and gave him loud verbal commands to place his hands outside of the window. Jondahl yelled profanities at the officers and was non-compliant, police said.
At approximately 8:21 p.m., police said Jondahl opened the driver’s door and exited his vehicle with two shotguns in his hands, facing toward the officers. Two Yankton Police Officers fired several rounds from their duty issued patrol rifles. Jondahl was struck by gunfire and received non-life-threatening injuries. He received emergency medical treatment at the scene and was taken by ambulance to a local hospital.
Following the incident, Jondahl spent time recovering at a hospital in Clear Lake, but he left the facility and returned to his Watertown home in late February 2025. Yankton authorities had not yet arrested him for his role in the shooting, pending his recovery, but a warrant for his arrest had been issued.
He was picked up at his home by the Codington County Sheriff’s Office on Wednesday, March 5, 2025, and held in the Codington County Detention Center until Yankton Sheriff’s Office personnel picked him up hours later and returned to the Yankton jail. The next day he was released after posting a $100,000 bond, according to the Yankton Sheriff’s Office.
The case was investigated by the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation, which found the Officer Involved Shooting was justified. The case against Jondahl was prosecuted by the Attorney General’s Office.
