Brown County Juvenile Detention Center Inmate Bail & Bonds

Either a judge or a clerk magistrate makes the call. This county belongs to South Dakota's Fifth Judicial Circuit. State law says the first stop after booking is a committing magistrate, and the trip must come "without unnecessary delay" (SDCL 23A-4-1). Some of these hearings happen in person. Others use video, with the person kept at the jail.

The judge then names the charge and goes over the person's rights: to hire a lawyer or request a free one, to keep quiet, and to know the release terms. Nobody enters a plea that day (SDCL 23A-4-3).

On many smaller charges, a clerk magistrate sets the bond from the state schedule with no wait for a judge (SDCL 16-12C-10). A judge must always set bond for domestic abuse, murder, first-degree manslaughter or kidnapping. Reach the Clerk of Courts at 101 SE 1st Avenue, Aberdeen, SD 57402, 605-626-2451, weekdays from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. No fixed hour limit is written into the law for this hearing, so ask jail staff when it is on the calendar.

Nearly every arrested person in this state has a right to be bailed out. A capital charge backed by very strong proof is the lone exception (S.D. Const. art. VI, § 8). Judges must begin with the mildest choice and step up only as needed (SDCL 23A-43-2, 23A-43-3). Fifth Circuit release orders offer these forms:

• Personal recognizance. The person signs, vowing to return for each hearing. No money is paid.
• Unsecured bond. Free today, but the full sum comes due after a missed date.
• Ten percent deposit. One tenth is left with the Clerk of Courts. It comes back at the end, after any court debts are taken out.
• Cash only. Every dollar of the bond, paid in cash.
• Cash or surety. Either the full sum or a licensed bondsperson's guarantee.

Extra rules can be added. A sponsor may be asked to supervise. The person may have to stay nearby, get mental health care or stay sober. The circuit's order form also lists random breath or urine tests at the Sheriff's Office, and the 24/7 Sobriety Program.

All circuits work from a single FY27 Fine and Bond Schedule, which took effect July 1, 2026. Clerks pick an amount inside each range, and judges are free to move off it.

• First or second DUI: $225 to $1,000
• DUI, third offense or more (felony): $1,000 to $5,000
• Grand theft: $1,000 to $10,000
• Robbery: $1,000 to $25,000
• Misdemeanor marijuana, up to two ounces: released on a signed promise
• Disorderly conduct: $132.50 with costs included
• Driving on a suspended license: $282.50 with costs included
• Domestic abuse: only a judge picks the bond
• Murder, kidnapping or first-degree manslaughter: the judge sets bond at a hearing

Jail staff at 605-626-7101 can read you the amount on a particular booking.

City of Aberdeen guidance says to carry bail money to the county jail, 22 Court Street, Suite 1, Aberdeen, SD 57401. Staff are on duty 24 hours, and the office side keeps 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. weekday hours. Work through it like this:

1. Phone 605-626-7101. Give staff the name, spelled out, plus the birth date.
2. Learn the dollar amount, which case it belongs to and what kind of bond it is.
3. Find out if the jail accepts it or if you must go to the Clerk of Courts.
4. Confirm today's accepted payment types and the payee name for any check.
5. Arrive with a photo ID and the precise amount. Save the receipt.

Fifth Circuit release orders tell the jail to free the person after the Clerk of Courts reports the bond is posted, so expect some waiting.

Often, yes. For a cash bond ordered by a judge, Fifth Circuit policy takes cash and nothing else, and the Clerk of Courts receives and keeps it. Ten percent deposits are handed to the Clerk too.

• Clerk of Courts: 101 SE 1st Avenue, Aberdeen, SD 57402, 605-626-2451, Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Postal mail: PO Box 1087, Aberdeen, SD 57402-1087.
• City police: Aberdeen's police steer bail callers to the county jail. Their station is 114 2nd Ave. SE, Aberdeen, SD 57401-4201, administration 605-626-7000.

On nights and weekends, the jail at 605-626-7101 can tell you if a payment has to wait for the Clerk's window to reopen.

Bring cash to be safe. In this circuit, a judge's cash-only bond is paid in bills at the Clerk of Courts. For other bonds, ask the jail or the Clerk which methods they take, and about any card fee, before you drive over.

The court's UJS ePayments website takes debit or credit cards for fines, court costs and restitution, never bail. It is still handy: it flags any active warrant on a case.

Don't put money in the mail. Be wary of anyone who asks for bail through gift cards or a wire transfer. Hang up, then call the Clerk at 605-626-2451.

A bondsperson charges a fee and, in exchange, stands behind the entire bail amount. State licensing rules sit in SDCL chapter 58-22.

• An unlicensed person writing bonds commits a Class 6 felony (SDCL 58-22-4).
• Deputies, jailers and police can't earn anything from a bail bond (SDCL 58-22-3).
• Soliciting clients where prisoners are kept is barred (SDCL 58-22-32).
• No price cap appears in state law. Ask for the fee and collateral terms on paper, plus a receipt.
• A relative or friend acting as surety must swear to what they own. Lawyers in practice can't sign as surety (SDCL 23A-43-20).

Use the court system's bail bond agent list. For license checks or complaints, reach the South Dakota Division of Insurance, 124 South Euclid Avenue, 2nd Floor, Pierre, SD 57501, 605-773-3563.

A paid bond only settles one case. Check for other holds too:

• More charges or warrants. Every separate case, including one out of another county, has to be cleared on its own.
• Probation trouble. A new arrest may trigger a hold. Court Services sits at 101 First Avenue SE, Suite 101, Aberdeen, SD 57402, 605-626-2275.
• Domestic abuse. A judge has to be told of the arrest and decide on bond before release (SDCL 25-10-40).
• 24/7 enrollment. When testing is ordered, signing up may come before release.
• Federal or immigration holds. These stay even when state bail is paid.

Jail staff at 605-626-7101 can list each hold on file. Ask before you hand over money.

For DUI and many alcohol or drug charges, judges can tie the bond to the 24/7 Sobriety Program (SDCL 1-11-20). Sheriff's staff run local testing at 12 1/2 N. Main St., Aberdeen, SD 57401. Look for the faded blue and gray building north of the courthouse, just south of the tracks.

• Twice-daily breath tests, 6:00 to 9:00 a.m. and 6:00 to 9:00 p.m.: $2 per morning and $1 per evening for 30 days, plus a $30 state fee, then $1 a test.
• Remote breath device: $230 to start, then $150 monthly or $5 daily, by appointment.
• Alcohol-sensing bracelet: $260 to start, then $180 monthly or $6 daily.
• Sweat patch for drugs: $50 apiece, if a judge or Court Services orders one.

State caps limit fees, for example $3 for any one breath test (SDCL 1-11-26). A positive result or a missed test may put the person back in custody, held without bond, until the court takes up the violation. Questions go to 605-626-7104 during business hours. The 24/7 program also comes up again in our state bail law notes, along with a 2026 fee bill that did not pass.

Hardly ever. The state constitution allows it only for a capital charge where guilt is plain or strongly presumed (S.D. Const. art. VI, § 8). In other cases a judge can still set tough terms. The judge considers the charge, the weight of the proof, any mental health evaluation, and the chance of flight or of harm to others (SDCL 23A-43-4).

After a domestic abuse arrest, the arrested person may not speak with, write to or signal the alleged victim or the people who share that address until the first hearing. Calls, texts, social media and messages relayed by relatives all count, and breaking the rule is a Class 1 misdemeanor (SDCL 25-10-43). Please refuse if asked to pass along a message.

Release terms are argued by the State's Attorney, 22 Court Street, Suite 2, Aberdeen, SD 57401, 605-626-7130.

Terms set at the first hearing are not locked in. A judge may revise them whenever needed (SDCL 23A-43-7).

1. If the person can't meet the terms and is still jailed 24 hours after the release hearing, they may ask for a review (SDCL 23A-43-8).
2. The circuit court can be asked to amend terms a magistrate chose (SDCL 23A-43-14).
3. Collect pay records, a rental agreement and anything else that shows local roots. Propose safeguards like 24/7 testing.
4. Let the defense lawyer file the motion. The Supreme Court can hear an appeal (SDCL 23A-43-15).

The Clerk of Courts, 605-626-2451, can explain how a hearing gets scheduled.

At the first hearing, a person with too little money for a private attorney may ask for one (SDCL 23A-40-6). The judge then appoints a lawyer, and the county covers the bill (SDCL 23A-40-7, 23A-40-8).

• A judge can order the money paid back to the county, even when the defendant wins at trial or the charges go away (SDCL 23A-40-10).
• The county may file a lien but cannot foreclose on the family home over it (SDCL 23A-40-11, 23A-40-15).
• Someone out of custody on a minor charge with no jail risk, such as a Class 2 misdemeanor, may be turned down (SDCL 23A-40-6.1).
• Appeals go to the state Office of Indigent Legal Services, formed in 2024.

Request forms come from the Clerk of Courts, 605-626-2451.

One Clerk of Courts office in Aberdeen serves both circuit court and magistrate court. Misdemeanors, city ordinance tickets and early felony steps belong to magistrate court (SDCL 16-12B-11), and felonies then climb to circuit court.

• Clerk of Courts for both courts: 101 SE 1st Avenue, Aberdeen, SD 57402, 605-626-2451, weekdays 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
• Drug & DUI Court, a treatment track for addiction or mental illness: 101 1st Ave SE, Aberdeen, SD 57401. The state treatment court office explains referrals at 605-773-4161.
• Court Services, the probation office: 101 First Avenue SE, Suite 101, Aberdeen, SD 57402, 605-626-2275.
• Federal court, Northern Division: 102 Fourth Avenue SE, Aberdeen, SD 57401, where U.S. Probation and Pretrial Services answers 605-377-2625.

The Clerk of Courts keeps cash bond until a judge, the State's Attorney's Office or Court Services signs off on a release. The Fifth Circuit's refund policy treats the money as the defendant's, no matter who paid it. It is used first for court costs, then restitution, lawyer fees and fines. What remains is paid to the defendant, or to their lawyer if the defendant signs a release.

• Meeting every condition releases the bail (SDCL 23A-43-26).
• A serious breach can forfeit the bond and lead to an arrest warrant (SDCL 23A-43-21).
• The court may undo a forfeiture when justice allows (SDCL 23A-43-22).
• Skipping court is its own crime. Out on a felony or DUI, that means a new Class 6 felony. Out on a misdemeanor, it means a Class 1 misdemeanor (SDCL 23A-43-31).

Ask the Clerk of Courts about a refund at 605-626-2451.

Items taken from the person at booking remain in jail storage for the length of the stay. Plan ahead for any account balance and stored items. Call 605-626-7101 during weekday office hours and find out if a signed form is needed before a family member collects anything.

Pickup happens at 22 Court Street, Suite 1, Aberdeen, SD 57401, so carry ID. For how balances and deposits usually work, see our jail account money guide.

When someone from here faces a federal charge, the Northern Division of the U.S. District Court for the District of South Dakota hears it. That court sits at 102 Fourth Avenue SE, Aberdeen, SD 57401.

• A federal judge rules on detention when the person first comes to court. The hearing may be pushed back, five days at most when the defense requests it or three for prosecutors, with the person kept in jail (18 U.S.C. 3142).
• The U.S. Marshals hold federal defendants in the weeks or months before trial. The Aberdeen office is at 102 Southeast 4th Avenue, Suite 409, Aberdeen, SD 57401-4361, 605-226-1794. Ask them where the person is housed.
• After sentencing to federal prison, check the Federal Bureau of Prisons inmate locator.

Yes. An ICE detainer stays in force even after state bail is posted. Expect this sequence:

1. A detainer on ICE's Form I-247A reaches the jail.
2. The request is for custody for up to 48 hours after they would otherwise be released (8 CFR 287.7(d)).
3. ICE work in this state is run from the St. Paul Field Office, 1 Federal Drive, Suite 1601, Fort Snelling, MN 55111, 612-843-8600.
4. Use the ICE Online Detainee Locator to follow the person.

South Dakota's SB 7 (SL 2025, ch 100) became law in 2025. Because of it, a county or city can't restrict what its workers tell federal officials about someone's immigration status.

County jail is for misdemeanor sentences. Felony prison terms are served under the South Dakota Department of Corrections. Class 5 and Class 6 felonies usually end in probation (SDCL 22-6-11), though a judge may choose up to one year in county jail (SDCL 22-6-1.1).

• Search for a state inmate on the DOC offender locator, using a name or the DOC number.
• The JailExchange South Dakota state prisons page has every facility to browse.
• Corrections leadership works from 3200 East Highway 34, Pierre, SD 57501, 605-773-3478.

Youth are held at the Sheriff's Office's Juvenile Detention Center, 22 SE Court St., Aberdeen, SD 57401, 605-626-7102, never the adult jail. Its nine secure beds serve ages 10 to 17. Many go home with a parent or guardian before long.

Circuit court hears youth cases, and a youth case reaches adult court only through a transfer hearing and a judge's order (SDCL 26-11-4). The State's Attorney's juvenile diversion program ends in dismissed charges for teens who complete it. Home detention is another option a judge may order, supervised at 605-626-7103.