Higher numbers of arrests and court cases beg the question: Is there more crime or just more people being caught?

Jeff Davis, presiding judge of the 7th Circuit, which covers Pennington, Custer, Fall River and Shannon counties, said that is a tough question to answer.

What Davis knows is that he and the other judges in the 7th Circuit are busy.

The circuit sees 25 percent of South Dakota's circuit court trials but has only about 15 percent of the state's 39 judges.

"It's a balancing act," Davis said.

Davis addressed legislators in January about adding a judge to the circuit, and although they killed a bill that would have done that, Davis is not giving up.

Davis said he does not think justice has been delayed because of the caseload in the circuit.

But, he said, "I think we're nearing that point."

HB1217 would have provided $181,254 for another judge in the 7th Circuit and a court reporter for that judge. It failed in the House Appropriations Committee.

"At no time did I have someone question the need for it," Davis said. "It was strictly an economic issue."

Only one judge has been added in the 7th Circuit since 1976, while the population of the circuit has increased by about 35 percent since the 1970s.

Davis will approach the Legislature again next year. If the Legislature approves an additional judge, attorneys would apply, and the governor would appoint someone; the process could take a year.

Davis said more crime is not necessarily the reason for the caseload.

More attorneys and law enforcement means more crimes are being prosecuted, Davis said.

Davis said the three types of crime that seem to be the most prevalent on the docket are domestic violence cases, felony cases of driving under the influence and drug cases.

He said there have been new laws for handling crimes put into place in his 29 years as judge.

When he started, the charge of simple assault domestic violence did not exist.

"SADV is finally getting the public attention it deserves," he said.

Felony DUIs are another common case Davis sees now as well as felony drug offenses.

All of that means more cases on the docket.

Davis and his fellow 7th Circuit judges are not the only ones seeing more work because of an increased caseload.

Domestic violence

Melanie Flatt, executive director of Working Against Violence, Inc. in Rapid City, said WAVI has seen a 33 percent growth in the past few years in clients and services provided.

"I think it's both that there is more crime and people are reporting more," Flatt said. "Visibility of the issue and of WAVI and other organizations has affected it."

Flatt said a shelter stay is a short-term fix, so WAVI focuses on connecting clients to resources in the community so they can get their feet on the ground.

She said WAVI helps domestic violence victims get protection orders, establish housing and find counseling if they need it.

Flatt said because of that case management component of WAVI, victims have been spending less time in the shelter.

"That's exactly what we want to happen," Flatt said. "We want them to be empowered with the services in the community to make a real difference in their lives."

Flatt said WAVI also works toward reducing domestic violence.

"We do that by educating the public, providing them with prevention programs and promoting the various shelters and services that are available," she said.

Drunken driving

Felony drunken-driving cases are another reason Davis said the 7th Circuit Court dockets are full.

In South Dakota, a third DUI in a 10-year period becomes a class 6 felony. Subsequent DUIs become more serious felonies.

Rapid City Police Chief Steve Allender said cracking down on drunken drivers means more work for law enforcement and the court system, but it is worth it.

"It's absolutely worth it," Allender said. "This is one area of law enforcement where it's our job and our responsibility to continue with DUI enforcement as a very high priority and to continue that in the face of criticism."

Allender said he does not think more people are driving drunk than were 20 years ago, but more are being caught and punished.

"I think America has a long-standing, well-documented history of driving drunk," he said. "We see no evidence that drunk driving is increasing, but obviously, drunk-driving enforcement and awareness have increased, and that's a good thing."

Allender said in 2007, 13,000 Americans were killed in accidents caused by drunken drivers.

He said that is about half the number that were killed each year in the 1980s.

"Something has worked, and we have hard numbers to prove that there are fewer drunk-driving deaths than 20 years ago, but it's still an outrageous number," he said.

Paula Wilkinson Smith, executive director of Lifeways, a drug prevention organization in Rapid City, said most people with drug problems start using at a young age, and she is working to reduce the number of people who get tangled up in drug abuse.

"Studies will tell you that most people who are in trouble in their adult life with alcohol or drugs began using at 12 or 13 years old," Wilkinson Smith said.

Wilkinson Smith said communicating with students as early as possible is one of the best ways to prevent future drug use, which would reduce the number of criminal cases.

"There's a new crop of kids that come into the schools every year," she said. "We need to keep it out in the forefront with parents, children and teachers."

Lifeways works with school counselors to approach children about saying no to drugs at an earlier age.

"It can impact their life forever," she said. "The earlier they start, the more likely they are to become addicted."

As they wait for an additional judge, the judges and clerks in the 7th Circuit are busier than ever. Cases are assigned to one of the six 7th Circuit judges by a random computer system.

"It seems to keep it more balanced," Davis said. "Some are going to be really tough cases, and others are going to be slam dunks."

The 7th Circuit judges are Davis, Janine Kern, Merton B. Tice, A.P. "Pete" Fuller, John Delaney and Thomas Trimble.

A judge travels to Hot Springs and Custer every other week to hear cases there.

The 1st and 3rd Circuits also have six judges each but handled far fewer cases in 2007, according to a judicial weighted-workload study, which is conducted every year by the state Unified Judicial System.

The 2nd Circuit, which handles the Sioux Falls area, has nine judges. The 4th, 5th and 6th each have four judges.

The 2007 study showed a weighted caseload of 14,048 in the 1st Circuit, which comprises of Buffalo, Brule, Aurora, Davison, Hanson, McCook, Turner, Hutch, Douglas, Charles Mix, Bon Homme, Yankton, Clay and Union counties.

The 3rd Circuit, comprising Hand, Beadle, Jerauld, Sanborn, Miner, Lake, Moody, Kingsbury, Brookings, Deuel, Hamlin, Codington, Grant and Clark counties, handled 17,419 cases.

Judges in those counties drove many more miles than 7th Circuit judges, but 7th Circuit judges handled far more cases - 27,425 cases in 2007.

"The workload is in Rapid City," Davis said.

Contact Katie Brown at 394-8318 or katie.brown@rapidcityjournal.com.