Pierre PD Closed to Walk-in Traffic
To encourage social distancing while South Dakota works to combat the spread of the COVID-19 virus, the Pierre Police Department lobby located at the Solem Public Safety Center is closed to walk-in traffic until further notice.
“Safety of our citizens and our staff is always the top priority for our Police Department,” said Mayor Steve Harding. “This is a commonsense practice that we can all take to help hinder the spread of the virus without causing any major disruption to critical law enforcement operations.”
The following programs historically offered through the Police Dept. are suspended until further notice:
- Private fingerprinting services,
- Ride-a-long programs,
- Department tours,
- And community outreach events and public speaking requests.
Non-emergent calls for service, such as lost property, thefts, belated hit and run crashes, identity theft, and vandalism should be directed to the Department’s non-emergency line at 605.773.7410. Callers can expect additional questions about the circumstance to ensure first responders can take all necessary precautions when responding to calls for service.
“To be clear, the Police Department is absolutely still responding to emergencies and in-progress crimes,” said Captain Bryan Walz. “People who need immediate help should call 911.”
Again, during an emergency call, the caller should expect additional questions from dispatch. During emergency incident response, residents may see the following social distancing practices from the responding officer:
- Maintaining space between the officer and citizens,
- Requests for residents to step outside for report taking,
- Declining to touch certain documents while taking reports.