Reviewed and updated October 9, 2026 by the SearchSystems.net editorial team. The arrest counts are the ones each agency reported to the FBI, as the FBI held them on October 8, 2026. The jail figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data. Every office link was opened and checked against the office's own site between September 24, 2026 and October 4, 2026.
Box Elder, South Dakota, in Pennington County, has about 14,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A DUI arrest in Box Elder starts two cases, a criminal case in the Circuit Court for Pennington County and a license case before the Department of Public Safety, and leaves three records. This guide follows the arrest from the roadside to the court file and the driving record.
This guide covers the law, the arrest, booking, the court case, the license case, the records and common questions.
Related guides: Box Elder public records, Pennington County DUI, Box Elder arrest records, Box Elder warrants, Box Elder inmate search, Box Elder criminal records, South Dakota arrest records and South Dakota inmate search.
The DUI Law in South Dakota
Drunk driving is charged as DUI in South Dakota, at a blood alcohol level of 0.08 or more.
Driving in South Dakota is consent to a breath or blood test when an officer has cause to suspect DUI; the license case that follows a refusal or a failed test is run by the Department of Public Safety, separately from the criminal case.
For charging and sentencing, South Dakota counts prior offenses within 10 years.
Who Makes DUI Arrests in Box Elder
The Pennington County Sheriff's Office and the agency that reports for Box Elder (filed by the FBI as Box Elder Police Department) make the DUI arrests in and around Box Elder.
The FBI's agency list also places one more agency in Pennington County: South Dakota School of Mines and Technology (campus police).
Together, the three agencies in Pennington County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 10,741 arrests to the FBI that year, all offenses together; the FBI's count for Pennington County does not break DUI out.
Booking After a DUI Arrest in Box Elder
A driver arrested for DUI and kept in custody goes to the county jail, whichever agency made the arrest. The jail, run by the Pennington County Sheriff's Office, held about 630 people on an average day in 2023 by the Vera Institute of Justice's count and has a custody page SearchSystems verified at pennco.org/law_public_safety/jail/current_inmates.php. The Box Elder inmate search guide covers the jail in full.
The Court Case
The State's Attorney files the charge, and the case is heard in the Circuit Court for Pennington County.
The court records page SearchSystems verified for the county is at dakotaathome.sd.gov/search/aeeb2f90-ffec-5ff2-9397-81ed6c86f875, phone 605-394-2575.
Statewide, UJS Public Access Record Search is the South Dakota courts' statewide search, with a fee per name.
The License Case
The court case is only half the record. The Department of Public Safety runs a separate administrative case over the license, which can suspend it before the criminal case is decided, and the South Dakota Department of Public Safety Driver Licensing keeps the driving record the conviction goes on.
The Records a DUI Leaves
- The arrest report: from the agency that made the arrest, under the South Dakota Open Records Law.
- The court file: from the Circuit Court for Pennington County, kept by the Clerk of Courts.
- The driving record: from the South Dakota Department of Public Safety Driver Licensing.
More on each: Box Elder arrest records and Box Elder court records.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the DUI limit in South Dakota?
0.08 percent blood alcohol.
Where is a DUI case from Box Elder heard?
In the Circuit Court for Pennington County, brought by the State's Attorney. The court records page SearchSystems verified for the county is at dakotaathome.sd.gov.
Where is a person arrested for DUI in Box Elder held?
At the county jail, run by the Pennington County Sheriff's Office, if kept in custody.
Who handles the license after a DUI arrest in South Dakota?
The Department of Public Safety, in an administrative case separate from the court case.
How long does a DUI count as a prior in South Dakota?
10 years.
Is this the official Box Elder website?
No. SearchSystems.net is an independent public records guide, online since 1997. It links to the official city, county, court and state offices described above and does not hold records, charge for them or take requests.