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.
Meade County, South Dakota, has about 31,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). Every warrant for Meade County comes from a judge of the Circuit Court for Meade County, is served by whichever agency finds the person, and is recorded in the court file of the case it was issued in. This guide says who issues and serves warrants here, where a person arrested on one is held, how to check for one and how one is cleared.
This guide covers who issues warrants, who serves warrants, after a warrant arrest, checking for a warrant, clearing a warrant and common questions.
Related guides: Meade County public records, Meade County arrest records, Meade County inmate search, Meade County criminal records, Meade County court records, South Dakota arrest records and South Dakota inmate search.
Who Issues Warrants in Meade County
In South Dakota an arrest warrant is signed by a judge. For Meade County that means the Circuit Court for Meade County, which hears every civil, criminal, family, probate and juvenile case, with magistrate judges taking misdemeanors, traffic and small claims.
When a defendant misses a court date the judge issues a bench warrant, and either kind of warrant lives in the court file of the case, kept by the Clerk of Courts.
For Meade County, SearchSystems opened and checked the court records page for the county at dakotaathome.sd.gov/search/794ef29f-9e31-544e-adc9-d7313c36c767 (page title: Meade County Clerk of Courts | South Dakota Unified Judicial System | Clerk of Courts), phone 605-347-4411, 1425 Sherman Street, Sturgis, SD 57785, which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 24, 2026.
Statewide, UJS Public Access Record Search is the South Dakota courts' statewide search, with a fee per name.
Who Serves Warrants in Meade County
The Meade County Sheriff's Office and the agencies that report for Sturgis, Summerset and Faith serve warrants in Meade County.
The Box Elder Police Department is listed by the FBI across two counties including Meade County, so its arrests are not broken out for Meade County here.
A warrant issued in Meade County is good anywhere in South Dakota, so it is served by whichever agency finds the person, in a traffic stop as often as at the door.
Together, the three agencies in Meade County with all twelve months of 2024 on file reported 875 arrests to the FBI that year; arrests on warrants are counted among them, not separately.
Each agency and what it reported is in Meade County arrest records.
Where a Person Arrested on a Warrant from Meade County Is Held
A person arrested on a warrant and kept in custody goes to the county jail, whichever agency made the arrest. The jail, run by the Meade County Sheriff's Office, held about 37 people on an average day in 2019 by the Vera Institute of Justice's count and has a jail page SearchSystems verified at meadecounty.org/sheriffs-office, phone 605.347.2681. The Meade County inmate search guide covers the jail in full.
A person arrested in Meade County on a warrant from another county is held at the same jail until that county takes custody.
How to Check for a Warrant in Meade County
The places to check for a warrant from Meade County:
- The court file of the case, through the Clerk of Courts at 605-347-4411, since a warrant is recorded in the case it was issued in.
- UJS Public Access Record Search, the South Dakota courts' statewide search, with a fee per name, for a case whose register of actions shows a warrant.
- The State's Attorney, phone 605.347.4491, which can say whether charges were filed; a warrant on a complaint follows the filing.
Not one of the Meade County pages SearchSystems verified (the sheriff's, the court's and the prosecutor's) is a list of open warrants, so a check means asking the court or the prosecutor about a case by name.
The statewide criminal history kept by the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation is not open to the public in South Dakota, so it is not a route to a warrant check on someone else.
Clearing a Warrant from Meade County
Only the judge who issued a warrant can recall it. For a case from Meade County that means appearing before the Circuit Court for Meade County, with the case put back on the calendar through the Clerk of Courts.
A lawyer can often arrange the appearance in advance. The State's Attorney's page SearchSystems verified is at meadecounty.org/states-attorney, phone 605.347.4491.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I check for a warrant online in Meade County?
Not from the Meade County pages SearchSystems verified; none of them is a warrant list. UJS Public Access Record Search is the South Dakota courts' statewide search, with a fee per name, and a case whose register of actions shows a warrant is the record of it. The court file is the record of a warrant: ask the Clerk of Courts at 605-347-4411.
Who serves warrants in Meade County?
The Meade County Sheriff's Office, and the agency that reports for the city where the person is found; an South Dakota warrant is valid anywhere in the state.
Where is a person arrested on a warrant in Meade County held?
At the county jail, run by the Meade County Sheriff's Office, if kept in custody.
How is a warrant from Meade County cleared?
By appearing before the court that issued it; the judge recalls the warrant in court. The case is put back on the calendar through the Clerk of Courts at 605-347-4411.
Is this the official Meade County website?
No. SearchSystems.net is an independent public records guide, online since 1997. It links to the official county, court and state offices described above and does not hold records, charge for them or take requests.