Minnehaha County Jail Debuts New ‘Virtual Courtroom’

On Monday, September 14, Minnehaha County 'Courtroom J', began live-streaming initial court appearances. 'Courtroom J' is part of the new Minnehaha Country Jail expansion, according to a Twitter post from the Minnehaha Country Sherriff's Office.

In a press release, the Minnehaha County Jail announced it had partnered with the SD Unified Judicial System to live-stream these hearings. Initial appearances will be streamed for most, although not all, defendants recently arrested and currently in custody at the Jail.

Certain hearings for defendants in custody and all hearings for defendants not in custody are not live-streamed.

The general public and media will be able to access these online hearings that are held in 'Courtroom J'. In addition to being live-streamed on the internet, the hearings will also be displayed on a public video monitor near the main lobby in the Minnehaha County Courthouse.

The quality of the online stream is good. The screen is split showing a view of the inmate's seating area on the left side of the screen and a view of the judge on the right. Video is streamed in high definition and the audio is clear.

Click this link to access the live stream.