U.S. Attorney’s Office Hosts Summer Law Camp

SIOUX FALLS - Earlier this week, 36 area high school students participated in an immersive Summer Law Camp hosted by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of South Dakota. Over the course of three days, students learned about the federal justice system from the perspective of criminal, civil, and appellate attorneys and paralegals, victim witness advocates, human resource specialists, law enforcement officials, judicial law clerks, the federal judiciary, and law students.

"The USAO's Summer Law Camp was developed to introduce high school students to various career paths associated with the criminal justice system and the practice of law," said U.S. Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell. "It is our hope that by offering a window into the work we do each and every day to uphold the rule of law and keep our communities safe, we can inspire the next generation to consider careers as lawyers, law enforcement officers, or vital legal support professionals."

In addition to meeting with members of the U.S. Attorney's Office, students heard from the Federal Public Defender's Office, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the U.S. Marshal's Service (USMS), the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigations (IRS-CI), the Department of Health and Human Services' Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG), South Dakota's FUSION Center, the South Dakota Highway Patrol, and the Sioux Falls Police Department (SFPD). On the third day of Camp, students conducted a mock trial before U.S. District Court Judge Karen E. Schreier.

This was the first Summer Law Camp organized by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of South Dakota. Information about future programming will be distributed to area school districts in Spring 2025. For more information, please reach out to [email protected].