Yankton Sioux Guard at Springfield Prison Complains of Racist Harassment, Gets Pink Slip But No Response from Governor – Dakota Free Press

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All that studying and consulting the Governor had us pay for didn’t come fast enough to stop another complaint to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission about mistreatment of staff in the Department of Corrections. Beth Warden reports that former Springfield prison guard Dallas Tronvold, a member of the Yankton Sioux Tribe, alleges racist harassment from a supervisor and other prison staff:

“I was called a prairie ***** by a supervisor,” said Tronvold. “A female officer stated, well, when do you guys get your Indian money?”

Tronvold says he was not in the favored group and became a target. While leaving at the end of his shift, he said other staff kept him against his will between two prison gates.

“I asked the sergeant why the gate was shut, and he stated to me, ‘you ain’t going anywhere.’ I filed a report with the Bon Homme County Sheriff and nothing was investigated or done [Beth Warden, “US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission Investigates Racial Discrimination at SD Prison,” KSFY, 2022.04.15].

Tronvold tried to move his complaint up the chain around the time Kellie Wasko took over as Secretary of Corrections last month. Secretary Wasko disclaims detailed knowledge of the complaint (“I came in right as it was sweating,” Wasko says on camera, “so I couldn’t even speak the truths of in-depth knowledge”), even though Tronvold says he has emailed the Secretary, the Bureau of Human Resources, and Governor Kristi Noem herself to describe the racism he experienced as well as sexual misconduct by other guards with inmates.

The Governor appears to be getting on Tronvold’s complaints the same way she got On Meth™ a couple years ago:

In addition to the allegation of staff and inmates having sex, he also offered which cameras caught the activity, so that his claims could be verified.

Noem did not respond.

“I mean, I figured she would correct these situations and she didn’t. She never did anything,” said Tronvold [Warden, 2022.04.15].

Boy, if Tronvold had complained that his superiors were trying to teach him critical race theory (and watch out: Noem’s consultants did sneak into their report a recommendation for “cultural diversity training that addresses the specific cultural chracteristics of the Indigenous American population“), Governor Noem would have tweeted and Foxed his complaint faster than … but bring up concerns about racism, and Noem has nothing to say. if anything, Noem and Wasko will probably tell Tronvold there isn’t really any racism in South Dakota’s prisons but that he just perceives it.

Tronvold says the Department has fired him for “creating a hostile work environment and using an improper flashlight.” If the EEOC finds DOC actually retaliated against Tronvold for reporting harassment, the DOC could face its second employment discrimination lawsuit this year.

Governor Noem was supposedly cleaning house last summer when complaints arose about bad conditions in South Dakota’s prisons. But we now have two fired corrections staff saying the state is simply clearing out staff who complain.

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