Minnehaha County Sheriff's Office emblem.
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO.com) — The Minnehaha County Sheriff’s Office says large numbers of unattended children between the ages of 11 and 15 are causing problems at night at the Sioux Empire Fair.
Monday, the Sioux Empire Fair Board implemented a 9 p.m. curfew for youth ages 17 and under.
Minnehaha County Sheriff’s Captain Adam Zishka says, “If there are problems, we’ll enforce it.”
Zishka says parents are dropping off their kids during the evening. He said the youth sometimes engage in bullying, mostly verbally.
He says that many of the youth aren’t buying food or going on rides, and simply roam the grounds for hours.
The verbal abuse from some youths has even been directed at deputies as well as other kids.
Zishka said one of the supervising deputies was told by a 16-year-old that he would break into the deputy’s mother’s home and assault her, then break into his house and assault the deputy’s wife.
The captain said that fighting among kids isn’t worse than in previous years.
“We want to keep everyone safe,” Zishka said. “We want to keep the fair family-friendly.”
