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The Dakota Scout

Sioux Falls

Sheriff candidate peddles dubious background in law enforcement

Minnehaha County candidate says he was a cop in California, but San Jose says Bobby Smith did parking enforcement

Jonathan Ellis's avatar
Jonathan Ellis
May 15, 2026
∙ Paid

A recent West Coast transplant running for the Republican nomination for Minnehaha County sheriff boasts a long list of accomplishments in law enforcement.

But a look at Bobby L. Smith’s background by The Dakota Scout found embellishments and fabrications in his purported public safety record.

A criminal history also surfaced.

Prison sentence upheld in one of largest drug busts in South Dakota history

Jonathan Ellis
·
May 12
Prison sentence upheld in one of largest drug busts in South Dakota history

An illegal immigrant who was sentenced to more than 30 years in prison for possessing a backpack with enough fentanyl to kill 500,000 people has lost a bid to have his sentence lowered.

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