PIERRE, S.D. – South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley announces that a South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI) review indicates that two Yankton Police Officers were justified in a shooting that occurred Dec. 5, 2024 in Yankton.
“This individual refused officer commands and held two firearms in the direction of the officers,” said Attorney General Jackley. “There was a clear and present danger to law enforcement on scene and to the public, justifying and requiring their actions.”
The incident began when Yankton Police were notified of a male individual, Andrew Jondahl, 40, sitting in his pickup truck in the Yankton High School parking lot. He had been escorted out of an event in the school, appeared to be intoxicated, was making threats of self-harm, and held a long gun in his lap.
When law enforcement arrived, Jondahl twice refused officer commands to place his hands outside of the truck window. When Jondahl finally exited his vehicle, he was holding two shotguns in his hands, facing the officers in a manner where he could have fired at the officers. The two officers fired 14 .223-caliber rounds at Jondahl, who received four non life-threatening gunshot wounds. No one else was injured.
Jondahl tested positive for alcohol with a blood alcohol content level of .152 percent. The two officers tested negative for alcohol and drugs.
Officers recovered two shotguns, both with live shells in the magazine tubes, and one weapon had a live shell in the chamber. Also discovered in the truck were two napkins with handwriting on them including one statement that said, “I will kill them until they kill me.”
DCI processed the crime scene, collected and analyzed evidence, reviewed forensic examinations, interviewed the officers involved, gathered witness statements, and viewed all available video.
Charges are pending against Jondahl, who is presumed innocent under the U.S. Constitution. The case will be prosecuted by the Attorney General’s Office and the Yankton County State’s Attorney’s Office.
The Attorney General and DCI thank the South Dakota Forensic Laboratory, the Yankton Police Department, and the Yankton Sheriff’s Office for their cooperation and assistance.
This is the fifth Officer Involved Shooting in South Dakota during 2024.
