Fatal Shooting of Sioux Falls Man Tragic Reminder That South Dakota’s Gun Violence Continues Amid the Pandemic

On Monday, Tracy Saboe, a 40-year-old man, was shot and killed in his home by a man who thought the home belonged to a man who allegedly had assaulted someone in the shooter’s family. Saboe and the shooter had a short altercation after he entered the home, and then the shooter shot and killed Saboe, according to the police at the scene. The shooter then went to another home and shot and wounded three other people. 

“Tracy Saboe should be alive today,” said Shannon Emry, a volunteer with the South Dakota chapter of Moms Demand Action. “South Dakota’s gun violence is unacceptable. We are committed to working in solidarity with our partners and lawmakers to create safer South Dakota communities next legislative session.” 

South Dakota has some of the most lax gun laws in the country. Lawmakers should prioritize gun safety in the next legislative session by enacting a life-saving extreme risk law that would empower family members and law enforcement to petition a court to temporarily prevent someone in crisis from accessing firearms.

Here’s more on gun violence in South Dakota:

• On average, over 100 people die by gun violence every year in the state.
• In South Dakota, gun deaths have increased 45 percent in the last decade, compared to an 18 percent increase nationwide. 
• Of all homicides in South Dakota, 44 percent involve a gun.
• American Indians and Alaska Natives make up 9 percent of the population in South Dakota yet they make up 37 percent of the state’s gun homicide victims.

Statistics about gun violence in South Dakota are available here, and information on how South Dakota’s gun laws compare to other states’ overall is available here.