South Dakota Video Recording Laws

In South Dakota, silent video recording in public spaces is generally legal. When audio is captured, the one-party consent rule under SDCL 23A-35A-20 applies. SDCL 22-21-1 bars installing recording devices in private places without consent, and SDCL 22-21-4 prohibits voyeuristic recordings regardless of location.

South Dakota broadly allows video recording in public spaces. The state has no statute that broadly prohibits filming in areas where people have no reasonable expectation of privacy. However, several statutes set limits: SDCL 22-21-1 prohibits hidden cameras in private places, SDCL 50-15-5 covers drone surveillance of private places, and SDCL 22-21-4 targets voyeuristic recordings wherever they happen.

This guide explains where you can and cannot use video cameras in South Dakota, how privacy expectations shape the legal analysis, and the criminal penalties for violations.

Public Video Recording in South Dakota

Your Right to Record in Public

South Dakota does not generally restrict video recording in public locations, apart from the voyeurism limits below. You can generally film on:

• Public streets, sidewalks, and highways
• Parks and recreational areas
• Government buildings open to the public
• Public transit stations and vehicles
• Retail stores and restaurants (subject to the property owner's rules)
• Public events, festivals, and demonstrations

Video-only recording in public does not implicate South Dakota's wiretapping statute (SDCL 23A-35A-20), which focuses on the interception of audio communications. Silent video recording in public generally requires no consent, unless it captures someone undressed or under their clothing, which SDCL 22-21-4 bars.

When Public Recording Includes Audio

If your video camera also captures audio, South Dakota's one-party consent rule applies to the audio portion. As long as you are participating in any conversation being recorded, the audio capture is lawful. Picking up ambient sound while filming a public scene is generally lawful, because people talking openly in public usually cannot expect privacy. A quiet or secluded conversation in a public place can still be protected, and deliberately capturing it with a microphone when you are not part of it and no participant consents can violate SDCL 23A-35A-20, a Class 5 felony.

Recording on Private Property Open to the Public

Businesses, shopping malls, and other private properties that invite the public inside may set their own rules about recording. A property owner can ask you to stop recording or leave the premises. If you refuse, you may be trespassing. However, any video you captured before being asked to leave is generally legal.

Video Recording in Private Places

SDCL 22-21-1: Hidden Cameras and Surveillance Devices

SDCL 22-21-1 is South Dakota's primary statute restricting video surveillance in private settings. Under this law, it is a Class 1 misdemeanor to:

• Trespass on property with the intent to subject anyone to eavesdropping or other surveillance in a private place
• Install in any private place, without the consent of the person entitled to privacy there, any device for observing, photographing, recording, amplifying, or broadcasting sounds or events
• Use any such unauthorized installation to observe, photograph, record, amplify, or broadcast sounds or events in a private place

Drones are covered by a separate statute. SDCL 50-15-5 makes it a Class 1 misdemeanor to intentionally use a drone to photograph, record, or observe another person in a private place where that person has a reasonable expectation of privacy. It exempts law enforcement, emergency management workers, and business or government operators who capture someone only incidentally. SDCL 50-15-5.1 separately bars flying a drone for voyeuristic or harassment purposes.

Law enforcement officers acting in the performance of their lawful duties are exempt from these restrictions.

What Counts as a "Private Place"?

SDCL 22-1-2 defines a "private place" as one where a person can reasonably expect to be safe from casual or hostile intrusion or surveillance, and it excludes any place the public or a substantial group of people can enter. Places that generally fit that definition include:

• Bedrooms and bathrooms
• Hotel and motel rooms
• Single-occupancy changing rooms
• Private offices with closed doors
• Medical examination rooms
• Any enclosed area where a person reasonably believes they are not being observed

Whether a shared locker room or a multi-stall restroom counts depends on the facts, because a substantial group can enter it, and no South Dakota appellate decision has settled the question. Recording anyone undressed in such a room is still a crime under SDCL 22-21-4.

Places generally not considered private include:

• Public sidewalks and streets
• Store aisles and lobbies
• Open office areas
• Parking lots
• Government buildings open to the public

Penalties for Hidden Camera Violations

A violation of SDCL 22-21-1 is a Class 1 misdemeanor, punishable by:

Voyeuristic Video Recording (SDCL 22-21-4)

What the Statute Prohibits

SDCL 22-21-4 specifically targets video recordings made for voyeuristic purposes. Under this law, no person may use any device to photograph or visually record another person:

• Without clothing, under or through their clothing, or in a sexual act with another person
• Without the person's consent or knowledge
• With intent to gratify themselves or to alarm, annoy, embarrass, harass, threaten, harm, or invade the privacy of the person

Sharing, selling, or using such a recording is a separate violation.

This statute applies regardless of whether the recording occurs in a public or private place. Even in a public setting, using a camera to capture images up someone's skirt or down their shirt without consent violates this law.

Penalties for Voyeuristic Recording

A felony conviction under SDCL 22-21-4 for using a recording device or disseminating a recording is a sex crime that requires sex offender registration under SDCL 22-24B-1(23). That subdivision predates SB 41, so whether a felony under 22-21-4(3) for creating or sharing a deepfake requires registration has not been tested.

Deepfake Video Protections (2025 and 2026 Legislation)

Recent South Dakota legislation addresses digitally manipulated video and images:

• SB 41, signed by Governor Larry Rhoden on March 16, 2026 and effective July 1, 2026, amends SDCL 22-21-4 to make creation or distribution of AI-generated deepfake images depicting an identifiable person in a state of nudity or engaged in a sexually explicit act a Class 5 felony. Attorney General Marty Jackley proposed the legislation.
• SB 164, signed by Governor Larry Rhoden on March 25, 2025, makes it a Class 1 misdemeanor to distribute a deepfake of a candidate within 90 days of an election, with intent to injure the candidate, unless the deepfake carries the disclosure the law requires. Satire, parody, and qualifying news coverage are exempt.

These laws reflect South Dakota's growing recognition that video manipulation technology creates new privacy threats that existing recording statutes were not designed to address.

Video Recording in Specific Settings

Workplace Video Surveillance

South Dakota employers can install video cameras in common work areas such as sales floors, warehouses, loading docks, and shared office spaces. Employers should not place cameras in:

• Bathrooms and restrooms
• Locker rooms and changing areas
• Break rooms designated as private spaces

There is no South Dakota statute specifically governing employer video surveillance, but SDCL 22-21-1 applies to cameras installed in a private place without the consent of the people entitled to privacy there. Whether a shared restroom or locker room counts as a private place depends on the facts, and recording anyone undressed without consent is separately a crime under SDCL 22-21-4. The National Labor Relations Act also restricts employer surveillance that interferes with employees' protected concerted activity.

Security Cameras on Residential Property

South Dakota homeowners can install security cameras on their own property. Best practices include:

• Pointing cameras at your own property, not directly into a neighbor's windows
• Avoiding audio recording of conversations you are not part of
• Not recording areas where others have a reasonable expectation of privacy
• Posting signage to notify visitors that recording is in progress

Dashcam Video

Dashcams are legal in South Dakota. There are no state statutes specifically prohibiting their use. Video captured by a dashcam on public roads is lawful because there is no expectation of privacy on public highways. South Dakota law makes it a petty offense to drive with any object dangling between your view and the windshield (SDCL 32-15-6), so mount a dashcam where it does not block your view.

Recording Government Meetings

Under SDCL 1-25-11, no public body may prevent a person from recording a public meeting that is open to the public, as long as the recording is reasonable, obvious, and not disruptive. This right extends to video recording of:

• City and county commission meetings
• School board meetings
• State agency board and commission meetings
• Public hearings

The law does not reach the Legislature: SDCL 1-25-12 excludes it from the state bodies covered, and it sets its own rules for its sessions and committee hearings.

Using Video Recordings as Evidence

Admissibility in South Dakota Courts

Video recordings made in compliance with South Dakota law are generally admissible as evidence. Courts will evaluate:

• Authentication: Can you demonstrate the video is genuine, unedited, and accurately depicts what occurred?
• Relevance: Does the video relate to a material issue in the case?
• Chain of custody: Has the recording been properly preserved since it was made?
• Prejudicial vs. probative value: A court can exclude a relevant video only if its value as evidence is substantially outweighed by the risk of unfair prejudice, confusion, or wasted time (SDCL 19-19-403).

Dashcam footage, security camera video, and personal recordings are commonly admitted in South Dakota courts for traffic accident cases, property crime prosecutions, and civil disputes.

Illegally Obtained Video

Making a video in violation of SDCL 22-21-1 or SDCL 22-21-4 is itself a crime, whatever a court later decides about admitting it. Presenting illegally obtained video could also expose you to criminal charges and civil liability.

Video Recording and the First Amendment

The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals, which covers South Dakota, held in Ness v. City of Bloomington (2021) that taking photographs and recording video in a public park to inform the public is protected by the First Amendment. The court noted that recording unrelated to an expressive purpose may not be protected.

The Eighth Circuit has not decided whether that protection extends to recording police. In Molina v. Book (2023, cert. denied 2024) it held that any right to observe and record police was not clearly established in 2015. In Robbins v. City of Des Moines (2021) it assumed such a right without deciding it. Chestnut v. Wallace (2020) held, under the Fourth Amendment, that officers could not detain a bystander for watching police from a distance; it did not decide a First Amendment right to record. Most other federal appeals courts recognize a right to record police in public.

In practice, in South Dakota you can generally:

• Video record public protests, demonstrations, and events to inform others
• Film on public property, subject to the voyeurism and audio limits above
• Record police officers from a safe, lawful distance, understanding that the Eighth Circuit has not decided whether this is constitutionally protected

You should not interfere with police operations, trespass on private property, or obstruct officers while recording.

More South Dakota Recording Laws

Audio Recording | Video Recording | Voyeurism & Hidden Cameras | Workplace Recording | Recording Police | Phone Call Recording | Security Cameras | Recording in Public | Landlord-Tenant | Dashcam Laws | Schools | Medical Recording

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Frequently Asked Questions

Is it legal to video record someone in South Dakota without their consent?

It depends on the location. In public spaces, you can generally video record people without consent because there is no reasonable expectation of privacy, but SDCL 22-21-4 bars recording anyone undressed or under their clothing anywhere. In private places, such as a home bathroom or bedroom, SDCL 22-21-1 bars installing a recording device without the consent of the people entitled to privacy there. Whether a shared locker room counts as a private place depends on the facts, and recording anyone undressed without consent is separately a crime under SDCL 22-21-4.

Are hidden cameras legal in South Dakota?

Hidden cameras are illegal in private places under SDCL 22-21-1. You cannot install a hidden camera in a private place, such as a home bathroom or bedroom, without the consent of the people entitled to privacy there. Violations are a Class 1 misdemeanor. Whether a shared locker room counts as a private place depends on the facts. Hidden cameras in public areas are not specifically prohibited by this statute, but SDCL 22-21-4 still bars recording anyone undressed or under their clothing.

Can I use a drone to record video in South Dakota?

You can use a drone to record video in public spaces, subject to FAA rules. However, SDCL 50-15-5 makes it a Class 1 misdemeanor, carrying up to 1 year in jail and a $2,000 fine, to intentionally use a drone to photograph, record, or observe another person in a private place where they have a reasonable expectation of privacy. SDCL 50-15-5.1 also bars flying a drone for voyeuristic or harassment purposes.

Can I record a public meeting in South Dakota?

Yes. Under SDCL 1-25-11, no public body may prevent a person from recording a public meeting that is open to the public. Your recording must be reasonable, obvious, and not disruptive to the proceedings.

What are the penalties for voyeuristic video recording in South Dakota?

A first voyeuristic recording offense under SDCL 22-21-4 is a Class 1 misdemeanor punishable by up to 1 year in jail and a $2,000 fine. If the victim is 17 or younger and the perpetrator is 21 or older, or if it is a repeat violation, the offense is a Class 6 felony carrying up to 2 years in prison and a $4,000 fine, and a felony conviction requires sex offender registration. Creating or sharing a sexual deepfake of an identifiable person is a Class 5 felony; whether a conviction for creating or sharing one requires registration has not been tested.