Get local news delivered to your inbox!

Investigators process the scene of a shooting where two Rapid City officers shot at a 31-year-old woman in a vehicle on Terra Street in southeast Rapid City on May 31.

An overhead view of the vehicles in the May 31, 2022, Rapid City Police officer shooting of 32-year-old Shania Watkins.

A Rapid City woman made her initial appearance in court on Thursday in a wheelchair after a Rapid City Police Department officer shot her multiple times on May 31.

Shania Watkins, 32, appeared before Pennington County Magistrate Judge Scott Bogue to address a criminal complaint against her accusing her of aggravated eluding, a class six felony. If convicted, she could face up to two years in prison and have to pay a $4,000 fine. 

The judge set a personal recognizance bond on the condition Watkins participate in the 24/7 program, which will require drug testing. A Pennington County Court judge signed an arrest warrant for Watkins on June 6.

Assistant South Dakota Attorney General Scott Roetzel is prosecuting the case, but a state's attorney spoke on behalf of the Attorney General's Office during the initial appearance and said the office did not object to a personal recognizance bond. 

According to an affidavit filed by South Dakota Department of Criminal Investigation Special Agent Adam Eggers, RCPD Officer Ekaras Jackson attempted to pull Watkins over in her vehicle at about 4:04 a.m. May 31 at the intersection of North Lacrosse Street and East Waterloo Street for not having a light illuminating her license plate.

The affidavit states Watkins continued driving her vehicle, a white 2002 Mitsubishi Galant, at "a slow pace westbound on East Waterloo Street," before coming to a brief stop. An unidentified person exited the vehicle, and the Galant continued, turning eastbound onto East Van Buren Street, traveling approximately 46 mph before turning onto North Lacrosse Street and heading south. 

The Galant then traveled southeast through Rapid City by way of East New York Street, North Cherry Avenue, East Chicago Street, North Campbell Street, East Highway 44, Cambell Street, and Saint Patrick Street where RCPD Officer Josh Hoefler, who shot Watkins, attempted a Tactical Vehicle Intervention (TVI).

According to the affidavit, a TVI is intended to spin a vehicle 180 degrees to stop it, but Hoefler's TVI spun the Galant 360 degrees, and it continued east on Saint Patrick Street. 

After the failed TVI, the Galant turned southbound on South Valley Drive, traveling approximately 45 to 60 mph before turning onto Terra Street, a gravel drive in Terra Mobile Home Estates, where Watkins later said a family member lives. 

The vehicle made a sharp right turn within Terra Street and stopped. Hoefler pulled his patrol vehicle near the front passenger side of the Galant and stopped as well.

He got out of his patrol vehicle and stood between his open door and doorframe, according to the DCI summary of their investigation clearing Hoefler in the shooting. The affidavit states Hoefler told the driver, Watkins, to get out of the car.

The summary states the Galant moved "simultaneously" to the commands, and struck Hoefler's vehicle. He then fired seven rounds through the passenger side door and window, striking Watkins multiple times. Hoefler told investigators he believed the direction of the Galant's travel would collide with his door, and he would be pinned between his door and door frame. 

A third officer, Nick Friedman, pulled his patrol vehicle parallel to Hoefler's and behind the Galant at "approximately the same time that the Galant started backing up," according to the DCI report. The Galant ultimately stopped after colliding with Friedman's vehicle.

The DCI summary states the Galant was still running with the transmission placed in reverse with backup lights activated when agents arrived to investigate.

Watkins said she stopped the car, placed it in park or neutral and put the keys in her pocket, according to the report. She also said she complied with the officer's commands to show her hands, and then Hoefler opened fire while she complied. 

The DCI report states Watkins had THC and methamphetamine in her system at the time, but she has not been charged with any drug charges. The arrest affidavit also alleges the white 2002 Galant's license plate belonged to a Silver 2006 Mitsubishi Galant, and advised Watkins be arrested for a class one misdemeanor for the illegitimate plates. That misdemeanor is not listed on the arrest warrant or court records. 

A preliminary hearing for the aggravated eluding charge has been scheduled for 10 a.m. Sept. 16.

— Contact Shalom Baer Gee at sgee@rapidcityjournal.com — 

Get local news delivered to your inbox!

Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items.

Rapid City police arrested one of the suspects Monday in a string of burglaries from July 15-19 in several west Rapid City neighborhoods.

The Black Hills Weed Shop, nestled inside a former mechanics bay off Deadwood Avenue in Rapid City, is ready to be the first medical cannabis …

A 42-year-old motorcycle driver has charges pending against him following a Thursday morning crash on Interstate 90 in Rapid City.

No helmets were in use during a fatal collision of two motorcycles during the first weekend of the 2022 Sturgis Motorcycle rally.

An Oglala man was sentenced on July 22 to two years and three months in federal prison and one year of supervised release for possessing a bul…

A Lincoln, Nebraska man — who allegedly kidnapped a man and woman in Lincoln July 28, torturing the man for hours and sexually assaulting the …

“These are real kids, and you know that because that’s why you were viewing it,” U.S. District Court Judge Jeffrey Viken told a man he sentenc…

As motorcycles pour into Sturgis for the 82nd annual Sturgis Motorcycle Rally, one bike in particular might stand out: a 520 Trek touring bicy…

Investigators process the scene of a shooting where two Rapid City officers shot at a 31-year-old woman in a vehicle on Terra Street in southeast Rapid City on May 31.

An overhead view of the vehicles in the May 31, 2022, Rapid City Police officer shooting of 32-year-old Shania Watkins.

Get up-to-the-minute news sent straight to your device.