Katherine Ann Frank

On the evening of Friday 9 October 2026, Frank and two other deputies went to a home in the 2900 block of South Keyrell Drive in western Sioux Falls to serve a mental health hold on a 39 year old man. According to court documents, the deputies spoke to him at the door in marked uniforms for about half an hour and followed him inside when he retreated into the house. In the entryway he is alleged to have produced a handgun and fired as the deputies began to withdraw. Frank was struck at close range, and a second deputy returned fire, wounding the man.

She was taken to Sanford USD Medical Center in Sioux Falls in critical condition and died there on the morning of Monday 12 October 2026, aged 26, surrounded by her family. In a final act of generosity she became an organ donor. The death was announced the same day by Sheriff Mike Milstead and Sheriff-elect Josh Phillips. Current and former officers told Sioux Falls Live she was the first Minnehaha County deputy to die as a result of a shooting.

The man, Brandon John Oetken, was initially charged with attempted murder and aggravated assault of law enforcement officers. On 14 October prosecutors added charges of first degree murder and second degree murder of a law enforcement officer. He has not been convicted, and the South Dakota Attorney General's office is investigating the shooting.

Governor Larry Rhoden ordered flags flown at half staff statewide on 18 and 19 October. Visitation was arranged for 18 October at George Boom Funeral Home in Sioux Falls, with the funeral at 1 pm on 19 October at the Denny Sanford PREMIER Center, open to the public and to law enforcement agencies, followed by a visitation on 20 October at Grace Lutheran Church in Dawson, Minnesota, and a private family interment.

Katherine Ann Frank was born on 22 March 2000 in Fargo, North Dakota. She was adopted by Steven Frank, a Lutheran pastor, and his wife Janette, and the family later moved to Madison, Minnesota. She went to school in nearby Dawson and graduated from Dawson-Boyd High School in 2018.

Throughout high school she worked as a lifeguard at the Madison pool and at Jubilee Foods in Madison. Her obituary lists four biological siblings, Kristyne, Thomas, Tyler and Abby, and an adoptive sister, Wendy, and describes how she embraced being a big sister and was the one her siblings could count on in an emergency. At the time of her death her parents were serving St. Paul's Loon Lake Lutheran Church near Vergas, Minnesota.

After graduating she moved to St. Paul and began her law enforcement career with the University of Minnesota, serving from 2018 to 2021 and rising to the rank of corporal. She then worked at Hy-Vee in Oakdale, Minnesota, from 2021 to 2022.

In September 2022 she became a correctional officer at the South Dakota State Penitentiary in Sioux Falls. In June 2024 she was hired by the Minnehaha County Sheriff's Office as a deputy sheriff, and by the time of her death she had served there for about two years and four months. She was a member of the Fraternal Order of Police and the Minnehaha County Deputies Association.

Colleagues described her as dependable, hardworking and rarely one to complain, with a gift for connecting with people and helping to de-escalate difficult situations. She took particular pride in serving warrants alongside fellow deputies and hoped to become a detective. The sheriff's office said she served the people of the county "with professionalism, humility, and dedication."

Outside work she enjoyed trying new recipes, with beef stroganoff and orange chicken among her favourites, as well as reading, video games, films, television, musicals, quilting and shopping. Her dogs, Ares and Aspen, were, in her family's words, loved as her own children. She lived in Sioux Falls with her boyfriend, Austin Hilgeman.

Her family remembered her as witty, sarcastic and "awkwardly funny", energetic, competitive and unapologetically herself. Colleagues recalled her habit of wearing long sleeves even in 90 degree heat, explained with the reply: "My A/C works in the car."

Frank's death brought an outpouring of grief across South Dakota and western Minnesota. A memorial was set up at the Law Enforcement Center on West 4th Street in Sioux Falls, where people left flowers and messages, and police agencies across both states marked her End of Watch. Her father's congregation near Vergas and the Dawson-Boyd school community publicly mourned her.

She is remembered by her colleagues as a deputy who brought humour to hard shifts and care to people in crisis, and by her family as a devoted sister whose love was shown through action. Her obituary closed with the words her fellow officers used for her: "Rest easy, Katherine. We've got your six from here."