SIOUX FALLS, SD — More than 1,000 law enforcement officers gathered Monday at the Denny Sanford Premier Center to honor Katherine Frank, the 26-year-old Minnehaha County sheriff’s deputy killed in the line of duty. The funeral filled the arena with rows of uniforms, colors and agency patches from across the Upper Midwest, turning the space into a shared tribute to a fallen officer and to the communities she served.
Frank died a week earlier after she was shot while helping execute a mental health hold in southwest Sioux Falls on Oct. 9. Brandon Oetken, 39, faces charges of first-degree murder, second-degree murder and four counts of aggravated assault against law enforcement. He is being held on a $3 million cash bond.
A rare killing in a department and city that do not often mourn officers
The gathering carried unusual weight because deaths of law enforcement officers on duty are exceptionally rare in Sioux Falls and Minnehaha County. The ceremony marked nearly a century since an officer died on the job in the city, and it was the first time a Minnehaha County sheriff’s deputy has been killed in the line of duty.
Speakers repeatedly returned to that rarity, saying the event was both painful and sobering. The loss stood out not only because Frank was so young, but because it struck a department and a community that are accustomed to seeing officers put themselves in harm’s way and come home at the end of the day. On Monday, that expectation was broken in a way few had experienced before.
A procession of badges from across South Dakota and neighboring states
The Premier Center parking lot and entrance were framed by a long procession of emergency vehicles and officers arriving from multiple states. Agencies from South Dakota, Minnesota, Nebraska and Iowa were represented, alongside local departments including the Minnehaha County Sheriff’s Department, the South Dakota Highway Patrol and the Sioux Falls Police Department.
The visual impact was immediate. Uniforms in tan, brown, black, green, blue and red filled the arena and the surrounding area, creating a display that made the size of the response impossible to miss. The turnout reflected both the close ties among law enforcement agencies and the sense that Frank’s death resonated far beyond Minnehaha County.
Family memories turn a formal service into a personal farewell
Frank’s siblings helped tell the story of who she was before she ever wore a badge. Their remarks mixed humor, affection and grief, offering small family moments that brought the crowd closer to the woman at the center of the day’s mourning. One brother recalled a time Katherine drove over his foot and then kept going, while also remembering how she once put on makeup while driving them to school.
Thomas Frank said his sister had always looked out for the people she loved, and becoming a deputy gave her another way to do that. He called her a hero and said the memories they shared would stay with the family for a lifetime. The words made the service feel less like a formal farewell and more like a family remembering a daughter, sister and friend.
Kristyne Hamberg-Frank says her sister was the glue in the family
Sister Kristyne Hamberg-Frank, who also built a career in law enforcement, described Katherine as the steady force that held the family together. She said she never expected to have to stand before so many people and say goodbye to her younger sister and best friend. Her remarks emphasized the depth of the loss inside the family as well as in the sheriff’s office.
Hamberg-Frank said the space Katherine leaves behind cannot truly be filled, but that the memories they built together will remain. She told mourners that part of Kat will always live on in each family member. Her comments captured the private grief behind the public ceremony and the sense that the loss will be felt for years.
Sheriff’s office colleagues and regional agencies stand together in grief
Capt. Josh Phillips, who is set to take over as sheriff of Minnehaha County on Nov. 17, thanked the hundreds of officers who came to pay their respects. He told the crowd that Frank would always remain part of the Minnehaha County Sheriff’s Office and part of the memories of those who served with her.
The service ended with a 21-gun salute and the playing of “Taps,” followed by the transfer of Frank’s coffin into a hearse. As the procession of emergency vehicles pulled away, the ceremony closed with the kind of solemn pageantry often reserved for line-of-duty deaths, underscoring both the formality of the farewell and the depth of the loss felt across the region.