Former mayor, sheriff's deputy charged in Centerville triple homicide – South Dakota Searchlight

A former Centerville mayor and former Turner County sheriff's deputy allegedly shot and killed three men Monday night after learning that one of them had allegedly sexually assaulted his wife.

Jay Edward Ostrem, 64, is currently being held in the Minnehaha County Jail on $1 million cash-only bail, awaiting his first court appearance.

Attorney General Marty Jackley, through a press release, confirmed that Ostrem is charged with three counts of first-degree murder. Each count carries a maximum sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole.

“There is no longer a threat to the public,” Jackley wrote in the press release.

Ostrem served as a Turner County sheriff's deputy in the early 2000s after a two-decade career in law enforcement in Wyoming. He was among the deputies involved in the investigation into the deputy's death. Chad Mechels, who was shot and killed by Ethan Johns in March 2009. Johns is serving a life sentence for the crime.

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In 2010, while mayor of Centreville, Ostrem was sued for sexual harassment in federal court by former Police Chief Rachel Kopman, who claimed she was subjected to unwelcome sexual comments for more than a year before being removed from his position as leader. The lawsuit was settled in 2012.

Ostrem's law enforcement certification expired in 2016, Jackley spokesperson Tony Mangan told South Dakota Searchlight.

A complaint filed against Ostrem Tuesday in Turner County names all three victims. South Dakota Searchlight is not releasing their names because the attorney general's office says next of kin has not yet been notified. One of the men was the alleged perpetrator of the sexual assault. Another was a relative of that man, who called police to report the shooting before he was shot.

According to a probable cause affidavit filed Tuesday in Turner County, Ostrem's wife told police that Tuesday night's deadly events occurred after she disclosed to him that one of the victims had assaulted her sexually by rubbing his erect penis against her at the couple's Centerville home. Thursday evening, while Ostrem was sleeping.

The man lived opposite Ostrem.

After learning of the incident, the affidavit states, Ostrem “got up and angrily walked out of the house.” His wife remained inside until police arrived, which happened shortly after Ostrem was found walking near his home with an “AR-style rifle” and a pistol .380.

A South Dakota Fish, Wildlife and Parks officer was the first to encounter Ostrem after the shooting, the affidavit states, and the officer noted “an odor of consumed alcohol” coming from 'Ostrem. The former deputy obeyed the officer's commands to stop walking and told the officer he had a gun in his pocket.

A date for Ostrem's initial appearance on the Turner County charges has not yet been set, according to the Turner County Clerk of Court.