MITCHELL, SD (Mitchell Now) — Criminal prosecutions continued uninterrupted during the recent federal government shutdown, according to U.S. Attorney Ron Parsons, who said his office remained fully engaged in cases involving violent crime, drug trafficking and child exploitation.

Parsons, who had been confirmed by the U.S. Senate just days before the shutdown began, said the only limitation his office faced was on public communication.

“The only thing that stopped is we weren’t allowed to advertise what we were doing,” Parsons said. “Mission critical activities only related to prosecuting violent crime, drug trafficking, and the like.”

Despite the restrictions, the U.S. Attorney’s Office secured sentences totaling nearly 300 years in federal prison for offenders convicted of drug offenses, violent crimes and child exploitation during the 43-day shutdown period.