Zetorshaun,
We have land in Harrison county and have vandal issues that we can never seem to solve. The below is from today痴 News-Herald in regards to cut backs within the sheriffs department. I met a few of them while reporting our damages and they all say the same thing 渡ot much we can do without hard evidence . So pictures and videos is the way to go.
Deaf
Funding fallout?
2/25/09
By AMY GAREIS
News-Herald Staff Writer
LESS MANPOWER at the Harrison County Sheriffç—´ Office could put the community and other officers at risk.
That was the consensus of officials who spoke to the media following Wednesdayç—´ county commission meeting. Taking center stage was the discussion of increasing the sheriffç—´ coffers, which saw a $200,000 drop this year (see related story). Although further talks were scheduled this Monday between commissioners and Sheriff Joe Myers, the possibility loomed that a half-dozen staff members could be off the job March 8.
Currently there are 10 deputies, four dispatchers and a corrections officer with up to 20 years of experience. According to the Fraternal Order of Police/Ohio Labor Council, the sheriff determines which rank and class to reduce and layoffs would occur in reverse order of seniority.
Some law enforcement representatives said the layoffs would hinder the fight against crime and also pose a safety hazard.
çš„tç—´ a serious threat, not only to members, but to the public, said Wes Elson, staff representative for the FOP. å…¸hey will be patrolling more with one officer on shift. If you cut the sheriffç—´ office, the bad guys are going to know that and it will affect crime.
He urged commissioners to take another look at the numbers before potentially costing the county some much-needed safety personnel. Elson said the office was well understaffed and further cuts could put the public in peril.
的f Sheriff Myers has layoffs, it will make a bad situation worse, he continued. 撤ublic safety is such a big component of infrastructure. The county needs to attract business and people. With cuts [in law enforcement], how does that look to someone who wants to come to Harrison County to start a business? A cut is going to be detrimental. I appreciate the fact we致e been able to work with the sheriff. He痴 tried everything to avert this. I hope this meeting with the commissioners is productive and they can somehow fund him so he can look into other services.
Jewett Police Chief Ron Carter told the News-Herald that he manned his villageç—´ protection alone and backup support was essential.
å…¸he nearest backup would be the state patrol or if Cadiz was available, said Carter. å…¸his is a serious situation for officer safety.
Meanwhile, Myers has spoken with fire and EMS officials who have offered to assist during emergencies, while future calls into the HCSO would be prioritized by severity.
甜Emergency crews] are willing to help, he said. å…¸hey will be willing to do what needs to be done. At this point in time, weæ±*e going to try to take care of all calls in the office. We can ask people to come in and make a statement on non-emergency complaints or [handle it] over the phone.
Myers he has looked at other funding avenues to ease the burden but said allocations were not always guaranteed. Options include seeking stimulus money geared toward law enforcement or reviewing the operation of the county jail, which for now has handled only misdemeanor offenders. The jail was reverted to a holding facility only for offenders facing court dates upon the cessation of the Prisoner To Work Program. Past Sheriff Mark Miller said program revenue helped defray felony prisoner keep at the Jefferson County Jail, but commissioners could no longer support the endeavor. Myers hopes to get the jail back in operation and planned to meet with a rep from the state Bureau of Adult Detention on March 12.
The sheriff also noted regret over forming a levy prior to implementing the Enhanced 9-1-1 system. That money could have been used to help staff dispatchers, but a current police levy is due to expire this fall. Myers is eyeing a possible replacement measure but is still unsure whether it will include an increase. As for the extra $85,000 commissioners said they could provide but didn稚, he called it a case of 兎asy come, easy go.
的 received a call on Feb. 9 saying they壇 found $85,000 and were putting it into my jail line item. Around the 16th, one commissioner said we could put it into salaries. On the 23rd they advised they had to take it back off of me, he said, adding that the money might have made a difference. Myers said last year痴 budget may not have figured in the loss of two positions, but the jail痴 closure also affected one part-time and two full-time posts. Myers said he has not informed his staff of actual reductions but knows some of them are already looking for other work.
的t痴 bad enough I don稚 sleep at night, he said. 的 don稚 need to have them not sleeping at night. I知 hopeful through some other avenues and I hope our meeting [Monday] is eventful.
Consequently, his office also must pay any unemployment costs out of its shrunken budget.
å…¸he message we need to get out there is [it is not the same as] back in 1992 with staff requirements. Weæ±*e still not going to be at the same financially as we were then. They were paid $6 an hour. Itç—´ only been a $5 increase from ?2 to now, which for what we do is not compensating well enough. To get back to the budget [Sheriff Rich Rensi] had in ?2, thereç—´ no way to do that. It costs more to live today. You can稚 go back. Itç—´ an officer safety issue. Itç—´ a public safety issue. Itç—´ everybodyç—´ safety issue.
But, he says, he hopes to move forward.
展eæ±*e looking for any way we can substantiate keeping the office running and do our jobs of serving the office, processing and investigating crime, Myers concluded. 展e値l see what happens.
