I want to recognize a particular segment of our employees who do an excellent job everyday meeting the needs of those individuals who are confined in the Bradley County jail.

Correction officers for the most part spend their entire 12-hour workday inside the jail where they are in close proximity with those who are incarcerated by the orders of a court. This can be very stressful and it requires special traits to work within restrictions the job requires.   

Correction officers serve in a variety of positions throughout the jail.  There are those who work as intake officers in the booking area where individuals are processed when they are brought into the jail.  Others are movement officers, escorting inmates from one area of the jail to another.  There are also pod officers who are stationed inside the day room where they can interact with the inmates in that cell block and monitor their behavior.

The Bradley County jail has a capacity of 408 inmates.  Tennessee Correction Institute conducted a staffing analysis of our facility which said when we reach capacity we will need a staff of 92 correction deputies. We have exceeded our capacity several times, primarily when we have a number of people admitted to the jail over a weekend  who cannot bond out until they go before the judge on Monday morning.   

At the present time we have 86 correction officer positions leaving us six short of state’s required level of 92.  I have asked for additional funds in our budget next year to  bring us up to where TCI says we should be.

As Sheriff I am responsible for the proper operation of the jail within TCI’s guidelines. They say it will take 92 correction officers to ensure the safety and security of this facility, around-the-clock seven days a week, so it is imperative we increase staffing to avoid potential problems that not having the required number of correction deputies can create.     

Our facility at present meets or exceeds each of the state’s minimum requirements for county jails of this size and has been certified by the state.   

I also believe steps must be taken to reduce the population of the jail.  I have recommended a bunkhouse style facility that could be constructed beside the Judicial Complex to house non-violent misdemeanor offenders. This would be a low-cost option to free up high-cost jail space to provide additional capacity.  I presented this plan to the county commission this spring and await further discussion on the proposal.   

This appears to be the best way we can provide additional space to house inmates at the least cost to taxpayers.

This week the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation released its comprehensive summary of crime in Tennessee covering calendar year 2006. The report shows the number of crimes that occurred, the number of those cases that were cleared, and when arrests were made whether they were adult or juvenile offenders.

The Crime in Tennessee report lists major crimes in the categories of Crimes Against Persons, Crimes Against Property and Crimes Against Society that are reportable to the TBI and FBI. Crimes associated with domestic violence investigations are listed separately.

The report is taken from data compiled by each of the sheriff's offices and city police departments in the state using their daily offense and arrest reports. At the Bradley County Sheriff's Office we have a person who is responsible for entering this data into a computer making sure each entry conforms to both federal and state guidelines. This data is a valuable law enforcement tool in tracking burglaries, thefts and other forms of criminal activity.

My tenure as your sheriff covers only four months of the report. The 2006 report, which is now posted on the TBI's website, shows an overall four- percent increase in the total number of offenses this agency investigated last year.  The percentage of those cases that were cleared was down slightly. Cases can be cleared by several means including finding the case is unfounded, through refusal of the victim to prosecute, or by arrest.        

Arrests were up almost 15 percent, with the entire increase being adults.        

I believe the documented increase in crime is proportional to the population increase Bradley County is experiencing that we expect will continue.  Several new retail centers that are being developed in different sections of the county, coupled with the overall growth in residential construction, tells us we can expect this trend to continue. Population estimates are now well over 90,000 and we are rapidly approaching 100,000 well ahead of growth predictions from just a few years ago.

Since I took office on September 1st I have redirected resources to the field, giving us a greater number of deputies patrolling our county roads at any given time of the day or night.  International Association Chiefs of Police manpower / workload assessment modeling still shows we are funded below the manpower needs of an agency serving this size population and handling the workload. I don't want to bore you with a lot of statistics but I felt those who read my blog on a regular basis would like to hear more about the report.

• Overall crimes against persons rose 10.4 % in Bradley County 2005 to 2006 and crimes against property grew 3.9 percent in Bradley County 2005 to 2006.
• No murders were investigated by the sheriff?s office in 2005 and 2006.Domestic violence crimes rose seven percent.  This includes assaults, intimidation, sexual assaults and kidnapping.  Arrests were up almost 6 percent.

• There were 340 burglaries in 2006, six more than the previous year.  The number of cases cleared and arrests also increased.
• Aggravated assault was down but there was a significant increase in simple assaults.
• We also saw an increase in the number of arson investigations, vandalism, and thefts.
• Sex crimes including rape, statutory rape and sexual assault were down.
• There were 109 motor vehicle thefts, one more than in 2005.
• An increase was also shown in DUI arrests.

Keep in mind this upward trend is not just confined to Bradley County. While the nations overall violent crime rate fell 23% between 1990 and 2005, Tennessee's rate rose 41 percent during that period.  The Volunteer State leads the pack of 19 states where violent crime is getting worse - not better. [United Health Foundation, Violent Crime Report, 2006 ]. As you read these statistics they do not reflect crimes investigated by the Cleveland Police Department and the Charleston Police Department. Those agencies are covered separately in the report.

As I have stated many times, let's work together in a partnership of progress to reduce and prevent crime. I have submitted a budget request to the county commission that will help us meet these goals.  I ask for your support.

I want to invite each of you to tune in for my radio program which airs this Saturday on WBAC .  The topic this week is the sheriff's office budget that we have presented to the County Commission's Finance Committee. The program can be heard at 12:05 p.m.  If you would like to hear my presentation to the commission click here.

On June 2nd, the radio broadcast will include two interns who will be working this summer at the sheriff's office, Andrew Coggin and Matt Landolt, and Sgt. Yvonne Johnson who is heading up our new Fitness and Wellness Program.

It is good to live in a community that respects the men and women who serve daily in law enforcement with local, state and federal agencies.

Today, as sheriff, I join others in this worthy profession as we recognize the men and women who daily provide for our safety and the more than 14,000 officers who have given their lives in the line of duty.

Police Memorial Week was proclaimed by Congressional action in 1962 in remembrance  of those who sacrificed their own life for the protection of communities across the nation.  President John F. Kennedy signed Public Law 87-726 on October 1, 1962 but twenty years went by before the first public ceremony was held to honor those serving in law enforcement.   

At the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington D.C. thousands will gather to pay homage to those who died in 2006.

The Bradley – Cleveland Emergency Services Memorial bears the names of fallen officers and emergency service workers who lost their lives in the line of duty.   

Sheriff Israel L. Smith died of a gunshot while leading his deputies on a whiskey raid in 1922; Deputy Taylor Cawood died in 1932 while returning to Tennessee with a prisoner; Patrolman Bud Cash was killed in a crash at the intersection of Inman and Ocoee Streets while running emergency traffic; Deputy Ken Wright Sr. was killed by gunfire in 1971 while backing up a Cleveland Police officer on Broomfield Road; and in 1989 Reserve Deputy Al McCollum died while serving with the Cleveland – Bradley County Rescue Squad during a rescue attempt in Meigs County.   

According to the Constable Public Safety Memorial Foundation, in the U.S:

• Over 6,000 officers have been killed in the line of duty since 1960. Between 150 and 165 die each year.
• A police officer dies in the line of duty every 57 hours.
• Two police officers are wounded by gunfire everyday.
• Most deaths occur during arrests, disturbances and in car crashes.
• Most officer deaths occur between 4:01 p.m. and midnight.
• Twenty-five percent of officers are killed with their own weapon.
• Most deaths are within the first minute of contact with the suspect.
• Over 68,000 officers are assaulted every year. That is about 189 every day.

 Law enforcement officers are only human and they make mistakes. But they are deserving of your gratitude when they do a good job, your respect for the risks they take, and a place in your heart for the job they do keeping all of us safe.

The Law Enforcement Officers Prayer

O Almighty God, Whose great power and eternal wisdom embrace the universe, watch over all the police officers and law enforcement officers. Protect them from harm in the performance of their duty to stop crime, robberies, riots and violence. We pray, help them keep our streets and homes safe day and night. We recommend them to your loving care because their duty is dangerous. Grant them your unending strength and courage in their daily assignments. Dear God, protect these brave men and women, grant them your almighty protection, unite them safely with their families after duty ends. For these men and women truly walk the "Thin Blue Line", Amen.