|
Last week, I touched on a number of things the BCSO accomplished during 2007, but I didn’t have enough room to list them all. This week I will continue. I mentioned that aggravated burglaries and overall crime rates were down in 2007, but another important tool we developed last year is a crime analysis/mapping program which will pinpoint problem areas in the county. As these problem areas are identified, we then can go in and clean them up by saturating the area with deputies and regular patrols. Criminals will usually follow the path of least resistance and if we make it hard enough on them to operate in Bradley County, if they know they will be arrested and prosecuted, they will generally choose to pack it in and move elsewhere. We held two very successful warrant round-ups in 2007, which helped achieve a warrant clearance rate above the national average. This was a cooperative effort involving the BCSO Court Services and Fugitive Warrants Unit working closely with the TBI, U.S. Marshall’s Service, Bureau of Alcohol, Firearms, Tobacco and Explosives, and the U.S. Attorney.
Last year, we saw much greater cooperation between regional, state and even federal agencies. These surrounding areas are our neighbors and it helps citizens everywhere when law enforcement agencies join together to fight crime, whether it is in our own backyard or our neighbor’s backyard. We will continue to encourage these cooperative efforts throughout the coming year and beyond.
Another instance of helping our neighbors in 2007, was when the BCSO provided assistance to Polk County Sheriff Bill Davis in housing Polk County inmates while they were finishing their new justice center there. By doing this, the BCSO brought in an additional $77,000 to Bradley County.
We also saved $10,000 this past year by renegotiating the contract with ABL Management, who holds the food service contract at the Justice Center. We began outsourcing medical services in the jail, as well. We won’t know what the savings will be in that area just yet, but barring any catastrophic inmate illness (i.e., AIDS), medical services should be more cost-effective.
Overall, the BCSO spent $525,000 less than was budgeted last year. This savings was returned to the General Fund.
I feel very strongly that if we are going to enforce the law, we must first and foremost be in compliance with it. That is why I put an end to a couple of practices that were in place when I took over ~ such as charging arrestees a booking fee and paying recurring general law enforcement monthly expenses with drug money. The law is very specific as to how drug money can be used and recurring general law enforcement expenses is not one of them. As to the booking fees, I stopped that until state legislators could consider authorizing the practice. Last fall, that authorization was given and booking fees have since been legally reinstated.
One way we are working to prevent unprofessional practices from ever taking a foothold at the BCSO is through the CALEA accreditation program (Commission for Accreditation of Law Enforcement Agencies). This accreditation will take us to the next level in our efforts to become a professionally run and professionally managed organization. Right now, we are working to implement 450 professional standards that are recognized throughout the United States. Accreditation is the yardstick by which professional local law enforcement agencies are measured. Presently, we are in the self-assessment phase where we are evaluating our policies and procedures to meet CALEA guidelines. Recent court testimony confirmed we are already operating at superior levels than many accredited agencies.
CALEA is supported by such professional agencies as the International Association of Chiefs of Police, the National Sheriff’s Association, the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives and the Police Executive Research Forum. These are top professional law enforcement organizations, recognized internationally. This CALEA accreditation will offer all citizens greater confidence in our operations here at the Sheriff’s Office and it will offer deputies consistent guidelines to follow, as well as increased confidence in BCSO administration. Deputies will know there is an established criteria based on recognized national standards of merit and professionalism.
We also reinstated the Inmate Work Program during 2007, which has been a huge success in cleaning up the county. Low-risk inmates have picked up literally tons of trash from county roadways, school grounds and nonprofit properties. They have even cleaned and painted the hallways at the courthouse, and help with mowing and grounds maintenance at the Justice Center. This is a remarkable program that helps the county and the inmates. I appreciate Capt. Gabe Thomas, who supervises our TCI-certified jail operations, for the good job he has done there. In fact, I appreciate everyone in the jail for their efforts this past year. They all do a great job.
The number of courts the BCSO is responsible for almost doubled in 2007, and now totals 13. This is a significant increase and Capt. Jim Ruth and Lt. Eric Watson who oversee our Judicial Services Division have done a good job of meeting this increased demand without benefit of additional funding or manpower. However, there remains a highly dangerous safety gap which we will again ask the county commission to address in the coming year.
The BCSO traffic unit headed up by Sgt. W. G. Campbell reports that even though there are over 100,000 cars registered in Bradley County, fatal accidents in 2007 were down due to proactive enforcement efforts by the traffic unit and increased patrols.
The BCSO now has a School Resource Officer (SRO) in every school in Bradley County, save Charleston Elementary. Currently, Charleston Elementary is covered by the SRO from Walker Valley High School, but eventually, given the proper resources and funding, we hope to place an SRO at Charleston Elementary, too. My goal is to have an SRO in every Bradley County school for the proper safety and security of our children.
During 2007, the BCSO reached out to the community as never before. During the fall, we held a series of Town Hall meetings at various locations throughout the county which allowed citizens an opportunity to come out and personally ask me questions, offer suggestions and even make complaints. I addressed many concerns and hopefully clarified much misinformation. I especially enjoyed these town hall meetings because I was able to meet so many of you in person. I hope to hold more of these in 2008.
Another successful community event we held in 2007 was the first Sheriff’s Family Day at Stuart School. This was a day-long, family-friendly event with a pro-education, anti-drug message. It was completely free to the public and estimated attendance was close to 5,000 people. In fact, one local media source reported it to be one of the top three community events in Bradley County, right behind the Christmas parade and the Halloween block party.
The Sheriff’s Family Day was designed to bring the community together in support of good law enforcement, public safety and drug awareness. I have always believed it to be much easier to prevent young people from ever trying drugs in the first place than it is to rehabilitate them after they have already started. Children are a priority at the BCSO and the Family Day allowed them an opportunity to meet with deputies, police officers, fire fighters, emergency medical technicians and D.A.R.E. personnel. These young people were allowed access to the Life Force helicopter, the BCSO’s new Armored Personnel Carrier, the marine unit, patrol cars, cruisers and other emergency vehicles. They received t-shirts, food, prizes and give-aways, horseback rides, games, toys and day-long entertainment. It was all offered for free, and the best part was, it didn’t cost the taxpayer anything. The entire event was financed through sponsorships, volunteers, donations and seized drug money. Not a single taxpayer dime was used to stage the Sheriff’s Family Day. This will be an annual event that will only grow as this community grows.
There are so many other things we have worked toward during 2007 that could be highlighted here ~ more video cameras in patrol cars, replacing outdated technology, promoting open lines of communication, our community volunteer service program, partnering with community schools through the D.A.R.E. program, our wellness and fitness program ~ but we don’t have the space to cover it all.
All things accomplished in 2007, have been accomplished through responsible stewardship and better management of resources. Please remember, the increase to the BCSO budget that some people refer to was simply the standard three percent salary increase that all county agencies received. It didn’t really even cover the cost of living and added very little to our general operating budget. The first responsibility of government is public safety and in a growing community we must keep up with the times.
My goal is and has always been to lead the Bradley County Sheriff’s Office into the future. This will only be accomplished through cooperative efforts of law enforcement, law makers and the community as a whole. I am excited when I think of the potential this county holds and I will continue to do all I can to help us realize that potential.
As always, the best way to keep up with all that’s happening at the BCSO is to log onto our website.. Next week, we’ll look ahead to some things we have planned for 2008. |
