I am glad to report that during 2008, the BCSO continued a proactive and effective trend in solving crime and even catching more criminals in the act. Our clearance rate remains around 47 to 48 percent, which is still approximately 17 percent better than the national average. We continue looking at areas where we can improve and save money.

Some preliminary statistics for 2008, indicate a reduction in many crimes over the year before, including robbery, stolen property offenses, motor vehicle theft, arson and fraud. Drug/narcotic violations were down 36 percent, weapon laws violations were down 52 percent and aggravated assault was down 22 percent. Again, these are preliminary figures but they clearly show the BCSO is still achieving positive results thanks to the hard work of all our divisions.

The courts see a lot of activity on a day-to-day basis. Last year, there were 3,499 criminal warrants and 3,052 civil warrants served. In the area of court security, we had 60,355 people go through the magnotometer at the Justice Center alone. That is a lot of people and a lot of traffic and it serves to illustrate the importance of securing our courts. Without the security of magnotometers to screen for weapons and contraband, any unstable or criminally-minded individual with a grievance could potentially be a source of harm to judges, clerks and civilians within the courtroom. We still have a way to go in securing the Bradley County Courthouse, but we’re doing what we can with existing resources. We will do more as funding allows. Again, my thanks go out to the Judicial Services Division for their good work.

On a broader level, I received some good news a while back regarding fatalities among law enforcement officers nationwide. According the national statistics, the number of law enforcement personnel who were killed in the line of duty during 2008, including shooting deaths and fatal traffic accidents, was lower than the year before. Of the fatalities that did occur, most were the result of accidents, as opposed to criminal acts. That is a bitter-sweet statistic because a death is a death, but overall, this is welcome news for all law enforcement officers and their families.

The National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund and Concerns of Police Survivors have credited the drop in fatalities to better training, equipment and tactics. This underscores what I have been saying all along about providing BCSO deputies with the best training and equipment we can afford. Since I have been sheriff, we have upgraded deputies’ equipment in many areas, including bullet-resistant vests. We have also added mandatory physical fitness training. If these men and women are going to be placed in harm’s way as part of their daily routine, the least I can do as sheriff is to create as safe an environment for them as I possibly can.

We cannot drop our guard or let up on proactive law enforcement for even a second because criminals will seize any opportunity to prey on a perceived weakness. The BCSO is a strong and effective organization and that is being reflected in reduced county crimes statistics.

Law enforcement is an inherently dangerous profession and we have had close calls on occasion. One close call occurred shortly after I took office in the fall of 2006, when Sgt. Bill Coultry was hit several times by gunfire during a random act of violence committed by a mentally unstable individual. His bullet-resistant vest was credited with saving his life. What a lot of people don’t know is that Sgt. Coultry’s vest was so worn and thread-bare that he had taken the initiative to replace the plates in his vest at his own expense. That is exactly the type of situation I have worked so hard to correct and I am glad to report that we have met with much success.

And we will not rest. The BCSO continues providing the highest quality and most cost-effective law enforcement and crime prevention services possible for the citizens of Bradley County.