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STEADY PROGRESS AT THE BCSO |
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Written by Tim Gobble, Sheriff
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Friday, 21 August 2009 |
September marks the beginning of my fourth year as Sheriff. This experience has been challenging and rewarding and I am grateful for the opportunity to serve. There has been much progress within the BCSO over the past three years. Credit goes to my excellent command staff, the hard work of all deputies and employees, and to the Bradley community. Local businesses, industry, churches, volunteer groups, educators and hardworking citizens are the backbone of this community. We support them all and will continue to be vigilant and proactive in matters of public safety.
Space won’t allow me to cover every accomplishment or advancement within the Sheriff’s Office in detail, but there are several areas that I feel have been instrumental to our progress.
1. Streamlined Operations: When I became sheriff I eliminated a top-heavy BCSO bureaucracy that had developed over many years and reallocated the budgeted funds and manpower directly to the field where they could do the most good. The result is a greater law enforcement presence, less crime overall and a quicker response time in emergencies where every second is critical.
2. Better Starting Pay, Stricter Hiring Practices: Only the best law enforcement professionals should wear the BCSO badge. We implemented more stringent hiring practices to better screen the character, background and psychology of applicants. We have also increased base pay to a more competitive level. Pay-wise, we still fall below the regional average, but at least we made headway. Turnover has fallen and more deputies are staying on the job.
3. Better Equipment and Training: We acquired a number of new vehicles and improved our equipment and training for road deputies and jail personnel, decreasing risks to them and the public they serve. As sheriff, I hold myself and my deputies to a high standard and I expect that to be reflected in all areas of our operation. We should be role models and public safety professionals. In the few, isolated cases where misconduct on the part of a deputy has come to light, we have dealt with the situation swiftly, fairly and transparently.
4. Better Communications: We have greatly improved the free flow of information between the Sheriff’s Office and the public. The BCSO web site is a model for what a knowledge base should be, with news stories, press releases, video pod casts, departmental information and a wealth of other features relevant to the entire community. In addition, I do a bi-weekly radio show, write a weekly newspaper and Internet column, and we have even begun to Twitter. I try my best to answer my calls and emails, I keep my office door open, I attend public meetings and routinely work in the field. Additionally, all BCSO supervisors regularly spend time out in the community, backing up our patrol deputies, policing neighborhoods, and meeting with people and listening to their concerns.
5. No New Taxes, Off-Setting Expenses: We have achieved our goals without burdening the citizens of Bradley County with any tax increases; in fact, we have saved the taxpayer $660,000 in budgeted money thus far. Additionally, through various BCSO operations, we generate approximately $4.2 million each year for the Bradley County General Fund, which significantly off-sets required county operations.
As I enter my last year as Sheriff, I look forward to continuing this progress and my service to you. Thank you again for the opportunity to serve.
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