Sheriff staffing in region below national average
By Kat Russell, Reporter
The Paducah Sun
March 8, 2015
http://www.paducahsun.com/news/local/sheriff-staffing-in-region-below-average/article_6fcf329a-5add-11e7-aae5-10604b9f0f42.html
In western Kentucky, staffing levels at the county sheriff departments fall far below the national average.
According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation's 2012 Uniform Crime Report, which surveyed more than 14,000 agencies, the national average of staffing in county law enforcement was 2.7 officers per 1,000 residents.
In an interview with The Sun last month regarding the department's 2014 crime statistics, McCracken County Sheriff Jon Hayden cited the FBI report and said his department was grossly understaffed compared to the national average.
"We are actually at nine-tenths officers per 1,000 residents, and that's just counting the 40,000 county residents," he said.
When including the city (the sheriff's office shares jurisdiction with Paducah police), the population increases to 65,373 people, putting the sheriff's department at six-tenths officers per 1,000 residents.
The McCracken County Sheriff's department employs approximately 40 deputies, including court security and transport officers. The total number of road deputies and detectives who answer calls, patrol streets and conduct investigations is 38, Hayden said.
If it were staffed with the average 2.7 officers per 1,000 residents, however, the department would employ 175 deputies.
"I'm not advocating that we have (that many) deputy sheriffs at all," Hayden said. "But I think that we could do a better job than what we're doing now with just a few more positions."
Having more deputies on the streets, Hayden said, would be better for residents and serve as a deterrent to criminals by increasing the visible law enforcement presence.
"Folks call all the time and say 'We never see an officer out here,'" said Marshall County Sheriff Kevin Byars, who agreed having a visible force is a big challenge. "We try to do the best we can. That's why we have officers take their cars home. That way everybody knows where we are and who we are."
Byars has a total of 26 deputies - 14 road deputies, four detectives, seven court security officers, and one school resource officer - covering 340 square miles with 31,107 residents.
With 18 responding deputies, Byars' department averages six-tenths officers per 1,000 residents. If the department had 2.7 officers per 1,000 residents, it would employ about 80 deputies.
The Marshall County department faces an added challenge, Byars said, when the population increases from April to October due to tourists visiting the Lake Barkley area.
"Our population actually goes up to about 60,000, and we don't receive any additional help," he said.
Other sheriffs in the region said they worried about their deputies' safety.
"With the county being so large, it can be hard to cover all of it and provide adequate back-up when deputies respond to a call," Graves County Sheriff Dwayne Redmon said about covering the county's 550 square miles.
Redmon's force of 14 serves 37,451 residents, putting his department at four-tenths officers per 1,000 residents, making it difficult for him to ensure there are at least two officers on duty at all times.
Deputies having to answer calls alone puts them at greater risk of being harmed or killed, something Sheriff Bobby Davidson in Livingston County knows all too well.
Davidson's department lost a deputy in 2005 - Roger Lynch - who responded to a domestic call alone and was killed.
"If there had been enough deputies for two to respond to that call, would he still be alive?" Davidson said. "I feel like we haven't learned anything (from his death) because our manpower has stayed the same. "It's a struggle with six deputies," he continued. "Each year calls are going up, not necessarily crime statistics, but we're getting more calls every year."
Davidson said he often feels his hands are tied. "As the sheriff of Livingston County, I feel like I am not doing my job to the best of my ability," he said. "I feel like I am letting the people down because I don't have the manpower."
"It makes it very difficult," Ballard County Sheriff Carey Batts said of his limited resources. "I could use easily two or three more officers and get a sense of relief."
Batts said although his department covers a smaller area - approximately 270 square miles - he often finds they have to "triage" cases, handling the bigger cases first and smaller complaints later.
Carey's department averages 1.1 officers per 1,000 residents with nine full-time deputies serving a population of 8,332. If the department were to be staffed according to the national average, it would employ about 22 deputies.
The common thread binding all five departments is money.
"Our budget is stretched really thin. If I had the extra budget money to hire another deputy or two, I probably would," Byars said.
All the sheriffs said their budgets were stretched to capacity, preventing them from hiring more deputies without more funding from their respective fiscal courts.
"I can't afford to hire any on the budget that I have," Davidson said, adding that on his current budget, he can't afford to pay his deputies' benefits or retirement.
In McCracken County, Judge-Executive Bob Leeper said the sheriff's department deserves to be commended for its good work. "It's quite a compliment to Sheriff Hayden and his staff that they provide the service they do to the county as a whole with the number of officers they have," he said. "I think they do a great job for the citizens."
While Leeper said he hasn't had a specific conversation with Hayden about additional hiring, he said he would welcome a case to be made about needs versus wants.
"Public safety is a key function of local government, that will be part of the budgeting process, I'm sure."
Contact Kat Russell, a Paducah Sun staff writer, at 270-575-8653.
According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation's 2012 Uniform Crime Report, which surveyed more than 14,000 agencies, the national average of staffing in county law enforcement was 2.7 officers per 1,000 residents.
In an interview with The Sun last month regarding the department's 2014 crime statistics, McCracken County Sheriff Jon Hayden cited the FBI report and said his department was grossly understaffed compared to the national average.
"We are actually at nine-tenths officers per 1,000 residents, and that's just counting the 40,000 county residents," he said.
When including the city (the sheriff's office shares jurisdiction with Paducah police), the population increases to 65,373 people, putting the sheriff's department at six-tenths officers per 1,000 residents.
The McCracken County Sheriff's department employs approximately 40 deputies, including court security and transport officers. The total number of road deputies and detectives who answer calls, patrol streets and conduct investigations is 38, Hayden said.
If it were staffed with the average 2.7 officers per 1,000 residents, however, the department would employ 175 deputies.
"I'm not advocating that we have (that many) deputy sheriffs at all," Hayden said. "But I think that we could do a better job than what we're doing now with just a few more positions."
Having more deputies on the streets, Hayden said, would be better for residents and serve as a deterrent to criminals by increasing the visible law enforcement presence.
"Folks call all the time and say 'We never see an officer out here,'" said Marshall County Sheriff Kevin Byars, who agreed having a visible force is a big challenge. "We try to do the best we can. That's why we have officers take their cars home. That way everybody knows where we are and who we are."
Byars has a total of 26 deputies - 14 road deputies, four detectives, seven court security officers, and one school resource officer - covering 340 square miles with 31,107 residents.
With 18 responding deputies, Byars' department averages six-tenths officers per 1,000 residents. If the department had 2.7 officers per 1,000 residents, it would employ about 80 deputies.
The Marshall County department faces an added challenge, Byars said, when the population increases from April to October due to tourists visiting the Lake Barkley area.
"Our population actually goes up to about 60,000, and we don't receive any additional help," he said.
Other sheriffs in the region said they worried about their deputies' safety.
"With the county being so large, it can be hard to cover all of it and provide adequate back-up when deputies respond to a call," Graves County Sheriff Dwayne Redmon said about covering the county's 550 square miles.
Redmon's force of 14 serves 37,451 residents, putting his department at four-tenths officers per 1,000 residents, making it difficult for him to ensure there are at least two officers on duty at all times.
Deputies having to answer calls alone puts them at greater risk of being harmed or killed, something Sheriff Bobby Davidson in Livingston County knows all too well.
Davidson's department lost a deputy in 2005 - Roger Lynch - who responded to a domestic call alone and was killed.
"If there had been enough deputies for two to respond to that call, would he still be alive?" Davidson said. "I feel like we haven't learned anything (from his death) because our manpower has stayed the same. "It's a struggle with six deputies," he continued. "Each year calls are going up, not necessarily crime statistics, but we're getting more calls every year."
Davidson said he often feels his hands are tied. "As the sheriff of Livingston County, I feel like I am not doing my job to the best of my ability," he said. "I feel like I am letting the people down because I don't have the manpower."
"It makes it very difficult," Ballard County Sheriff Carey Batts said of his limited resources. "I could use easily two or three more officers and get a sense of relief."
Batts said although his department covers a smaller area - approximately 270 square miles - he often finds they have to "triage" cases, handling the bigger cases first and smaller complaints later.
Carey's department averages 1.1 officers per 1,000 residents with nine full-time deputies serving a population of 8,332. If the department were to be staffed according to the national average, it would employ about 22 deputies.
The common thread binding all five departments is money.
"Our budget is stretched really thin. If I had the extra budget money to hire another deputy or two, I probably would," Byars said.
All the sheriffs said their budgets were stretched to capacity, preventing them from hiring more deputies without more funding from their respective fiscal courts.
"I can't afford to hire any on the budget that I have," Davidson said, adding that on his current budget, he can't afford to pay his deputies' benefits or retirement.
In McCracken County, Judge-Executive Bob Leeper said the sheriff's department deserves to be commended for its good work. "It's quite a compliment to Sheriff Hayden and his staff that they provide the service they do to the county as a whole with the number of officers they have," he said. "I think they do a great job for the citizens."
While Leeper said he hasn't had a specific conversation with Hayden about additional hiring, he said he would welcome a case to be made about needs versus wants.
"Public safety is a key function of local government, that will be part of the budgeting process, I'm sure."
Contact Kat Russell, a Paducah Sun staff writer, at 270-575-8653.
