Archive for the ‘Sheriff’s Office’ Category

While many police and sheriff’s departments face layoffs and budget cuts, Ellis County, Texas Sheriff Johnny Brown has decided to be creative when it comes to feeding the inmates housed in his jail.

Sheriff Johnny Brown (on right) and Sgt. Bobby Cooper

No more canned peas, corn, or store-bought onions for his prisoners. No sir. It’s fresh vegetables or nothing. That’s right, Sheriff Brown decided to break ground on the back forty (actually, it’s more like three acres at the old jail farm) using inmate labor for the tilling, planting, and harvesting.

Sgt. Cooper is in charge of overseeing the farm operation

Each morning, a group of non-violent inmates stand in line to be shackled and transported the three miles to the farm where they put in a full day working the 188 rows of vegetables. Sheriff Brown hopes to save the taxpayers of his jurisdiction a lot of money by growing the crops. And, as a bonus, the inmates learn as they work. They’re also tired at the end of the day (less trouble), and the food they’ll consume after harvest will be much better for them than canned produce. Let’s face it, jail food is usually horrible.

An inmate examines English peas prior to planting

Planting peas

To further save money, Sheriff Brown even collects rainwater runoff from the roof at the jail.

The water is funneled into barrels and is then transported to the farm to water the gardens.

WFAA TV photos

Sheriff B.J. Barnes

*Jail farms are not a new concept. In fact, Guilford County N.C. Sheriff B.J. Barnes operates a massive prison farm—the only one in the state of North Carolina—consisting of 806 acres that’s manned by 134 inmates. Inmates even built the original dormitory at the farm using rocks found on the grounds.

Those of you who attended the 2010 Writers’ Police Academy will remember Sheriff Barnes from the Sunday debriefing panel. He was also responsible for most of the police equipment you toured and visited on Friday.

And, it was Sheriff Barnes’ team who provided the live demonstration of the school shooting/hostage situation.

This year, Sheriff Barnes has graciously offered to allow attendees of the 2011 Writers’ Police Academy an opportunity to tour the county jail. Ride-a-long’s with Guilford County deputies will also be offered as part of the WPA program.

Registration for the 2011 Writers’ Police Academy is open. Reserve your spot today. Space is limited!

Most of us had our first real look at a sheriff’s office back in 1960 when Andy Taylor and his fearless deputy, Barney Fife, patrolled the roads in and around Mayberry, N.C.

Television took us inside the Mayberry jail, the courthouse, and it even allowed us to ride in the county patrol car. And for many people, Andy Taylor’s Sheriff’s Office was the standard. The things Andy did, well, that’s what a sheriff was supposed to do—fight crime, run the jail, provide security for the court, and serve the people of the community.

So let’s take a look at a real-life, modern day sheriff and his office to see how things differ from the fictional Mayberry department. First, like Andy, a sheriff is only one person, which means they’ll need help to fulfill their duties. So deputies are appointed, not hired, to help with the workload. For example, the Clark County, Ohio sheriff’s office is comprised of the Sheriff (Gene Kelly – pictured above), one Chief Deputy, one Major, four Lieutenants, seventeen Sergeants, one-hundred-nine Deputies and thirty four civilian support staff.

When we see a sheriff’s car rolling along the highways and streets, most people assume the driver is a cop just like any other cop—an officer who wears a gun and answers calls doled out by a 911 dispatcher. Well, that’s partly true. They do answer calls. BUT, a deputy’s job is much more than just arresting people and putting them in jail.

Sure, we know that sheriff’s are in charge of the county jails. And we’re well aware that they serve civil process, such as jury summons, lien notices, foreclosures, and evictions. We also know that a sheriff assigns deputies to protect the courts, judges, and to supervise prisoners. But did you know that the duties of sheriffs and deputies may also include…

In the above photo, Sheriff Kelly is presiding over a sheriff’s sale. A sheriff’s sale is basically an auction to dispose of/liquidate property in which a mortgage owner has defaulted.

Operating mobile crime labs and investigative services.

Investigation of major crime scenes.

Community services, such as safety programs for citizens with special needs. One such program includes the ability to locate missing and/or lost persons through the use of tracking devices.

A person with special needs wears a wrist band with a built-in transmitter. Deputies equipped with specially designed receivers and antennas can then quickly track the person and return them to safety.

Housing prisoners from other jurisdictions whose facilities are overcrowded.

And, some locales may not have jail facilities at all and must rely on nearby sheriff’s offices for the safekeeping of their prisoners until trial.

Not all deputy sheriffs are police officers. Some are certified to work in the jail. Some are court security officers, and others have the sole duty of serving civil process.

Some deputies still unlock car doors for the unfortunate people who somehow manage to lock the keys inside their vehicles.

Deputies often organize and supervise search and rescue teams.

Some deputy sheriffs are cross-trained to work a variety of jobs within the department, such as patrol, jail, inmate transport, court security, etc.

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Registration for the 2011 Writers’ Police Academy is now open.

Join us for a weekend of training at a real police academy with real police academy instructors and equipment.

It’s a blast!