In requesting the overtime, which came second on his agenda this morning, Sheriff Wes Tripp told county commissioners, “Since I was appointed, the sheriff's office has required a minimum of six deputies on patrol at any given time to increase coverage throughout the county, reduce response time and increase visibility of the sheriff's office throughout the county.”

Tripp told the board his office has also provided manpower for major community events throughout the year to ensure public safety. “There have been several murders since July that have required a large amount of manpower during the investigation in Weldon, Enfield and Roanoke Rapids. The sheriff's office has also been forced to cover the towns of Enfield, Littleton and occasionally Weldon when there are no police officers on duty. The sheriff's office must also cover any major investigations within Enfield and Littleton for similar reasons.”

Another issue facing the sheriff's office is the lack of certified applicants applying for vacancies. “Because of a lower salary than all other agencies in the county and surrounding counties, we have been forced to hire uncertified deputies to send to (basic law enforcement training) to fill open positions.”

Presently, Tripp said, the sheriff’s office has six cadets who are uncertified, four currently in BLET and two planning to attend BLET in January. “These positions leave open spots on patrol that must be filled by deputies on overtime.”

The current overtime situation is that the sheriff’s office has nearly depleted its allotment of $45,000. “I am requesting an allocation of $50,000 to finish the year. Hopefully the deputies coming out of BLET will go to work quickly and reduce the need for overtime, but it is impossible to predict future turnover.”

Tripp said the $50,000 would allow for $7,000 overtime each month. “Ending overtime would potentially create risks to public safety. Since taking office I have worked to ensure the safety of the public and cannot in good conscience reduce coverage for the citizens.”

With Commissioner Carolyn Johnson absent, the overtime request was approved with the money to come from the fund balance, County Manager Tony Brown said.

Jail request

The sheriff's first request was for jail personnel at a cost of $368,975 that includes the creation of four transportation officers that, according to documents contained in today's agenda packet, were suggested by commissioners in October.

That request also includes two vehicles and equipment for the positions.

Since the decision to cancel the jail expansion project the sheriff's office has paid or has outstanding bills totaling $76,400 through November.

The funds taken for safekeeping and juvenile detention, according to the documents, must be replaced or those will run short. “Additionally, we estimate that December to June will cost $72,000.”

The cost of the suggestions by he commissioners would be $143,358 for January to June, including one-time costs. “In order to address the understaffing in the jail, the sheriff's office would also request the creation of four new jailer positions, one for each shift. This would greatly improve the efficiency and security of the jail while addressing known issues.”

In his presentation to commissioners today, Tripp said the four positions he requested for inside jail positions represents an amendment to the original request. Despite the cancellation, the jail remains substantially understaffed,” he told the board.

The jail currently operates with four jailers per squad, their current responsibilities and duties beyond what their number can accomplish. This issue, he said, leads to problems with maintenance and cleaning, inadequate rounds and time spent with inmates on rounds.

The state Jail Administrator's Association has recommended a total of seven to eight jailers per squad, Tripp said. “Adding 12 jailers is not feasible given the county's financial position, but we are requesting four additional jailers to be added to increase the squads to five jailers.”

Tripp said the additional personnel would address a number of issues with booking, classifying and supervising female inmates. “We are working with operations to make changes to our housing that would allow for better use of staff. The increase in personnel would allow for the jail to complete the maintenance and cleaning thoroughly, which cannot be done with current staffing levels.”

Additionally, Tripp said, with the four transport positions, the sheriff's office would like for one of those positions to be classified as a sworn deputy lieutenant to supervise and coordinate transports with jail, courts and the sheriff's office. “Having a sworn officer would allow for charges to be taken out if an inmate is destructive or creates problems in a transport rather than jailers going to a magistrate. Having a deputy serve as supervisor would be beneficial when on transports away from the detention center to deal with issues that might arise.”

Brown said the county wants to get this going by April 1, hence the reason it was not brought up during the regular budget process.

Commissioner Marcelle Smith said he would like to see a list of all positions before proceeding on the matter while Commissioner Rives Manning wanted to review copies of jail reports.

The matter will be discussed again at the 5:30 p.m., January 20 meeting.

“We'll be pressed for time,” Brown said, “But we can make it work.”