Undersheriff gives update on law enforcement happenings

I recently approached Sheriff Bardsley with the idea of doing a monthly article to educate and inform our Citizens about what is happening with Law and Justice in Wahkiakum County. He has always had an open-door policy in our office and is a great supporter of crime prevention and volunteerism, so it was no surprise when he approved my idea.

“On scene," or “10-97” in 10 code is the terminology we use when arriving on scene of any call. I want you to be on scene with us. I plan on writing this article once a month because I want you know what we do in a day, a month, and a year. I’m very proud of all of the employees at the Sheriff’s Office, and want you to know what they do. I also believe you have a right and responsibility to know what’s going on at the “Cop Shop.” Each month I will explore a different facet of our jobs.

The Sheriff’s Office consists of different branches of operations, they are, law enforcement (sheriff, undersheriff, detective, deputy sheriffs and reserve deputy sheriffs), chief civil deputy (supervisor of the jail and dispatch -corrections), then there is jail, dispatch-corrections, civil process, and Department of Emergency Management (DEM).

In September 2007, we received and responded to 309 calls for service. Dispatch receives the call then dispatches law enforcement. These calls for service, include but are not limited to, disturbances, trespass, fraud, traffic, suspicious circumstances/people, domestic violence, theft, burglary, junk vehicles, warrant service, serving civil papers, shots fired, mental health calls, noise complaints, alarms (residential and commercial) welfare checks (checking on the welfare of someone that hasn’t been seen or heard from lately), UIBC (unlawful issuance of a bank check), fights, animal calls of all kinds, including potentially dangerous (PDD), or dangerous dog, which will be covered later, service calls (vehicle unlocks, etc.), drugs/narcotics, and the list goes on.

In the month of September we had 128, calls to our 911 number, which include a lot of the above described calls for service, plus emergency medical (EMS) and fire calls.

On top of answering regular phone calls, which is a 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year, job referred to as “24/7”, our corrections officers, who double as dispatchers, maintain a 24/7 jail. The jail has its own set of rules and regulations, or otherwise know as standard operating procedures (SOP). After law enforcement arrests a subject, a corrections officer books the subject into jail by data entry, and taking finger prints and photographs. If we don’t have a C/O (meaning only one Dispatcher/ C/O on duty who has to stay in the dispatch center), the deputy sheriff has to do their own booking. They are responsible for feeding the people that are lodged in our facility three times a day, dispensing prescribed medications, taking them to appointments, and constantly transporting them to other jails around the state, and sometimes out of state including transporting juveniles from detention centers, and picking up new inmates to be housed with us. We are responsible for getting the inmates to and from both district and superior court in a timely fashion. In the middle of all of this they also answer radio traffic for PUD, county roads, fire and EMS, and other law enforcement agencies. This is a huge job.

I don’t mention any of this as “woe- as -me”; because frankly this is the stuff we love to do. As my dad used to say to me, “if you find a job you love, you won’t work a day in your life.” I saw this proof positive in my dad’s career as a journalist, and it holds true for me as well.

We have a great county, and I’m thrilled to be able to serve you and work for a sheriff’s office such as ours.

Tip of the Month: Got Drugs? Or just tired of those who do? Call TOLL FREE 1-800-256-9027 for the Cowlitz-Wahkiakum Narcotics Task Force, or for in-progress incidents in Wahkiakum County call 911, or 795-3242, from the West End of the County call 465-2200. Help make Wahkiakum County DRUG-FREE.