2007 Box Elder Sheriff’s Office Annual Report

Welcome. After 33 years working for the Sheriff’s Office, I was elected and took office in January 2007. I appreciate the opportunity the citizens have given me to serve them and it has been a pleasure to do so. The purposes of this annual report is explain to the citizens what changes have been made during the last year, provide crime statistics and explain the efforts on our part to serve the public.

My focus has been to create new or enhance exiting partnerships with the citizens. Preparing this annual report, which has never been done before, is just one way of bettering the communication between the public and my office. I hope the information presented here answers questions and gives insight into our operations. After taking office, I informed my employees that nothing would be as important during my tenure as Sheriff as community relations. I truly believe this and continually reinforce this principle. For example, I instituted a program in which citizens that had contact with a deputy are contacted on a random basis and asked about their encounter. This lets the citizens know I am truly concerned about their interaction with the department and lets the deputies know I am holding them accountable.

All of the department functions are explained in this report. As you will see, our department provides a variety of services. About half of our budget goes to corrections and a fourth to patrol. The majority of the budgets are spent on personnel.

The size and terrain of Box Elder County makes it a particularly unique and wonderful place to live. These same attributes, plus a growing population, create challenges for the Sheriff’s Office. It will take great efforts for the Sheriff’s Office to keep pace with the changing nature of our county. It will be impossible to accomplish without a cooperative effort with our citizens.

*Box elder County Population 2007**	50,876
*estimated
**BESO Sworn Officers	30
**Administration, Patrol, Investigations
# of Officers per 1000 population	.59

Direction and Guidelines for Sworn Officers

Sheriff J. L. Yeates - January 2007

Mission Statement

-Reduce crime and the fear of crime.

-Establish a solid partnership with the citizenry to create safe and secure communities.

-Provide a knowledgeable staff that ensures professional commitment to law enforcement,

is focused and dedicated to the citizens and communities and uses imagination, innovation

and resourcefulness.

-Provide high quality, cost effective, accountable services.

-Standards for law enforcement must include Fair Access, Public Trust, Safety and Security,

Coordinated Team Work with officers and citizens and Community Involvement/Responsibility.

Nothing will be as important in my tenure as Sheriff as community relations. Most of the

citizens of this county may have only one contact with an officer in their life. Their perception of our department and me personally comes from that contact. Contact with law enforcement is, for most people, a highly unusual event and is remembered for a long time. I expect every citizen who has contact with an officer to leave with the feeling they were dealt with by a competent, knowledgeable, well-trained professional who was polite and courteous. In addition, a citizen making a complaint should feel the officer did everything they could to solve the case or find a resolution. Most important is to follow up, even if that means nothing has developed in their case. If they need a question answered and you don't know, find out and call them back. If you refer them to another agency or department, give them a phone number and a contact name.

Law enforcement is a profession. Professions require schooling to achieve certification,

continuing education requirements, specializations, decertification, etc. By definition, you are a professional. Take pride in your dress and appearance. Please represent yourself like a professional to the public and others in your profession.

Professionals train constantly. The 40 hours a year required by POST barely covers keeping your various certifications current. Find and request training in your weak areas. Become an expert or instructor in your strengths. Care about what is going on in law enforcement and keep up with current trends. I will support training that gives technical expertise and instructor status with the understanding that budget and benefit to the department are considerations. Expect to come back from training and teach what you learned to the department.

A law enforcement officer's authority and power to take away a citizens constitutional rights is unmatched anywhere in our society. Never, ever abuse this privilege or the position of trust you hold. Your word is your bond and should be in all your dealings.

In return, you can expect from me that I will support training, programs, equipment and a pay scale which represent professional policing. I understand that no one knows how to do a job better than the one doing it. I want your input and feedback, through your supervisor, on what’s being done right and what needs improvement.

I will follow the chain of command and expect you to do the same.

New Look

Department Patch

Green and Tan colors- represent Sheriff’s Colors and mountain and desert Surroundings.

1856- Year the Box Elder Sheriff’s Department was established.

Trains/Spike- Transcontinental railroad completed in our county

Marshland- Migratory Bird Refuge

Mountains- Represent the various mountain ranges in our county, some of which are almost 10,000 ft.

History, Agriculture and Industry- Three things that make Box Elder County famous and a great place to live.

Vehicles

We have implemented a vehicle purchasing program whereby all deputies will have 4 wheel drive vehicles within 3 years. The size and terrain of our County require 4 wheel drive in many cases. In the past, deputies would have to switch vehicles to respond to calls in certain areas. We felt valuable time was wasted during this switch.

Uniforms

While the department colors haven’t changed, new hats, jackets, pants and other items have been approved.

Retirements

Former Sheriff D. Leon Jensen retired at the end of his term in 2006. Leon served 3 terms as Sheriff and had over 40 years of law enforcement experience.

Former Sergeant Curtis Hansen retired in April 2007. Curtis worked for the Sheriff Office for over 35 years.

Former Jail Commander Maggie Bull retired in December 2007. Maggie had over 15 years with the dept.

Promotions

Kevin Potter was promoted from Patrol Sergeant to Chief Deputy At the beginning of 2007.

Steve Berry was promoted to Sergeant in July 2007. He is currently assigned to patrol.

Sandra Huthman left Inmate Services and was appointed Jail Commander in December 2007.

Deputy Brandon Yates was chosen as K-9 Deputy in December 2007. His K-9 partner is Kosmo.

Deputy Kent Wiggins was chosen as K-9 Deputy in December 2007. His K-9 partner is Helix.

Military Leave

Deputy Chuck Hoffman is a National Guard Reserve member. His unit left for Iraq in May 2007.

Deputy Juan Trujillo took a year leave of absence to work for a private security company in Iraq.

K-9 Rico retired when his handler took a leave of absence. Rico had three years of service as a K-9

Budget

Detective Division

The detectives are supervised by Sgt. Doug Spencer. Sgt Spencer is also the field supervisor for the Narcotic Task Force and Civil division.

The detective division investigates major crimes committed in the county. There are four detectives, one of whom is assigned full time to the multi-jurisdictional narcotic task force. The other three detectives specialize in property crimes, sex crimes, fraud, death investigation, internal investigations, crime scenes and livestock theft. They also manage the evidence room.

Box Elder County Multi-Jurisdictional Narcotic Task Force (Strike Force)

The Sheriff’s Department participates in the Strike Force by assigning one full-time detective and a part-time field supervisor. Brigham Police also provide a full-time detective and part-time administrator. Tremonton Police will add a full-time member in 2008. Most other jurisdictions provide some part-time help.

The Strike Force was set up to allow targeted, focused investigation on drug use and traffic in Box Elder County. The Strike Force operates with the assistance of federal grants. The Strike Force also gives presentations to work, social, school, and civic groups. If you would like a presentation, please call the Strike Force secretary at (435)734-3813

* other = Heroin, Cocaine, Shrooms, pseuduephedrine

**Also seized were 54 Marijuana plants.

*** Not listed; 624 prescription pills seized.

Civil Division

The Sheriff is assigned by law to serve civil processes and execute court orders. There is a full-time deputy and full-time secretary assigned to this division. The chart below shows how busy this division is. Often, the Patrol or Detective Division will assist in civil process serving to meet demand.

Court Division

This division is supervised by Sgt. Dale Ward.

The Sheriff is required, by law, to provide services to the District Court, Juvenile Court and Box Elder Justice Court. This includes Bailiff duties and building security.

A Bailiff of the court is tasked with the safety of the judge and court staff and to maintain order in the courtroom.

The Security aspect includes monitoring court buildings and areas through a control center, magnetometers and entry points and a uniformed presence.

Over 2,600 hours spent on Bailiff duties.

Over 5,100 hours spent on Security.

Patrol Division

The patrol division is supervised by Sgt. Jim Summerill, Sgt. Dave Murphy and Sgt. Steve Berry. There are 15 deputies assigned to cover the county 24 hours a day. Due to the size of the county, deputies are assigned to cover patrol areas during their shifts. This includes the western part of the county.

Community Area Representatives –CAR

In additional to regular patrol duties, deputies are assigned a town or area in the county. They are expected to attend community meetings or functions and have an expertise in that community. To find out what deputy is assigned to your area, please call one of the patrol Sgts. (Sgt Jim Summerill 435-734-3806, Sgt David Murphy 435-734-3826, Sgt Steve Berry 435-734-3885)

K-9

The K-9 Division lost a great asset in 2007 when K-9 Rico retired. Rico’s handler, Juan Trujillo took a leave of absence to do private security in Iraq. The K-9 division is now staffed by Deputy Brandon Yates and K-9 Cosmo and Deputy Kent Wiggins and K-9 Helix.

SWAT

Several deputies participate in a multi-agency, county-wide SWAT Team

Hostage Negotiations

The county has one certified hostage negotiator. The certification required over three weeks of training and requires annual re-certifications

Drug Recognition Experts(DRE)

The county has 2 deputies certified as DRE. These deputies were trained to recognize the physical, clinical and neurological signs and systems associated with different kinds of drug use. DRE’s are an invaluable asset for drug related DUI’s and other crimes.

2007 Calls for Service by Nature
Abandoned Vehicle	33	Medical Emergency	12
Abuse of the Elderly	1	Mental Problem	2
Agency Assistance	678	Missing Person	22
Aggravated Assault	2	Missing Juvenile	12
Aggressive Animal	3	Motorist Assist	75
Aircraft Problem	1	Natural Disaster	1
Alarm	68	Noise Disturbance	32
All Animal Complaints	197	Non Sufficient Funds Check	3
All Burglaries	58	Offenses Dealing with US Mail	2
All Other Thefts not Vehicles	129	Other Alc/Off not DUI/Pub Intox	23
Allergy/Medical Reaction/Sting	3	Overdose / Poisoning (ingestion)	13
Animal Bite	10	Parking Problem	4
Animal Carcass	8	Personal Message	1
Arson	1	PI Accident	50
Attempt to Locate	5	Pornography	1
Attempted Suicide	6	Possible Heart Attack	11
Breathing Problems	13	Pregnancy/Childbirth/Miscarriage	2
Carbon Monoxide Poisoning	1	Private Property Check	8
Card 19 Heart Problem / AICD	1	Property Damage, Non Vandalism	55
Cardiac or Respiratory Arrest	4	Protective Order Violation	15
Cardio Vascular Accident	5	Prowler	2
Child Abuse or Neglect	54	Psychiatric	7
Citizen Assist	237	Public Relations	5
Citizen Dispute	42	Rape	2
Civil Problem	24	Reckless Motorist	25
Civil Standby	10	Recovered Stolen Property	3
Civil, Subpoena, Summons, etc	1	Recovered Stolen Vehicle	5
CO / Inhalation / HAZMAT	2	Request to Check Welfare	45
Controlled Substance Problem	19	Resisting/Interfering /Officer	2
Convulsions or Seizures	2	Runaway Juvenile	30
Curfew Violation	4	Safety Hazard	3
Custodial Interference	10	Sex Offense	24
Death Investigation	8	Sheriff K9 Deployment	67
Diabetic Shock	5	Sheriff K9 Service	8
Disorderly Conduct	17	Sheriff Service	6
Disturbing the Peace	2	Shoplifter in Custody	1
Domestic Violence	78	Sick Person	5
Drug Recognition Expert	14	Simple Assault	27