Like many of you, when I begin my day at work I have a routine that gets me organized and jump starts my day. If nothing is pressing and no emergencies in the jail or in the county, I grab a cup of coffee and check my overnight telephone messages. A couple of weeks ago when I checked my messages I noted that of the 8 callers leaving messages, 6 were reporting some type of scam activity that was going on in our community. With the snow falling and the temperature hovering around 10 degrees Fahrenheit I was thinking to myself that years ago the scam calls didn’t begin until early Spring and usually ended just after the county fair. Not any more I thought. With all the direct postal mailings, the creation of the internet and everyone walking around with their own personal telephone in their pocket scamming for money is now a year-long endeavor. [Read more…]

R2D2 was a fictional robot character in the Star Wars movie series that looked like a garbage can on wheels that was very high tech and could talk. It is this character that has influenced the naming of new secure Pill and Drug Disposal Drop-Box known as P2D2. Let me explain. [Read more…]

From time to time I hear the expression “I’m just one person, what can I do? How can what I say or do help. Usually I hear this when someone is frustrated with a problem or situation that just doesn’t seem to improve over time. Because our lives can become so complicated at times we are led to believe that no matter what we say or what we do-it won’t make a difference. [Read more…]

During my 18 years as Sheriff, leading a group of individuals who are trying to accomplish team goals, I have come to realize that a major factor in accomplishing those goals and being successful, requires a strong supporting cast who perform their tasks or duties at a high level enabling other stake holders in the organization to accomplish success. [Read more…]

With the economy tight and nearly a foot of snow in the forecast I’m thinking of Spring. The calendar says Spring is on the way. Early in my career Spring meant the “Scam Season” was starting. It was the start of the lightning rod scam, the driveway blacktop scam, “you need a new roof for the summer rains” scam. All executed by door-to-door contact, paying with cash at half the price for what it should cost and very little to no paperwork or guarantee on the work. [Read more…]

The New Look of our “Next Generation” Police Cars

Like most of you when I travel around now days I notice that it’s a lot harder to pick out a police patrol car from the other cars on the roadway. For the last 10 or 15 years the Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptors and the Chevrolet Impalas had become the two premier police patrol vehicles working on patrol in the United States. The Ford’s had the rear wheel drive and Chevrolet had the front wheel drive. Since Ford had limited their Crown Victoria market these last few years to police patrol vehicles or taxi cabs it was quite easy to “pick out” a moving squad car. The Chevy Caprice looked somewhat like other cars on the road but with a little practice a person could get pretty good at picking out the Caprice on patrol in the distance as well. [Read more…]

As I write this column I am really sympathizing with our religious leaders about how difficult it must be to ask their flock for more money. How do you introduce a concept that involves a reality that giving more money is necessary or a good thing for you to do. Most people I talk with want to hear about how much money is being saved-not how much money is being spent. [Read more…]

Like many of you around this time of year I listen as those around me talk about their New Year’s resolutions and wonder whether expressing those hopes and goals to others helps one achieve their lofty expectations. The most common resolutions I hear about are the ones about losing weight, wanting to exercise more, promising to eat healthier or the ultimate resolution about treating every day like it’s your last day. All of these resolutions are certainly well meaning self reflective goals striving to be a better person. January seems to be a good time to bring up these sorts of things since it’s the beginning of a new year and everyone likes to start new and fresh at times so in the spirit of the giving season I’m offering a couple of 2013 New Year’s resolutions of my own that I’ve been thinking about for your evaluation. [Read more…]