The Carroll Record, July 26, 1973 Study Recommends 10 More Troopers Carroll Record

The Carroll Record, July 26, 1973

Study Recommends Ten More Troopers For County

—Ten more State Policemen are needed in Carroll County, according to a study commissioned by the county, funded by the federal government and made by the Superintendent of the Maryland State Police last fall.

Citing a rising crime rate and overall county growth, the study intended to survey the opinions of people in the county and make recommendations for improvements. Local police forces were evaluated in the report.

Though all of the municipal forces, with the exception of Westminster, were termed inadequate, the study felt they all work well with the State Police force in the county.

Town officials frequently felt their local forces were beneficial as a deterrent to crime and most wanted a marked police car around even if their overall effectiveness was inadequate.

The Carroll Record, July 26, 1973.

19730726 Study Recommends 10 More Troopers Carroll Record

*****

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Law Enforcement Studies in Carroll County since 1975

Law Enforcement Studies in Carroll County since 1975

Related: 20081007 Eagle Carroll County Police Force work group to meet

1975 – Conducted by Franklin G. Ashburn
Recommendation: Add to the Sheriff’s Office


1979 – Conducted by Franklin G. Ashburn
Recommendations: Add to the Resident Trooper Program; separate Detention Center from Sheriff’s Office


1985 – Conducted by County Staff
Recommendation: Resident Trooper Program is more beneficial than utilizing Sheriff’s Office


1990 – Subcommittee on Public Safety/Police Protection (chaired by Franklin G. Ashburn)

Recommendations (in order):
Share patrols between agencies
Form a Carroll County Police Department
Expand the Resident Trooper Program


1992 – Conducted by Carroll County Police Study Committee (chaired by Maj. Morris L. Krome, ret.)

Recommendations:
A. Continue with Resident Trooper Program at 100% funding level, with an extended commitment from the State.
B. Require all future Resident Trooper contracts contain a minimum three-year notice of State’s intention to cancel.
C. Absent an extended commitment from the State, implement a Carroll County Police Department no later than July 1, 1993.
D. Given an extended commitment, establish as much groundwork as possible to prepare for a County Police Department.
E. Establish a Carroll County Law Enforcement Master Plan.


2007 – Conducted by County Staff
Recommendation: If the current system of both Resident Troopers and the Sheriff’s Office is not to be maintained, form a transition team to develop a local policing plan.

20081009 Law Enforcement Studies in Carroll County since 1975

EAGLE UPDATE: Carroll County Police Force work group to meet

EAGLE UPDATE: Carroll County Police Force work group to meet

10/07/08

A task force of law enforcement officials will meet for the first time next week to lay groundwork for the creation of a Carroll County Police Department.

The Unified Law Enforcement Work Group will meet at 3 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 14, in Room 003 of the County Office Building, 225 N. Center St., Westminster.

The nine-member group, convened by the Board of County Commissioners, includes: Bowie Police Chief Katherine Perez; Carroll County Sheriff’s Office Maj. Thomas Long; Carroll County State’s Attorney Investigator Andrew Mays; former acting superintendent of Maryland State Police John O’Neill Jr.; retired State Police Lt. Dean Richardson; State Police Westminster Barrack Commander Lt. Andrew Winner; Sykesville Police Chief John Williams Jr.; Westminster Police Chief Jeff Spaulding.

The group will be chaired by Cindy Parr, chief of Administrative Services for Carroll County Government.

The meeting is open to the public, but no public comment time has been allotted for this meeting. The meeting can also be viewed on cable Channel 24 and online at ccgovernment.carr.org.

For details, call Vivian Laxton, WAB, county public information administrator, at 410-386-2973.

20081007 Eagle Carroll County Police Force work group to meet

http://www.explorecarroll.com/news/1173/eagle-update-carroll-county-police-force-work-group-meet/

Last week in The Tentacle

Last week in The Tentacle

http://www.thetentacle.com/

Posted Monday September 8, 2008

Friday, September 5, 2008
Travelogue: Salt Lake City
Kevin E. Dayhoff
Although I have been very fortunate to have had opportunities to travel a great deal over the years, I have never visited the great American west. I recently had a chance to spend a week in Salt Lake City, Utah. I was not disappointed.


More Political Hypocrisy
Roy Meachum
Reading Sunday's Frederick News-Post, you could believe Frederick's ex-mayor Jennifer Dougherty, in selling her self-named restaurant, made a great sacrifice for the public good. She told reporter David Simon: "I don't want to look back and say I wasn't 100 percent committed to the race."


Thursday, September 4, 2008
One Massive Blunder
Tony Soltero
John McCain, over the years, has been very meticulously building up a brand with the media as a serious, experienced "straight-shooting" politician, who was somehow a bit different from the other rubber-stamp Republicans.


One Superlative Choice
Patricia A. Kelly
Hurrah! A breath of fresh air has come into the presidential race. I laughed with delight at the perfection of the choice of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin as soon as I heard it. I have felt strongly all along that the men on the “short” list would not be able to help John McCain win, and now a new choice is available, a choice that enhances his chances.


Wednesday, September 3, 2008
Plucking the Golden Goose
Norman M. Covert
It was the remote’s fault that John L. (Lennie) Thompson, Jr., popped up on my television screen. Mr. Thompson was trashing the reputation of a man testifying before the Frederick Board of County Commissioners about the New Market Regional Plan. Mr. T didn’t have the aggies to look him in the eye, a clear indication our commissioner is a Bum!


“La Policía”
Kevin E. Dayhoff
Carroll County history is replete with colorful conflicts, many of operatic proportions, between the Carroll County Board of Commissioners, the Carroll County delegation to Annapolis, and the sheriff.


Tuesday, September 2, 2008
David Brinkley
Roy Meachum
David Brinkley stopped by for coffee. He received a yawn and nod from Pushkin, who proceeded to his usual spot in the library. The English pointer and the state senator knew each other from earlier encounters. David and I headed for the patio. This was last week, during the brief hiatus from the overbearing humidity.


The Joy of Selling
Nick Diaz
Not long ago I described to TheTentacle.com readers my adventures and thoughts on traveling to Maine to purchase and ride home a “new” 1988 Yamaha Venture.


Monday, September 1, 2008
Dog Days of Summer – Donkey Chronicles
Richard B. Weldon Jr.
We're into the heart of the most active season for a political junkie, the Super Bowl of partisanship. The conventions show the best and worst of the two major parties, and in this cycle, all of that magic is playing out over a two-week period.


Waiting for the President
Steven R. Berryman
At least the conventions are a stepping-stone along the road to electing a new president, but here we sit, waiting. We wait for a president to solve our problems for us, as is human nature. Surely they will, as their speeches tell us so.


Friday, August 29, 2008
Norm Knows
Roy Meachum
Columns on the government's monumental faux pas in the Fort Detrick anthrax scandal have caused people to ask if the fort's research scientists, particularly Bruce Ivins, were friends or acquaintances. None is.

20080908 Last week in The Tentacle

Carroll County government stands behind police statistics by Mark Ripper, Chairman, Staff Committee on Law Enforcement, Carroll County Government

Carroll County government stands behind police statistics by Mark Ripper, Chairman, Staff Committee on Law Enforcement, Carroll County Government

August 26, 2008

Dear Editor,

Carroll County Government stands behind the police statistics presented at a recent Board of County Commissioners meeting. Those numbers are available on the County’s web site, http://ccgovernment.carr.org, for anyone to review.

Data in the chart compare the average number of crimes handled per law enforcement officer for the three largest policing agencies in Carroll County: Maryland State Police, Westminster Police Department, and the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office. The chart develops cost by looking at the number of crimes handled relative to the agency’s budget. The statistics come from the FBI’s Uniform Crime Report, Maryland UCR Crime Index Report and the county’s budget office.

For accuracy and fairness, the chart does not compare smaller crimes because they are not defined the same way by each agency. Any comparisons performed on these crimes would not be valid or meaningful.

The Maryland State Police is the County’s primary law enforcement agency and, as such, receive more 911 calls. The Sheriff’s Office supplements law enforcement efforts in the county. The Sheriff’s Office became a full-service agency less than 10 years ago, when a previous Board of Commissioners decided deputies would continue to supplement the trooper program.

Mark Ripper
Chairman, Staff Committee on Law Enforcement
Carroll County Government

(Editor’s note: Mr. Ripper’s assertions were previously confirmed by a public safety analysis who asked to remain anonymous so as to not be caught up in the ongoing controversy…)

Related: 20080813 CCSD Commissioner Presentation based on flawed statistics

Future of police protection delayed, but crime doesn't restPublished August 13, 2008 by Eldersburg Eagle, Westminster EagleOn Thursday, Aug. 7, the Board of County Commissioners voted 2-1 to not move forward with a plan to form a county police department...

Police Carroll Co Sheriff's Dept

Police Carroll Co Police Dept

20080826 Carroll County government stands behind police statistics by Mark Ripper

*****

Martes 26 de agosto de 2008

El gobierno del condado de Carroll defiende detrás de estadísticas de la policía Mark Ripper, presidente, comité de personal sobre la aplicación de ley, gobierno del condado de Carroll

El gobierno del condado de Carroll defiende detrás de estadísticas de la policía Mark Ripper, presidente, comité de personal sobre la aplicación de ley, gobierno del condado de Carroll

26 de agosto de 2008

Estimado Editor,

El gobierno del condado de Carroll se coloca detrás de las estadísticas de la policía presentadas en un tablero reciente de reunirse de las comisiones del condado. Esos números están disponibles en el Web site del condado, http://ccgovernment.carr.org, para que cualquier persona repase.

Los datos en la carta comparan el número medio de crímenes manejados por el agente de la autoridad para las tres agencias de vigilancia más grandes del condado de Carroll: Policía del estado de Maryland, Departamento de Policía de Westminster, y la oficina de Carroll del sheriff del condado. La carta desarrolla coste mirando el número de crímenes manejados concerniente al presupuesto de la agencia. Las estadísticas vienen del informe uniforme del crimen del FBI, del informe del índice del crimen de Maryland UCR y de la oficina del presupuesto del condado.

Para la exactitud y la imparcialidad, la carta no compara crímenes más pequeños porque no son definidas la misma manera por cada agencia. Cualquier comparación se realizó en estos crímenes no sería válida o significativa.

La policía del estado de Maryland es la agencia policial primaria del condado y, como tal, recibe más 911 llamadas. La oficina del sheriff complementa esfuerzos de la aplicación de ley en el condado. La oficina del sheriff se convirtió en una agencia del lleno-servicio menos hace de 10 años, cuando un tablero anterior de comisiones decidía a diputados continuaría complementando el programa del soldado de caballería.

Marque el destripador
Presidente, comité de personal sobre la aplicación de ley
Gobierno del condado de Carroll

(Nota de redactor: Las aserciones de Sr. Ripper's fueron confirmadas previamente por un análisis de seguridad pública que pidió seguir siendo anónimo para no ser alcanzado en la controversia en curso…)

Relacionado: Comisión Presentation de 20080813 CCSD basada en estadísticas dañadas

El futuro de la protección de la policía retrasado, sino el crimen no hace 13 de agosto de 2008 restPublished de Eldersburg Eagle, Westminster EagleOn el jueves 7 de agosto, el tablero de comisiones del condado votó 2-1 para no moverse adelante con un plan para crear a un Departamento de Policía del condado…

Departamento del sheriff de Carroll Co de la policía

Departamento de la policía de Carroll Co de la policía

El gobierno del condado de 20080826 Carroll defiende detrás de estadísticas de la policía la esfera de Mark Ripper: Contenido relacionado

Fijado por Kevin Dayhoff en 8/26/2008 04:20: 00 P.M.

20080807 “La Policía” © by Kevin Dayhoff

“La Policía”

August 7, 2008 © by Kevin Dayhoff

Picture caption: Carroll County Commissioners Dean Minnich, Julia Gouge, and Mike Zimmer on the barricades at the Carroll County Office Building, Westminster, Maryland by Delacroix and Kevin Dayhoff August 7th, 2008

Writer’s note: A shortened version of this appeared in the Sunday Carroll Eagle on August 17, 2008: “And now, for this week’s installment of ‘La Policia,’ in the Opinion section of the paper.
_____

Carroll County’s reputation for low crime and an aggressive approach to public safety is not a recent phenomenon.

Over 80 years ago on July 16, 1925, the editor of the American Sentinel newspaper in Westminster, Joseph D. Brooks wrote that many “years ago Carroll county was known to criminals all over the state as an ‘open door to the penitentiary,’ and many there were who entered by way of that door.”

However, as one can imagine when a community determines any public policy to be of paramount importance there are bound to be impassioned conflicts and dramas.

Writing for the Historical Society of Carroll County in 2001, Jay Graybeal noted in his introduction of the 1925 newspaper article, “Why the Listlessness of the Sheriffs of Carroll County?”; that it seems that Mr. Brooks had become unhappy with the Carroll County sheriff and state’s attorney and was letting them know that in no uncertain terms.

Carroll County history is replete with colorful conflicts, many of operatic proportions, between the Carroll County board of commissioners, the Carroll County delegation to Annapolis, the state’s attorney’s office, and the sheriff.

In the most recent act of this ongoing opera, on October 4, 2007 the Carroll County board of commissioners opted to move forward with a plan to form a county police department headed by an appointed chief of police.

Not willing to disappoint future historians, troubadours from far-flung regions of the Carroll County Empire then entered the stage and chaos ensued. I read several of the news accounts with the soundtrack of “Les Misérables” playing in the background.

The only disappointment is that Victor Hugo, the author of the classic 1862 novel, is not available to write about it.

Just as with any good storytelling, “La Policía” the current epic Carroll County constitutional conflict over the future of the police in Carroll County has many layers, story lines, strong personalities, and plot twists.

The frenzied operatic moments are reminiscent of what a collaboration between the famous 19th-century composer Richard Wagner and his father-in-law, Franz Liszt, would have looked like; with the emphasis of folks attempting to promote a plan for the future that cannot escape the past.

The very first act of La Policía is borrowed from Les Misérables. As the curtains rise, the scene before the bewildered citizen audience is the barricaded Carroll County office building.

It’s August 7, 2008 and the commissioners have just voted 2-1 to not move forward with the October 4, 2007 police plan.

As the smoke rises from the stage, there is a break in the action as members of the Carroll County Sheriff’s Department are storming the barricades.

Blinking red and blue police lights reflect back and forth in the fog of the smoke.

In the background, the delegation to Annapolis forms the chorus and is softly singing.

The three commissioners are standing on top of the barricades. Commissioners Mike Zimmer and Dean Minnich are on either side of Julia Gouge, holding her steady as she waves an oversized Carroll County flag.

Office building employees have broken out the windows and are showering the storming sheriff’s deputies with office furniture.

The stage is littered with burning newspapers as the local media has shelled all the participants with folded newspapers shot from makeshift artillery.

Off to the side, Channel 13 news reporter Mike Schuh is attempting to interview Westminster Police Chief Jeff Spaulding. The only thing is - the chief has the 1971 Led Zeppelin classic, “The Battle of Evermore,” coincidentally, the title of the first act of La Policía, cranked-up so loud on the car stereo, no one can hear a thing.

Inside the office building the receptionist, Kay Church, is serving cookies, answering the phones and has armed herself with a salad shooter and big bag of carrots.

Ted Zaleski, the director of management and budget is huddled off to the side with Vivian Laxton, the public information administrator as they try and figure out who is playing what character from Les Misérables.

All of the sudden there is silence on the stage as famed local historian; Jay Graybeal emerges from the fog as a narrator, smiles and begins to softly tell the story of the history of the sheriff’s department.

“When Carroll County was founded in 1837, one of the first tasks…” of the newly formed government was to elect a sheriff. As with many aspects of early American government, its origins date back to the history of mother England.

According to some undocumented notes, “1200 years ago, England was inhabited by Anglo-Saxons. Groups of a hundred would ban together and form communities known as a “tun,” from where we get the word, “town.”

Every group of a hundred, or “tun,” as led by a “reeve,” which was the forerunner of what we now know as a chief of police.

According to Mr. Brooks, the reeve was “charged with the execution of the laws … and the preservation of the peace, and, in some cases having judicial powers. He was the King’s reeve, or steward over a shire … — a distinctive royal officer, appointed by the king, dismissible at a moment’s notice…”

Groups of “tuns” banned together to form a larger form of government known as a ‘Shire’” – what we now know as a county; and my old notes reflect that in order to distinguish the leader of a “Shire,” from a leader of a tun, the more powerful official became known as a “Shire-Reeve.”

Which is where we get the modern word “sheriff.”

####

20080807 “La Policía” © by Kevin Dayhoff

Kevin Dayhoff Sunday Carroll Eagle and Westminster Eagle columns and articles from June 25, 2008 through August 3, 2008

Kevin Dayhoff Sunday Carroll Eagle and Westminster Eagle columns and articles from June 25, 2008 through August 3, 2008

Future of police protection delayed, but crime doesn't rest
Published August 13, 2008 by Eldersburg Eagle, Westminster Eagle
On Thursday, Aug. 7, the Board of County Commissioners voted 2-1 to not move forward with a plan to form a county police department...

Turkeys, fires and failed presidents were the stuff of old newspapers
Published August 10, 2008 by Sunday Carroll Eagle
As today's newspapers race into the Internet age, many folks might be fascinated with the look and feel of newspapers from the 1800s and early...

Carroll rides tall at the Chincoteague Pony auction
Published August 6, 2008 by Westminster Eagle
With pen in hand, Carroll County author Lois Szymanski looked up from a copy of one of her latest books, "Out of the Sea: Today's...

Fire and water have been volatile mix in Sykesville
Published August 3, 2008 by Sunday Carroll Eagle
It was 85 years ago, in the late afternoon of Monday, July 30, 1923, that an historic and terrible rainstorm hit Sykesville and other areas...

Destructive behavior from those contentious combines
Published July 30, 2008 by Westminster Eagle
On Saturday evening, the air was hot, thick and muggy, flavored with anticipation and seasoned with a hint of petroleum fumes. More than 5,000 fans...

20080813 Kevin Dayhoff Sunday Carroll Eagle and Westminster Eagle columns and articles from July 30, 2008 through August 13, 2008

Carroll County Sheriff’s Department: Commissioner Presentation based on flawed statistics

Carroll County Sheriff’s Department: Commissioner Presentation based on flawed statistics

“Commissioner Presentation based on flawed statistics”

Westminster, Carroll County, Maryland, August 13, 2008 ----

Sheriff Ken Tregoning and members of the Sheriff’s Office are concerned that inaccuracies cited by Commissioner Julia W. Gouge during an open session on August 7, presented a false perception to the public about the resolution of criminal investigations. A copy of the presentation, which includes the questionable statistics, is currently available on the county webpage at: http://ccgovernment.carr.org/ccg/ccpd/docs/UCR.pdf

The information, which attempts to show a correlation between the costs of investigating certain crimes among several law enforcement agencies by dividing their operating budgets by crime, ignores the commissioner’s decision to continue transferring all 911police calls to the Maryland State Police. The practice of transferring police calls away from the 911 center where sheriff’s deputies are dispatched significantly reduces the total crimes going to the sheriff’s office. Consequently, the numbers presented by Commissioner Gouge were intended to create the false impression that certain crimes investigated by the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office are more costly.

Further, the total numbers of law enforcement officers in each comparison are misrepresented; for example the Resident Trooper Contract funds 45 Troopers, not the number listed. Additionally, the Sheriff’s Office budget figures include costs for 14 non-police employees. These oversights were designed to distort the cost of personnel funded under the Sheriff’s Services Operating Budget and the contract for State Police Services.

The study cites only the “Part 1 Crimes”; however, there are 99 incidents police respond to and investigate listed in the Uniform Crime Reporting Program. On the contrary, during the same years cited by Commissioner Gouge, 2005 and 2006, the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office led Carroll Law Enforcement in the total number of arrests. In fact, during 2006 sheriff’s deputies made 1388 arrests, and according to the Maryland State Police’s Crime in Maryland Report, achieved the highest local “Part 1 Crimes” closure rate at 41%.

According to the International City/County Management Association, interrupting crimes in progress and pursuing fleeing suspects’ accounts for less than twenty percent of law enforcement activity. Historically, most police calls are not criminal incidents but incidents that include landlord/tenant disputes, prowlers, noise complaints, graffiti, disturbances, missing persons, littering, juvenile complaints, nuisance calls, etc. Consequently, the public should have information about total police activities and not just “Part 1 Crimes.”

Therefore, policing in Carroll County and nationally, involves keeping the peace more than enforcing the law. The confusion caused by this information is regrettable and was a disservice to the public and the Sheriff’s Office. The Sheriff’s Office and its employees remain “committed to excellence in delivering comprehensive police services focused on preventing and reducing crime, fear and disorder.” Similar to the sheriff’s offices in 98% of counties nationwide, we are your “County Police Agency”.

20080813 CCSD Commissioner Presentation based on flawed statistics

20080118 Code addition will set stage for police force

Code addition will set stage for police force

Westminster Eagle News briefs

01/18/08

The (Carroll County) Board of Commissioners last week gave the go-ahead for a public hearing on a proposed chapter to the County Code that will lay the groundwork for creation of a new county police department.

The hearing will be at 10 a.m. on Thursday, Jan. 31, in Room 003 of the County Office Building, 225 N. Center St., Westminster.

The proposed chapter specifies the procedure the board must follow to appoint a chief and what the chief's powers and responsibilities will be. It also stipulates duties that county officers will have.

20080119 Public Hearing on Carroll County Local Bill Requests

CARROLL COUNTY DELEGATION

PUBLIC HEARING ON LOCAL BILL REQUESTS

Editor’s note: The public hearing on local bills proposed for the 2008 General Assembly is scheduled for 9 a.m. to noon, Saturday, Jan. 19, in Room 003 of the County Office Building, 225 N. Center St., Westminster.

JANUARY 19, 2008

AGENDA ITEMS

Commissioners and Allied Agencies Bills

• Public Facilities Bond

• Distribution of Tobacco Products to Minors – Prohibition & Penalties

• Green Building Tax Credit

• Regulation of Domestic Animals – Fine & Penalty Increase

• Alcoholic Beverages – Increase Fees

• Alcoholic Beverages – Sunday Sales

• Alcoholic Beverages – Arts Council

· Exempt Carroll County Public Schools from all State and local noise ordinances

· Salary Increase for Board Members & Board President

Other Items for Discussion

· Election of County Commissioners Four by District, One at Large

· Creation of a County Police Department – Should it go to referendum?

20071216 Frugality county police needed by Mike Zimmer

Carroll County Times Other Voices: “Frugality, county police needed” by Carroll County Commissioner Mike Zimmer

By Michael Zimmer, Other Voices

Sunday, December 16, 2007

I greatly appreciated the Times editorial of December 9 urging the commissioners to refrain from raising taxes to make up for reductions in funding expectations from the state.

In the face of higher sales taxes, higher electric bills and higher fuel costs the last thing the people of Carroll County need is a rate hike in their real property taxes.

[…]

A second topic that deserves comment is the unanimous vote earlier this year by the commissioners to shift our primary law enforcement from a blended system of the Sheriff's Department and State Police Resident Troopers toward a county police force.

If anyone wants to understand the rational for each commissioner's vote, the best thing to do is to review the video archive of our meeting of October 4 on the county government Web site under the video library and agendas header.

[…]

This doesn't mean that I think Sheriff Ken Tregoning has done a bad job. Actually, it is just the opposite. Because he has done such a good job at filling the gap between a capped resident trooper program and our growing needs, he has put the commissioners in a position that allows us to make this decision from a position of strength, not weakness.

[…]

Read the entire piece here: Carroll County Times Other Voices: “Frugality, county police needed” by Carroll County Commissioner Mike Zimmer

And please report dead links…

####

20071107 Letter to the Editor from Colonel Bob Keefer is the Chief Deputy in the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office

Letter to the Editor from Colonel Bob Keefer is the Chief Deputy in the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office

The following is a letter to the editor submitted to “Soundtrack” from Colonel Bob Keefer, the Chief Deputy in the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office

November 8, 2007

Dear Editor:

I am very disturbed and concerned about what our Board of Carroll County Commissioners is trying to do to the Office of the Sheriff and our Citizens most basic rights. I think the Citizens of Carroll County should be concerned too!

Here is the Issue! For the past 170 years, the Citizens of Carroll County have HAD THE RIGHT TO ELECT our chief law enforcement officer – the Sheriff. Currently, the Sheriff’s Office is providing full law enforcement services to the Citizens of Carroll County and is the only nationally accredited law enforcement agency in the County.

Today, the Carroll County Commissioners are trying to take this precious right to vote away from us. The Commissioners are in the process of setting up a police department with a chief they appoint (not one we choose) to do law enforcement and leave the Sheriff with civil process service and court security.

From actual cases in Maryland and other states, here is what will happen. Our opinion (voice) will no longer count, because we will loose our right to vote (choose) our top law enforcement officer, and the cost to the taxpayers will greatly increase.

If this attempt remains unchallenged, Carroll County will end up with three (3) law enforcement agencies (the Sheriff’s Office, the Maryland State Police and a County police force) thus creating triplicate capabilities. Unlike the Sheriff who is directly accountable to all the citizens, the police chief will be accountable only to the Commissioners. And with all this, there is absolutely nothing new that we will receive in services, protection or benefits.

What we will have are MUCH HIGHER TAXES.

The Sheriff’s Office has faithfully served the Citizens for almost two centuries and is now under attack. Purposely placed in the Judicial Branch of Government by the authors of our Constitution, the Sheriff is sworn to enforce all laws equally, fairly and without regard to political affiliation or differences and has allegiance only to the Citizens.

Please preserve your individual right to self determination and write, e-mail, call or meet with the Carroll County Board of Commissioners and insist that the choices on this very important issue be examined in public. Let the public have a say in this vitally important decision either through public hearings or referendum.

This decision will affect our taxes and our public safety for years to come. We deserve to have our voices heard now!

Bob Keefer

Mt. Airy

Colonel Bob Keefer is the Chief Deputy in the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office

Editor’s note: for more information, click on: 20071108 Carroll County Connection Newsletter: Carroll County Board of Commissioners voted Oct. 4, 2007 to form a county police department…

Or:

20071108 Carroll County Connection Newsletter: Carroll County Board of Commissioners voted Oct. 4, 2007 to form a county police department…

Carroll County Connection Newsletter: Carroll County Board of Commissioners voted Oct. 4, 2007 to form a county police department…

Here’s what appeared in the Carroll County Connection Newsletter - November

County to form police force

Posted: November 8, 2007

Carroll County will form a countywide police force in the coming years, unifying law enforcement efforts outside of the county’s eight towns.

The Board of County Commissioners voted Oct. 4 to move away from the Maryland State Police Resident Trooper program and replace it with a county police force, headed by an appointed chief of police.

The Carroll County Sheriff’s Office eventually would revert to serving summons, transporting prisoners and providing courthouse security, which are constitutionally required duties of an elected sheriff.

A transition team will look at how to shift the 67 certified officers from the Sheriff’s Office to a new police force. Chief of Staff Steven Powell will lead the team.

Through the Resident Trooper Program, Carroll County pays for troopers to be assigned local patrols throughout the county. In the most recent budget year, the County paid $4.9 million for 36 troopers and nine investigators. The cost includes a non-negotiable 22 percent administrative fee.

The Westminster Barrack of the Maryland State Police would remain staffed with general troopers, as all 23 barracks across the state are staffed.

While professionalism is high among both the troopers and deputies, a single police agency would be more efficient than the current system.

The cost to operate a county police force is expected to be comparable to current costs after startup expenses.

####

For this and other news on current happening in Carroll County government please click here or here: Carroll County Connection Newsletter - November

My Thoughts on the Five-Commissioner form of government by Westminster Mayor Kevin Dayhoff

My Thoughts on the Five-Commissioner form of government by Westminster Mayor Kevin Dayhoff

Proposed Five Commissioner Form of Government

September 4th, 2004 / October 31st, 2004

Kevin Dayhoff, Westminster mayor

Five regionally elected Commissioners makes government closer to the people.  Increased representation increases the collective experience and intellectual abilities of the Board working for us. 

The services and additional representation required of well managed growth and progressive government will cost more money.  Additional representation will give us valuable return for our money that will justify the expense. 

Ultimately, I will respect the judgment and wishes of Carroll Countians on November 2nd, 2004. 

_________________________________________

I see no substantive downside to Five Commissioners, only benefits.  A regionally elected Five Member Board of Commissioners makes government closer to the people. 

It is a reality that the county has grown, and recognizing that reality there is an appropriate need for additional representation.  Increased representation increases the collective experience and intellectual abilities of the Board working for us. 

The services and additional representation required of well managed growth and progressive government will cost more money.  Hopefully, it is not the additional money we spend, it is the additional return for our money that will justify the expense. 

No one wants to see government cost more but everyone wants the additional services and there has been a consistent clamor for additional representation for many years. 

Our current form of government of three commissioners was essentially formulated in 1851.  In 1851, the population of Carroll County was less than 16,000 (and less than 1,400 in Westminster. 

Westminster also had a Commissioner and Burgess form of government until 1856.)  Today, it is more than ten times that number.  There were no public schools in Carroll County in 1851.  There were only 9 election districts in Carroll County.  The County budget was less than $20,000.  (As a point of comparison to today’s budget: The 1853 budget for Carroll County was $19,019.57.  That figure included: $3,062 for supervisors of roads; $1,052.07 for county commissioners; $254 election expenses; $166.86 for sheriff; $56 for wood; $343.78 for jail expenses and $1,530.30 for roads and bridges among numerous other miscellaneous items.)

Ultimately, I will respect the vote of Carroll Countians on November 2nd, 2004.  I trust and respect the voters judgment and wishes.

20040904 My thoughts re Proposed Five Commissioners

http://kevindayhoff.blogspot.com/search/label/Carroll%20Co%205%20Commissioner%20Dist%20plan

Labels: Carroll Co 5 Commissioner Dist plan, Carroll Co Delegation to Annapolis, MD Gen Assembly 2008 425, Police Carroll Co Police Dept

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