ALLEGAN COUNTY SHERIFF S OFFICE

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3 ALLEGAN COUNTY SHERIFF S OFFICE Annual Report for 212

4 ALLEGAN COUNTY SHERIFF S OFFICE Serving with HONOR and INTEGRITY Honor Hon٠or (noun) PERSONAL INTEGRITY strong moral character or strength, and adherence to ethical principles RESPECT great respect and admiration DIGNITY personal dignity that sometimes leads to recognition and glory REPUTATION somebody's good name or good reputation SOURCE OF PRIDE somebody or something that brings respect or glory and is a source of pride to somebody or something else Integrity In٠teg٠ri٠ty (noun) POSSESSION OF FIRM PRINCIPLES the quality of possessing and steadfastly adhering to high moral principles or professional standards COMPLETENESS the state of being complete or undivided WHOLENESS the state of being sound or undamaged

5 ANNUAL REPORT FOR 212 ALLEGAN COUNTY SHERIFF S OFFICE 112 WALNUT ST., ALLEGAN, MI 491 B L A I N E A. K O O P S, S H E R I F F

6 THE FUT URE HOME OF THE ALLEG AN COUNTY SHERIFF S OFFICE AND CORRECTIONAL FACIL ITY The excitement at the official groundbreaking ceremony for the future Sheriff s Office and Correctional Facility was palpable. The long-awaited new home will provide the solution to many problems occurring with the current facility, not the least of which is jail overcrowding. The facility will also provide enough space to house inmates separately according to their classification and include space for programs that help to rehabilitate inmates before their return to society. Finally, the facility will provide much needed space for the Sheriff s Office staff and will be much safer overall for both inmates and staff. 2

7 SGT. SCOTT TAT ROW L AID TO REST On April 14, 212 Sergeant Scott Tatrow, a valuable member of our law enforcement team, a valued co-worker and trusted friend passed away unexpectedly due to complications resulting from a sudden illness. Sgt. Tatrow's dedication to law enforcement and community safety is sorely missed but remembered by us all. Sgt. Tatrow was a 19 year veteran of the Allegan County Sheriff's Office, and had been the Sergeant of the Traffic Unit for several years after spending much of his career as a K9 Deputy assigned to the Traffic Unit. Sgt. Tatrow was also a graduate of the Northwestern University School of Police Staff and Command. Sgt. Tatrow was recognized amongst Law Enforcement Professionals and several Traffic Safety Organizations such as MADD, the Office of Highway Safety and Planning, and SADD as a leader in Traffic Safety. Sgt. Tatrow was responsible for initiating safety programs at numerous high schools in Allegan County for the purpose of promoting teen safe driving practices. One of the programs consisted of setting up a mock traffic crash scene in the parking lot of high schools for the purpose of demonstrating the tragic results of drinking and driving by teens. These programs included participation from the Sheriff's Office, the State Police, local Police Departments, the Fire Service, and EMS. 3

8 COMMUNITY SUPPORT The Sheriff s Office was fortunate enough, once again, to receive a generous donation from the Holland Kennel Club to assist in funding our K-9 program. The generosity of our community has allowed this important facet of our service to continue. This is just one example of many where the community has stepped up to help meet public safety needs. VOLUNTEERS Volunteers are an important part of the services we are able to provide to citizens. The Sheriff- Community Relations Advisory Board (SCRAB), the Victim Services Unit (VSU), the Mounted Division, the Senior Citizen TRIAD and the jail chaplains are just a few of the many ways volunteers are making a difference in our community, and enhancing the resources available that benefit all of us. SUPPORTING OUR COMMUNIT Y LAW ENFORCEMENT TORCH RUN A cold, rainy September day was the setting for the 212 Allegan County Torch Run for Special Olympics. The dreary weather didn t dampen the spirits of the approximately 1 runners participating in this annual tradition, though. Deputy Kim Thorington, organizer of the Allegan County event, was pleased with the turnout from law enforcement and members of the community. Funds raised through the run go towards the cost of uniforms and sports equipment for the Special Olympics athletes who participate in the year-round program. Allegan County s run raised over $4,, the highest total for a community run in Michigan. 4

9 COMMUNITY PROGRAMS AND PRESENTATIONS Members of the Sheriff s Office frequently present programs in our community. Here, Corrections Officer and Dive Team member Deputy Jim Kimber gives children an up close view of the ice rescue vessel. Some of the many other programs presented include; bicycle safety, stranger safety, safety for senior citizens, and K-9 visits to elementary schools. CHILD SAFETY SEAT INSPECTIONS Motor vehicle crashes remain a leading cause of death for young children. While 96% of parents and caregivers believe their child safety seats are installed correctly, research shows that 7 out of 1 children are improperly restrained, and nearly 3 out of 4 parents do not properly use child restraints. In an attempt to safeguard children, Allegan County Sheriff s Deputies hold free child safety seat inspections whenever possible. When available, free child safety seats are distributed to those who need them. For more information on child passenger safety and the lifesaving child booster seat law, go to: Every September, the Sheriff and Command Staff host an annual End of Summer picnic to thank staff, volunteers, and community members for their hard work and support of the Sheriff s Office and the citizens of Allegan County. 5

10 AWARDS Members of the Sheriff s Office were honored with many awards during 212, both from within the agency itself, as well as many others received from throughout the community and the State of Michigan. The Allegan Area Chamber of Commerce recognized Detective Martin Mendell with the Public Safety Professional of the Year Award. The Chamber also recognized Detective Chris Haverdink and the volunteer Allegan County Victim Services Unit (VSU )as the Community Service Organization of the Year Award. The VSU was also awarded WOOD-TV 8 s Connecting with Community Award. D Deputy Christine VanDam was honored with the Mothers Against Drunk Driving MADD Lifesaver Award. During the awards ceremony hosted by the Sheriff s Office, honoring our own personnel, Deputy Scott Johanson was awarded a Certificate of Excellence. Detective Martin Mendell, Reserve Deputy Alan Jeffries, and Deputy Mark Lytle were each awarded Letters of Commendation. 6

11 Mounted Division Deputy Tom Miller was awarded Mounted Division Deputy of the Year Award in December 212. Deputy Brian Augustine was presented with the Lifesaving Award. The Dive/Rescue & Recovery Team was awarded a Unit Commendation for their work under extreme weather conditions in an attempt to recover a drowning victim. Team members include Deputies Scott Johanson, Bill Greene, Rob Flokstra, Josh Cole and Herb Seyl, Detective Martin Mendell, Sgts. Burt DeBoer, Eric Speese, Todd Wagner and Cory Hunt, Lt. Mike Larsen, and Reserve Deputies Tom Achterhof, Chad Weemhoff, and retired Sgt. Ken Giles. The 212 Law Enforcement Deputy of the Year Award was presented to Deputy Kim Thorington. The 212 Corrections Deputy of the Year Award was presented to Deputy Randy Schafer. 7

12 LOCAL SCHOL AR WI NS THE MICHIG AN ASSOCIATION OF CHIEFS OF POLICE STAT EWID E SCHOLARSHIP Elizabeth Vandenbil, 18, of Laketown Township was awarded the MACP statewide scholarship after being nominated by Sheriff Koops for the award. Elizabeth plans to attend Michigan State University to major in Forensic Science or Psychology. ANNUAL ALLCOPS SCHOLARSHIP PRESENTAT ION Each year, the Sheriff-Community Relations Advisory Board SCRAB presents one or more scholarships to students planning a future in criminal justice. These awards, administered through the Allegan County Community Foundation, are funded through donations and fund-raising events. SCRAB President Bart Shaw and Sheriff Koops are shown here with scholarship winners Sarah Schudel from Plainwell High School, who plans to attend Michigan State University, majoring in Criminal Justice and Nicole Loesch from Wayland High School, who plans to attend Ferris State University, also majoring in Criminal Justice. RETI REM ENT S Detective Leonard Mathis, Deputy Dan Hoffman, Pete Hetzel and Sandra Bender all retired from the Sheriff s Office during 212. Detective Leonard Mathis, shown here being congratulated by County Board Chair Mark DeYoung and Sheriff Koops. Len started his career with the Allegan County Sheriff s Office on January 19, 1987 in the Secondary Road Patrol Unit and remained in road patrol until September 1995 when he was promoted to the Detective Bureau. Due to personnel shortages, he returned to road patrol two times until finally returning full-time to the Detective Bureau in February 1997, where he has served faithfully until his retirement on June 22, 212 after 25 years of serving the people of Allegan County with Honor and Integrity. 8

13 Sandra Bender, shown here with County Board Chair Mark DeYoung and Sheriff Koops, also retired in 212. Sandy began her career August 15, 21 when she was hired to fill the vacant position of Inmate Billing Clerk, and began to develop methods for billing procedures for the Allegan County Jail. Sandy billed for medical charges incurred by inmates, coordinating with and reporting to hospitals and insurance companies. Sandy also billed the Department of Corrections for state inmates housed at the Jail, and was instrumental in developing the Inmate Room and Board Policy, which charges inmates for their room and board while they are incarcerated in the Jail, and setting up a system to collect those charges. Additionally, Sandy was responsible for billing the work release participants, weekend inmates, and Community Service participants, in order to help pay for those programs. Pete Hetzel, a Vietnam veteran and Ohio State University grad, retired in November 212 after nine years as the Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC) Coordinator. Pete wrote emergency response plans for facilities which commercially produced, stored or used chemicals. These plans were then used to educate local first responders and the public on measures to protect themselves and their communities. Pete is involved in many charitable organizations, and in his retirement, he now serves as the Cheshire Township Clerk. Deputy Dan Hoffman was a familiar face to many in Allegan County, especially on the west side of the County. Dan was well known for his community policing skills. After 25 years of service with the Sheriff s Office, Dan has accepted the position of Police Chief of the Fennville Police Department. Dan is shown here being congratulated by Board Chair Mark DeYoung and Undersheriff Jim Hull. We offer our congratulations and sincere thanks to these dedicated staff members. They will be missed! 9

14 TRAI NING AND CERTI FICATI ON Continuing education is strongly encouraged at the Sheriff s Office. Both mandatory and elective training are important in maintaining a professional criminal justice agency. Most of our Corrections Officers have achieved national certification, and all supervisors in both law enforcement and corrections attend Northwestern University s School of Police Staff and Command. Twice yearly range training and qualification help keep officers skills sharp and reduce liability for the County. Specialized units, such as the Tactical Response Unit (or SWAT), the Dive/Rescue Unit, the K-9 Teams, etc. have a rigorous training schedule in addition to the training all deputies participate in. Here Sheriff Koops and Captain Marculis present the corrections officers who achieved certification during 212: (L-R) Dep. Brendon Bayley, (Sheriff Koops), Dep. Scott Timmer, Dep. Rachel Morrissett, Dep. Sam Squire, Dep. Beth Dubbink, Dep. Dustin McCartney, Dep. Karen Larson, Dep. Jim Kimber, and (Captain Marculis) At left are the 212 graduates of the Northwestern University School of Police Staff and Command, flanked by Capt. Marculis and Sheriff Koops. (L-R) (Captain Marculis), Sgt. Jeremy VerSluys, Sgt. Eric Speese, Sgt. Burt DeBoer, Sgt. Brett Ensfield, Sgt. John Sexton, and (Sheriff Koops) 1

15 COMMUNITY COORDINATED OPERATI ONAL PRECINCTS PLAN During budget discussions in August of 28, the Allegan County Board of Commissioners suspended administrative fees to townships with law enforcement contracts for 29, while also adopting a County-Provided Law Enforcement Project Plan. The Plan outlined various phases to be completed where the Administrative and Sheriff s Offices would work in conjunction to evaluate the current and future criminal justice service levels. Further, the team was charged with educating stakeholders on Sheriff Department services, collecting feedback, and encouraging open dialogue based on each agency s needs. The results expected were to establish a defined level of base Countyprovided law enforcement services as well as a defined funding model for partnering to meet local community needs. Since the project s inception, with the input of stakeholders from throughout Allegan County, the plan has developed into a precinct plan, which is outlined below: The precinct model proposed utilizes a local centralization of operational resources. The County would have 5 precincts (patrol sections). This model deploys the Sheriff s Office road patrol staff equitably for all 24 Townships, as well as the Cities and Villages. Each precinct would have a CCOP Cops Committee comprised of local representatives: 1 representative for each Township 1 representative for each City (if applicable) 1 representative for each Village (if applicable) 1 representative for Tribes (if applicable) Resource representatives: County Commissioner for the area County Administration and Finance Prosecutor s Office Sheriff s Office administration representative Sheriff s Office Detective for the area Michigan State Police Each Cops Committee would meet quarterly (or as needed) to review police activities in their Precinct. The Sheriff s Office representatives, City Police and Michigan State Police would review their activity, and discuss public safety issues and concerns. Each Precinct would have general-funded deputies assigned to it. The Cops Committee could influence the scheduling, directed patrols and deployment of the deputies assigned to their precinct. As this plan is still relatively new, it will continue to change and improve to make a better, safer community in which to live, work, and do business for everyone. 11

16 FA C I L I T Y P R O G R E S S As of this writing, (May 213) the progress towards completion of the new Allegan County Sheriff s Office and Correctional Facility has been remarkable. Expected move-in date is late 213 or early 214. The transition planning has been underway for months, and is quite involved. The facility looks quite a bit different from the groundbreaking photo shown earlier in this report. The photo at right shows a portion of a dormitory designed for inmate workers. This photo depicts a two-story housing pod under construction. 12

17 DIVISION SUMMARIES ADMINI STRATI ON One of the many duties of the Sheriff s administration is to provide an annual Citizen s Police Academy. This inside view of the criminal justice system involves instruction from Sheriff s Command Staff, Judges, staff, Prosecutors, and many others in the criminal justice community ,964 13,75 12,255 9,475 12,347 Reports 1,678 5,26 4,835 5,24 4,522 5,61 6, Case Reports Transcribed Number of those that were reported to be Criminal While the total number of case reports transcribed decreased significantly for 212, the number of those reports which were criminal complaints increased dramatically. A compact disc is included with this report for a more in-depth look at the types of crimes reported. 13

18 Pistol Purchase Permits Issued ,28 1,639 2,296 2,36 2,437 2,97 The huge increase in the number of handgun purchase permits and concealed pistol license applications consumed a great deal of staff resources, increasingly over the past six years. Changes in the firearms laws that took place recently will decrease the need for many of the handgun purchase permits in the future, even though we will still be registering the handguns Concealed Pistol Licenses Issued The number of concealed pistol license applications remains very high. Fingerprints are required to be submitted with these applications, before they can be processed by the Gun Board. There is one statistic that we are very happy to report, a decrease---in the number of mortgage foreclosure sales. From a high of 63 sales during 21, the number decreased to 437 during 212. Changes in the laws regarding registration for sex offenders allowed a decrease in the number of registrations processed during 212 from a high of 993 during 21, to 827 during

19 CORRECTIONS Daily Average Inmate Population Corrections officers have continued efforts to keep the inmate population below the overcrowding point Percent of Days over Capacity 7.% 6.% 6.8% 5.% 4.% 3.% 2.% 1.% 8.2% 28.5% 7.9% 13.4% 18.9% 22.2% 11.5% 5.5% 39% 7.6% 4.9% 15.6% This graph shows the overcrowding trend beginning to inch upward again. The additional beds available in the new facility will remedy this situation in the future..%

20 Total Bed Days Saved-All Inmates/Programs* There are many different programs taking place in the jail. These programs allow inmates to earn time off their sentence, and give them life skills to increase their possibilities for success once they are returned to the community. 534 inmates participated in at least one program during 212. Below Sgt. John Sexton speaks to a Life Skills class * Does not include the number of bed days saved through residential probation services. Five persons graduated from the Methamphetamine Diversion program during 212, making a total of 35 graduates since the program s inception. We are fortunate to have a group of very skilled, dedicated instructors working with inmates to obtain their GEDs. This achievement is celebrated with a graduation cake and photos of the grads holding their GED certificates. Corrections Officers present many programs throughout the year to school and community groups. Frequently, inmates will speak to the 16

21 groups about their experiences with the criminal justice system. PATROL 25 Calls for Service by Source ,456 2,45 18,758 17,893 17,955 18,349 14,736 16,715 16,27 15,125 15,15 14,824 5,699 3,33 2,551 2,768 2,85 3,525 Calls for service began to trend upward during 212. This increase can be attributed to calls that Deputies found while on patrol, which would include drunk drivers, suspended drivers, suspicious situations investigated, etc. CALLS FOR SERVICE: CITIZEN CALLS FOUND ON PATROL UCR Part I Crimes 1, , Crimes specifically tracked by the F.B.I. through the Uniform Crime Reporting Program are called Part I crimes, and include homicide, murder and non-negligent manslaughter, forcible rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny, motor vehicle theft and arson. The 16% increase, shown here, from 211 to 212 can be attributed to property crimes, most notably larceny. 17

22 Traffic Crashes ,125 1,992 1,861 1,677 1,849 1, Crashes Involving an Injury The Sheriff s Office handled 1,739 traffic crashes during 212, with 1 of those involving a fatal injury. County-wide, MSP s Criminal Justice Information Center data shows 15 fatalities in all of Allegan County, 9 of which involved either alcohol or drugs, or both. Accidents are just that, but realizing that 9 of these deaths could easily have been prevented is a stark fact. Crashes Involving a Fatality

23 Allegan County Deputies were able to participate in several grant-funded campaigns, including a seat belt grant, which allows deputies to focus solely on enforcement, rather than responding to calls. The number of citations issued continued to decline in 212. Several factors are believed to contribute to that statistic, including decreased miles travelled by the public due to high fuel costs, and lower employment figures. Deputies first responsibility is typically to respond to calls for service, so if there are less deputies on the road, there is less available unobligated time to perform traffic stops ,948 13,343 11,671 1,19 8,142 7,292 Citations Issued 7,34 7,315 6,93 5, Large community events, like B-93 s Birthday Bash, pictured at left, require all hands on deck. This year s Bash experienced record crowds, and provided funding for additional law enforcement presence. Pre-planning assured that resources were in place to deal with the call volume. 19

24 INVESTIG ATIONS Breaking & Entering Complaints An increase in the number of breaking and entering crimes disrupted the safety and security of a number of residents of Allegan County. 1 5 Sixty-two arrests were logged by the Sheriff s Office for burglary and related crimes Meth-Related Activity TOTAL Meth Incidents/Activities Meth-related Percentage of total WEMET cases Even with the success of the Methamphetamine Diversion Program, meth use continues to plaque Allegan County, and is likely related to many other crimes as well. Analysis by the Corrections Staff reveals that 4% of inmates are incarcerated for meth-related crimes. 2

25 SERVICES Courthouse Security is managed through the Services Division. This busy unit showed a marked increase in the average number of people entering the Courthouse, with 212 monthly count averaging 1,468. The average number of potential weapons turned away at the Courthouse entry was 171, with most of those being knives. Courthouse Deputies assisted with probation/parole arrests on an average of 18 times per month. The Services Division is also charged with recruiting, testing, and hiring of new employees. The many retirements that have occurred in recent years have left a backlog of positions to be filled. The Sheriff s Office was happy to welcome Deputies Michael Martin, Brandon Berens, Joshua Wiersma, Jeff Saylor, Dave Rich, Aaron Hobbs and Cory Harris to the agency. SUMM ARY A data CD is included with this report which contains a detailed breakdown of incidents handled over the past seven years. Most notable were: Thefts from Motor Vehicles-doubled during the period between 26 and 212 Obstructing Police-shows a 7% increase during that same period Total Sex Crimes Combined-shows a 44% increase during that same period ` 21