Sheriff requests 3 more deputies

CELINA - Mercer County Sheriff Jeff Grey is looking to return the number of patrolling deputies to 2008 levels.

"You guys owe me three (deputies) from 2008," Grey told county commissioners Jerry Laffin, Greg Homan and Rick Muhlenkamp this week while discussing his 2017 budget.

The number of deputies has declined from 15 to 12 since 2008, when economic turbulence hit the area. Retiring deputies have not been replaced, Grey said.

He also noted his office's call load is up, response time is down and the area has a drug problem.

"We don't do much patrolling. It's pretty much call to call to call anymore," he said.

He did not provide a cost estimate for hiring three new deputies, but according to his 2016 budget, deputies earned annual base wages ranging between $37,044 and $42,640. That doesn't include holiday or overtime pay.

Grey said at least three deputies patrol the county on Fridays and Saturdays.

"We like to have four. We don't very often hit four unless we have a (traffic enforcement) grant for overtime," he told commissioners.

Grey presented a dire scenario in which just two deputies are patrolling at a time, one in an area north of Mendon and another near Fort Recovery. If either deputy needed backup, it would take the other 59 minutes "running hot" - with lights and sirens on - to respond.

"That's a long time if a deputy's in trouble. And right now with all the cops getting shot just because they're there," Grey said.

"Five cops lost their life in Dallas because of one crazy person," Grey continued. "And if you don't think we got crazy people in Mercer County, just come on up and I'll take you in there, introduce you to them - and I'll give you a bulletproof vest to go with us."

Additional state training requirements also will take deputies off the road in 2017, Grey said.

"The mandatory training used to be two hours, this year it was 11, next year it's 20 hours," Grey said. "Well, when I send deputies to that 20 hours, I've got to put deputies on the road. A lot of this stuff comes out of Columbus."

Not all three deputies would be hired immediately, Grey said.

"With all the stuff that has been going on the last couple of years, we're having a hard time hiring people," he said. "It used to be we had a line of people stacked up, and we're having a hard time finding people."
Aside from having basic academy training and the proper law enforcement licensing, applicants must undergo an extensive interview process that can take up to two months, Grey said. It involves written and oral interviews and background checks in which detectives talk with family members, neighbors, previous employers and even high school officials. It also includes physical and psychological examinations, a lie detector test and a credit check.

Some applicants are rejected because of drug issues and bad credit, Grey said, explaining if they have bad credit, they're more apt to accept bribes.

"We've got to hire the right people. If we get the wrong one, we're stuck with them for the next 25 years, and I'd rather go slow and get it right," Grey told commissioners.

Commissioners, who for the last few weeks have been meeting with county department heads to review appropriation requests, did not comment or take action on Grey's request.