SHERIFF’S OFFICE HISTORY
The Office of Sheriff is one of the oldest offices’ in the nation. Traditionally the Sheriff is responsible for preserving the peace. This task has been accomplished by preventing and suppressing all the affrays, breaches of the peace, riots, and insurrections which may come to his knowledge. Also arrest or take before the nearest magistrate for examination of all persons who attempt to commit or have committed a public offense. One of the few Offices that is operational 24 hours a day/ 7days a week/ 365 days a year. {Note: filling one position requires at least 4 hired in doing shift work.}
I started as a detention officer for Cascade County Sheriff’s Office in the late “80’s”. Back then in the old jail we had a written capacity for 60 inmates and would regularly run over 100 inmates. Some times, most of the time, with only 2 maybe 3 detention officers. We always had a sworn deputy that would man the old dispatch center, next to the door as our security. On the grander scale, now we have a facility that has 370 beds. We have gotten bigger, problems have gotten more complex and the crimes are more severe.
Historically, Federal agencies were resources for local law enforcement with investigations for fraud, securities, and terrorism. They count on us to know our neighborhoods. They know local law enforcement is in the best position to collect the information they need to connect the dots forecasting the next attack.
The Office of Sheriff has taken on more duties since the traditional office. Increase in demand for local law enforcement has grown tremendously. The mission of Sheriff Offices nationally has a much larger role in community development and government. The Office of Sheriff is often seen as the last hope in protecting the absolute and most vital of all assets – “liberty”, guarenteeing individual rights.
I was appointed a deputy in 1987, making up a team of 36 sworn, of which 24 were assigned patrol. A typical year for patrol back then was approximately 4,000 calls of service or complaints from citizens. Compared to today we have 32 sworn deputies of which 19 are assigned to patrol. I project they will be handling well over 15,000 calls for service this year. Back then I would handle approximately 160 cases per year. A deputy now on patrol will average over 400 calls per year.
Back then, both detention and deputies worked a lot of quality, but not much quantity. Life was good, but of course I was a lot younger.
These jobs were my first experience of working different shifts. The American Medical Association has conducted studies of the effect that shift work plays on employees. It is mentioned that if a person is capable of putting forth 100% of effort into a job… the same person moved to working a shift, will lose and only be capable of 85-90% of that same effort. Shift work, no matter what type, is stressful taking a toll physically and having a huge impact on family life. Not only the person working it, but also the people around them.
Now I realize that in law enforcement this is a necessity, however, as supervisors or administrators we need to be aware of it and compensate for it! We also have to take into consideration the specific dangers in the job they do!
Now in 1987 I never calculated a lack of efficiency due to working shift. Time then was available to complete tasks, or follow up on cases, whether in detention or as a deputy, thus proving to be a rewarding career. Though let us not forget!!!!!! And this is the message that needs to be delivered to the public… “While most citizens are at home with their families on weekends, holidays, there will be one of us spending our time with an unknown family”. “One of us will be putting ourselves in harms way, dealing with violence and abuses. We swear to an oath realizing that we will be putting our life on the line so that others can live, “working with only a memory of our spouse or children waking up and starting the day without us”. “Sometimes missing our children’s games with baseball, basketball, soccer, volleyball, or recitals, plays. All the joys of a Christmas and Easter holiday with our family.” No amount of money or praise can compensate that detention or deputy at times like those… On top of this, many times, our precious days off will be spent on court, [mandatory training, and meetings] or dedicated to various community activities related to law enforcement. We must support and provide them with the appropriate training, supervision, equipment and back up to handle the critically increased demands of our community.
Now more than ever, we need to be proactive! It is time to start taking care of problems before they are a problem. Traditional law enforcement has proven not to work as effective and efficiently as needed, because it became reactive.
It has always been my philosophy to take a hard nosed look at what works and what doesn’t work to prevent people or our children from becoming criminal. A dollar spent on prevention goes a lot farther than a dollar on incarceration.
Sheriff David Castle
CASCADE COUNTY SHERIFF/CORONER’S OFFICE
MISSION STATEMENT
The mission of the Cascade County Sheriff/Coroner’s office is to preserve the peace, provide public order and security, and other duties prescribed to the Sheriff, through proactive, progressive, and professional law enforcement and detention/correctional services. This mission can be best accomplished through active public involvement, support, and dedication towards the prevention of crime and lawlessness.
DUTIES OF THE CASCADE COUNTY SHERIFF/CORONERS OFFICE
Cascade County Sheriff/Coroner Office is a multi-faceted office, responsible for public safety within the 2600 square miles of the county, including all cities and towns in the county. Authority and powers of arrest are statewide. The Sheriff is the only elected law enforcement officer in the United States and has a heritage dating back to old Europe. When the United States was founded, the framers of our new government devised the constitutional Office of Sheriff to specifically limit government in order to prevent violation of citizen’s rights, particularly at the state and federal level.
The Coroners duty is to investigate all suspicious and/or unattended deaths. Mission is to determine the cause and manner of death, documenting the circumstances.
[Manners of death i.e.; Natural, Accident, Suicide, Homicide, Undetermined]
The Sheriff and his Deputies provide law enforcement duties by statute and are involved with all functions of public safety. The following are some specific duties;
Rural fire coordinator
District court officer “duty added 2005 [Treatment court]”
District court security
Extradition of persons
Operation of regional jail
Operation of regional prison
Inmate movements
Health Dept. assistance & enforcement “duty added 2007 [community decay]”
“Elected” liaison of all law enforcement within county [State, Federal, Local]
Major crimes against property investigations
Major crimes against person investigations
Keeping criminal records
Civil process and records
Warrants process and records
Issue of concealed weapon permits
Issue of burn permits
Issue of Alcohol permissive events
Search operations
Rescue operations
Special event command
Sex and Violent offender registration and checks
HIDTA [high intensity drug trafficking area] task force operation
Dignitary protection/Homeland Defense/ Terrorism / Boarder Nexus
Patrol
Tactical deployment
Sheriff sales and seizures
Humane officer “duty & position added 1992 [dog ordinance]”
Operation of Reserve Deputies
Operation of Sheriff’s Posse Auxiliary
Communications Posse
Public education & prevention
Explorer post [youth]