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Law enforcement contracts topic of meeting

By Sara StrongIn a special meeting Wednesday, Aug. 20, cities discussed contracts with the Rock County Sheriff’s Department, and they tentatively agreed to three-year contracts.The Rock County Board of Commissioners has indicated it will sign the contracts at its Tuesday meeting.The contracts specify that in 2004, small cities in Rock County will pay $31.66 per capita for police protection, and then will pay increased amounts for the next two years. The cost per capita in 2005 will be $33, and in 2006, $34.50.The cities of Hardwick, Hills, Magnolia, Kenneth, Beaver Creek and Steen paid $28 per person this year.The city of Luverne will pay $97.04 per resident in 2004 with continued 24-hour coverage. Luverne and Rock County are both spending $53,000 more this year than last year.The county had been postponing hiring two new deputies until the contracts were set. Now the county will continue with the hiring process.The cities total charges will end up being: Magnolia — $6,996.86 Kenneth — $1,931.26Hardwick — $7,028.52Beaver Creek — $1,583Steen — $5,762.12Hills — $17,887.90The city of Luverne is the only area of the county guaranteed 24-hour coverage by contract. In all other parts of the county, there are four hours when there isn’t scheduled patrols.Sheriff Mike Winkels said the coverage is still around the clock in some ways, because the department responds to calls at all times. He also said that he’s made efforts to go out when there isn’t a deputy scheduled for patrols, in order to provide more coverage time.Beaver Creek Mayor Al Blank said having 24-hour random patrols may not be a huge deterrent to crime, so a few hours’ absence wasn’t a problem for him.Winkels said that sometimes a deputy is working in a small city on special cases and may be in an unmarked vehicle. At those times, citizens wouldn’t notice his presence.Rock County Attorney Don Klosterbuer said Luverne’s central location makes response time quick when a deputy is called to a city or rural Rock County for an incident.As a County Commissioner, Ken Hoime said at the meeting, "Tonight, I feel it’s kind of an airing out, a place to say your opinions and feelings."No city representatives took issue with the way the Sheriff’s Department is doing business or its level of service.Hills Mayor Jim Jellema did question the cost of law enforcement in cities versus rural county areas.All of the county is taxed, he said, and part of that goes toward law enforcement, so city residents are charged twice. He wondered if the county could charge township residents a fee as well. Jellema said, "Am I completely wrong in thinking that? I mean to find a way to spread it around."The county actually can’t charge townships because they don’t have contracts for law enforcement.On the dotted lineThe contract system can be a little confusing.City residents pay for contract law enforcement on top of what they already pay for property taxes. Rural residents pay for law enforcement through their county property taxes.Commissioner Jane Wildung explained that cities pay more because they have ordinances to enforce that townships don’t. Curfews, noise complaints and animal problems wouldn’t fall within the county’s law enforcement obligations because they fall under misdemeanors. Cities without contracts couldn’t expect a sheriff to enforce those types of ordinances.County sheriffs are obligated to pursue only gross misdemeanors or felony crimes when there isn’t a contract in an incorporated city.The contract fee in Rock County is for the cost of a deputy’s salary plus labor additives — $47,522. It does not cover other county budget items, general law enforcement or dispatching costs. The deputy costs also don’t include the car, equipment or other expenses of an officer.Other news in law enforcement budgetsBesides contracts, law enforcement will change in other ways for the upcoming budget.The cost for housing prisoners and their medical costs have increased this year.Just for medical, the county budgeted $15,000 this year, and has spent $9,000 from January to June.In all of 2002, prisoner costs were $107,000, and so far this year has been $73,000.The state cut $46,000 of Criminal Justice state aid to Rock County.The county will also see more costs for housing prisoners at $55 a day in Prairie Justice Center, the Nobles County jail.The state used to provide space for prisoners sentenced to anything more than 12 months. Now, if the sentence is greater than 12 months, the final six months have to be served in the county jail.The overall law enforcement budget for 2004 is $1.35 million, including dispatching.

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