“I have goosebumps,” Clark County Sheriff Deb Burchett said. “This is a historic event for us today.”
In 2019, the sheriff’s office began hiring corrections officers to work in the Clark County Jail instead of deputies as a cost-saving effort, Burchett said.
Corrections officers’ wages range from $20.88 to $25.35 an hour while deputies’ wages range from $27.51 to 34.52, according to the sheriff’s office.
When new deputies were hired, their first job was always in the jail. They could only move from the jail when a spot on road patrol opened up, Burchett said.
Deputies often had to work in the jail for years waiting their turn, before they ever received a road patrol assignment. This was a barrier to hiring and retaining qualified applicants. Burchett said this was a barrier to hiring and retaining qualified applicants.
Credit: Bill Lackey
Credit: Bill Lackey
The office’s ability to offer road patrol assignments to deputies as they’re beginning their jobs make Clark County’s sheriff’s office more appealing to recruits, Burchett said.
Three years ago, 50 deputies were working in Clark County Jail. This year, only eight work in the jail, with roughly 45 correction officers also working in the jail, Burchett said.
Less than 100 deputies are working for the sheriff’s office in total. Law enforcement agencies nationally are reporting issues with recruiting and retaining employees, and Burchett said the sheriff’s office is also experiencing a staffing shortage.
Employees locally are leaving the force to accept higher-paying jobs elsewhere, Burchett said.
Others left the force after the death of Deputy Matthew Yates, who died on duty in July in a shooting in Harmony Twp.
“Losing Matthew was probably one of the hardest things that most of us at the sheriff’s office went through,” Burchett said. “And we still go through it every day. It lies in our hearts.”
Credit: Bill Lackey
Credit: Bill Lackey
Recruiting people to law enforcement careers has its challenges. Burchett said many people don’t pursue deputy work because of the atmosphere surrounding policing. The nature of crime has also changed in Clark County over the last several years, with more violent crime reported.
“It’s much different than it was years ago,” she said. “But this is a wonderful community.”
More correction officers are also expected to be hired in December, Burchett said.
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