Harrell takes over as new Whitley Sheriff; says he has inherited a mess

The general public won’t see much visible difference when the Whitley County Sheriff’s Department is patrolling the roads over the coming days and weeks, but sheriff Colan Harrell says there is plenty going on behind the scenes as he strives to bring the department up to standards.

"We will do this without interrupting police services," Harrell said. "It’s not like in some sheriff’s departments and the administration changes and all you do is say, ‘Here is the key that fits this car.’ It is somewhat different."

Harrell defeated former Sheriff Lawrence Hodge in the May Primary by an overwhelming margin. In November, Hodge was indicted on 21 felony counts on charges ranging from abuse of the public trust to tampering with physical evidence.

Harrell said that he and his Chief Deputy K.Y. Fuson are still trying to put together basic things like an inventory of equipment so they can figure out things like how many working vehicles the department has, and the number of firearms available for deputies.

"This is a mystery right now. We are trying to solve these things," Harrell said.

Harrell said he feels like that the prior administration had an obligation to provide him with an inventory of equipment, but that he will deal with it.

Harrell said that he and Fuson held a meeting Sunday evening with all personnel to conduct drug screens and go over policies and procedures in place for the new department.

Harrell said that many of the policies and procedures will be in line with Kentucky State Police policy and procedures since this is something he and Fuson are both readily familiar with.

"This is how we know to do it until something else comes down the road," Harrell said. "The thing about adapting state police policies and procedures, and using their forms and regulations is that they are tried and proven."

Harrell said there is a monumental amount of things his staff is working on to get the office organized.

Harrell said that he has been surprised by the overall lack of "accountability, supervision and organization" of the prior administration.

Officials spent much of their first full day on the job Monday organizing and cleaning the office.

"We will be scrubbing the floors, painting the walls, and making the sheriff’s department look better while writing polices and procedures as we go along," Harrell said. "I feel like we have done as much as can be done without authority to do anything else along those lines until now."

Harrell said that he knew things were a mess and there were complications, which he and Fuson tried to address as much as possible before the change in administration Sunday.

Harrell credited Fuson with doing a great deal of work over the last six months without pay to prepare for the transition.

"I’m not knocking the previous administration, I’m just saying here is the way it is right now," Harrell said.

During a special called fiscal court meeting Monday morning, which was the first working day of the year, the fiscal court approved several items related to the sheriff’s department, including the 2011 budget and an application for a $140,000 state advancement.

The sheriff’s department will be operating with a $1,123,441 budget, which is about $30,000 higher than last year, at least on paper, Harrell noted.

He said the additional money is funding from the Whitley County Board of Education to pay salaries for school resource officers that wasn’t reflected in the prior budget. Fuson said the total amount the department receives from the school system for school resource officer pay is about $62,000.

Harrell said that the department received the funding last year, but that it wasn’t reflected in the department’s budget.
$881,000 of the sheriff’s budget is set aside for salary and benefits. This is nearly $5,000 more than last year’s budget.

Fuson said only about $1,000 of that increase goes to salaries, and that the other increases are due to higher insurance and retirement costs.

"I’d like to commend the sheriff having this budget ready on day one," noted Magistrate David Myers. "It has been an issue with me since I have been here. I’m really proud to see that you have this for us."

Harrell noted that he and Fuson have been working on the budget since September.

"I didn’t know and a lot of people in the general public don’t know what goes in the background to get rubber to asphalt. It has been a challenge," Harrell said.

Magistrate Jamie Fuson said that he is concerned that the department may not have enough funds to operate properly.

"From where I’m from, the sheriff’s department is very important. We really need this change," Fuson said.

Harrell said there are several issues that will ultimately have to be addressed in terms of the department’s equipment, and that several vehicles are surplus vehicle, which operate but aren’t necessarily dependable. The department currently has about seven working vehicles.

"We’re trying to find some kind of angle to rectify this, but it all comes down to money," he said.

K.Y. Fuson thanked Magistrate Robbie Brown for stopping Sunday night to assist a deputy, who had broken down along the side of the road.

Whitley County Judge-Executive Pat White Jr. said that it’s difficult for the county to try and budget for the department’s needs, if it can’t get a list of what those needs are.

In response to an inquiry from Brown, White noted that some of the sheriff’s budget comes from the fiscal court, but that much of it comes from tax collection.

The sheriff’s department receives about a 4.4 percent commission on taxes that the department collects.

This is the primary funding mechanism for most sheriff’s departments across the state.

Currently, the sheriff has no money in his budget.

"There is zero money in the till. We are in need of funds right now, but we are just going to have to wait. We can’t even afford a receipt book right now," Harrell said Monday morning.

Once the new judicial center opens sometime around September, the sheriff’s department will have to seek an amended budget, officials said.

Harrell said that the new judicial center would require additional court bailiffs.

While the Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) provides funding for the bailiff’s salaries, which will be $8 per hour, the sheriff’s department will have to pay social security and other benefits, K.Y. Fuson said.

Harrell said that his department will also have to equip the bailiffs with weapons, uniforms and other equipment.