With 2020 in the books, Logan County Sheriff Randy Dodds said while it’s a year he’d never like to repeat, he also witnessed the tremendous grace and diligence of his staff at a crucial time, including during a temporary furlough mid-year for some personnel because of budgetary restrictions.
“Last year was a year like none other. With a number of my staff making personal sacrifices and their families making sacrifices as well, I will never forget that,” he said Tuesday.
“We had some staff members volunteer for the furlough, and when we went to 12-hour shifts for much of the year, every single one of our staff stepped up to the plate, despite all of the difficult changes. I can’t thank them enough for all they did to keep our office running.”
Announced in late April last year, the temporary furlough took place for 12 weeks from May through July and involved 23 employees, including patrol deputies and nine employees from the corrections division, in anticipation of decreased tax revenue during the pandemic, LCSO officials said. Those employees were able to return to full service at the end of the furlough period.
The sheriff expressed appreciation to individuals who volunteered for the furlough, noting that employees were able to obtain unemployment payments through federal CARES Act dollars.
At that time, Sheriff Dodds also emphasized that the temporary reduction was far less than the 46 staff members who were laid off during the recession in 2008.
He said the agency remains on a hiring freeze as a result of the county’s budgetary precautions, but remains optimistic for the upcoming year.
Despite the restrictions of the past year, the LCSO also gained a new member in 2020, K9 Thor, and after finishing his state certification with his handler Deputy Cole Piatt, he began his service at the end of February.
Thor was hand-selected by sheriff’s office staff and arrived at the agency Jan. 14, two months following the unexpected passing of the department’s previous K9 Cane in November 2019 to a work-related training accident, as previously detailed in the Examiner. Cane had just started his career with the LCSO in August.
Sheriff Dodds and Deputy Piatt related that it was through generous support from the community and local donations totaling approximately $10,000 to the LCSO canine fund that the agency was able to put a canine back on the road so quickly. The department also received insurance funds related to Cane’s death.
While a number of outreach-related events were curtailed in 2020, Sheriff Dodds said his department is looking to host more events this year, especially outdoor activities, including the potential to offer an outdoor Easter egg hunt this spring.
The annual golf outing also has been planned for June, after being postponed last year.
Last fall, the LCSO was able to host its third class for the Citizens Sheriff Academy, and plans to host the fourth class this fall in 2021.
“The academy is a great educational tool for the community, and offers the participants with a behind-the-scenes look at what we do in each of our departments,” he said.