New Texas County Sheriff Scott Lindsey hasn’t wasted any time getting busy.
“There are a number of things I want to work on, but I want the people to know I’ve hit the ground running,” Lindsey said.
Lindsey, a Republican, defeated Democrat Doug Kyle in a Nov. 6 special election designed to fill the position held Rowdy Douglas, who was appointed as interim sheriff following the July arrest of James Sigman.
Lindsey was sworn in Nov. 16 after spending 20 years with the Licking Police Department, the last six as its chief.
“I feel good and I’m excited,” Lindsey said. “There’s a lot to be done, but a lot of it is just getting familiar with the office and how things work here.”
Douglas will help with that transition. Lindsey appointed him as his chief deputy.
“I think things are in much better shape than they were just a few months ago,” Lindsey said. “Rowdy has everything back on track where it needs to be, and I just want to continue heading in the right direction.”
Lindsey has already met with numerous staff members, both on the law enforcement side and jail side.
“That’s an ongoing process,” he said. “I’m trying to meet with everybody and let them know what my expectations are and find out what their questions are and what their expectations of me are as their supervisor.”
Many of the department’s nine road deputies (including the chief deputy) and three court deputies are officers who left the department during the tumultuous months prior to Sigman’s arrest and returned when Douglas sat in.
“We have a good group of people here who are willing to get out and work hard,” Lindsey said,” “This department is fortunate to have so many good, experienced officers.”
During his campaign, Lindsey spelled out his desire to improve the situation at the jail.
“There’s a need for better pay and better training,” he said. “Those are things that will take a little time to accomplish, but they’re certainly still a priority for me. I’ve met with the folks we have over there, and we have some who are hard workers and are trying to do the best they can with the resources they have.”
Lindsey said he’s in the process of reviewing all the department’s policies and procedures.
“That will take a little while,” he said, “but I’m sure there will be a few things I’ll want to change or update.”
Regarding the department’s fleet of patrol vehicles and other equipment and technology, Lindsey foresees changes there as well.
“It’s clear to me there are some things we need to pursue,” he said. “I’d like to secure grant funding to update our technology, like our radio equipment, and potentially add video recording devices. I’d also like to get some new graphics for the patrol vehicles; right now we have some with the stickers coming off and some that don’t have stickers.”
A plan Lindsey expects to implement soon is to decrease the number of written reports generated by deputies. Officers’ responses to all calls will still be documented, but the more trivial or frivolous calls will simply be logged and won’t require a written report.
“I want to do everything I can to help increase the efficiency of the department,” Lindsey said, “and cutting down on paperwork will simply free the deputies up to be in the field doing their jobs.”
Lindsey said he hopes the citizens of the county understand that the sheriff’s department is still in sort of a recovery mode.
“I would ask for a little bit of patience,” he said. “There are things I want to do to make improvements, and I know everybody would like to see their concerns addressed overnight, but it’s going to take some time.”
Nevertheless, Lindsey said his department is in full swing.
“There’s no lag time here, and we’re operating at full capacity,” he said. “We’re ready to answer calls and address anybody’s concerns.”
The phone number at the TCSD is 417-967-4165.
“I would ask for a little bit of patience. There are things I want to do to make improvements, and I know everybody would like to see their concerns addressed overnight, but it’s going to take some time.”