By JAN LARSON McLAUGHLIN
BG Independent News
Wood County Sheriff Mark Wasylyshyn is hoping to add an eye in the sky to help in searches in the county.
The sheriff’s budget requests for 2017, presented to the Wood County Commissioners on Tuesday, included a drone with thermo camera. Wasylyshyn said there were 10 times just this past summer when a drone would have been useful to the sheriff’s office.
The drone would be useful in helping to search for missing children, suspects hiding in cornfields, or seniors with dementia who wander off, he said. The equipment could even help when livestock escapes, he added.
The drone would cost $13,580, and a thermal nightvision monocular would cost $3,833. The infrared camera would make the drone useful in night searches. The training of staff to operate the drone is included in that amount.
Wasylyshyn said the drone would pay for itself since it would be less expensive than sending groups of officers out on searches. The sheriff said he is hopeful the department can share the equipment with neighboring law enforcement in need of help with searches.
The biggest ticket item on the sheriff’s budget request was the expansion of the booking and medical areas of the county jail. The expansion has been on the list for a couple years, and was ranked top on his list for next year. The estimated cost is $4.8 million.
Also on the list were seven new Ford Explorers for $189,000. The sheriff’s office previously used Chevy Impalas, but those are no longer being built for law enforcement use and the greater expense of Chevy Tahoes could not be justified, Wasylyshyn said.
Also requested were more body cameras for officers, and more cameras in the jail to eliminate any blindspots in the facility. The sheriff also asked for $10,000 for the installation of new doorway from the body scanner room to the booking area.
The body scanner, which is new this year, has so far identified three incoming inmates with drugs hidden in body cavities.
No new personnel were in the budget request. Following is a list of the items requested:
- $4,867,056 for booking area expansion.
- $5,500 for architecture fees for the booking expansion.
- $189,000 for seven new Ford Explorer Pursuit SUVs for $27,000 each, replacing high mileage Chevy patrol vehicles.
- $49,250 for equipment for new Ford SUVs, plus $18,025 for related contracts and services.
- $9,927 for three Panasonic Tough Books with Windows 7 for patrol vehicles.
- $7,575 for three new Pyramid Radio repeaters for patrol.
- $9,400 for two new car video camera monitors and recorders.
- $3,600 for six in-car video monitors for patrol vehicles.
- $2,080 for four additional body cameras for patrol.
- $4,280 for four additional Tasers.
- $4,800 to upgrade electrical wiring in sheriff’s computer server room.
- $3,500 for one-year subscription to crash reconstruction kit software.
- $25,325 for supplies and services for software for records management for dispatch and all operations of the jail.
- $13,580 for drone with a thermal camera.
- $3,833 for thermal nightvision monocular.
- $6,995 for backup for radio dispatch console.
- $10,000 to install a doorway from the body scanner room to booking.
- $16,000 for 11 new cameras throughout the justice center.
- $27,476 for locks and repair parts.
- $1,200 for laptop for sheriff training room.
- $14,000 for 14 replacement computers.
- $2,500 for Microsoft Windows licenses.
- $5,200 for four radar units for patrols.
- $1,365 for portable breathilizer calibration station.
- $1,208 for Microsoft Office Standard for five computers.
- $1,520 for laptop for jail captain.
- $449 for printer/scanner for sergeant’s office.
- $750 for replacement staff breakroom refrigerator in the justice center.
- $11,000 for upgrade to channel receivers and repeaters.
- $25,788 for two additional mobile dispatch consoles.
- $1,500 for replacement 911 laptop workstations.
- $55,688 for DARE grant cash match.
- $19,712 for VAWA grant cash match.
