Spokane Sheriff's Office does a lot with a little

When it comes to the state of the county’s law enforcement, there’s good news and bad news.

The good news according to Spokane County Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich is violent crime in unincorporated parts of the county has declined 56 percent and property crimes have dropped 8 percent. Knezovich said the department has been able to accomplish this by utilizing the Intelligence Led Policing Strategy — ILP in the acronym world.

ILP utilizes data to define crime hot spots, enabling law enforcement to better target their prevention resources. Knezovich told the Cheney Free Press editorial board the SCSO is currently scheduled to upgrade their data and record management system this year, providing needed information much quicker than the current system.

Knezovich also formed a violent crime and gang task force and a property crime task force with other police agencies in the region, providing additional resources not only to the county but also police departments in Cheney and Airway Heights. Crime Check was restored, and community-based policing efforts have been increased, providing more eyes on the streets and roadways.

But in those silver linings are some potential dark clouds. Much of the reduction in violent and property crimes has come from staffing and budget levels that haven’t kept proportional pace with the county’s expanding population, compared to similar counties in the state.

Government figures are often hard to pin down since personnel and funding can be shared and distributed around several different departments. When it comes to staffing, Knezovich says the department has lost 34 deputies since 2008.

According to the 2014 Spokane County budget, the Sheriff’s Office has 287 total staff, four more than last year but down 20 positions from a high of 307 in 2009, 11 from 2006 when Knezovich was first elected and just 18 above 2000 levels. Overall, Spokane’s Law, Safety and Justice staffing is 823 positions, about 42 percent of the total county staff. In 2000 it was 984, 50.8 percent of the county’s total staff.

Meanwhile, according to U.S. Census data, Spokane County’s 2013 population was 479,398, 61,459 residents more than 2000.

Contrast that with Clark County. According to its website, at 443,817, Clark is the closest in population to Spokane in the state, having grown by 98,578 since 2000. But with 35,381 fewer people, its 794 total Law and Justice positions are 50 percent of the county total.

Then there are the budget figures. Knezovich claims the SCSO’s budget is the least funded sheriff’s office in Washington at 11 percent of the total county budget, compared to 18-20 percent for peer agencies.

In Clark County, the $220.5 million Law and Justice budget is 26 percent of the total county budget, with the Sheriff’s Office’s $101,393,976 being 45.98 percent of Law and Justice. In Spokane County, Law, Safety and Justice’s $103.8 million budget is 30.2 percent of the county total, but the Sheriff’s Office $34,361,421 is 33 percent of Law, Safety and Justice.

The funding level is evident on the streets and roads. With Spokane County continuing to grow, especially the West Plains area, one deputy is patrolling an area north of Interstate 90 to the Stevens County line while another patrols south of I-90 to the Whitman County line and both west to the Lincoln County line.

It isn’t adequate coverage to assure a timely mutual aid response, something local police agencies rely on.

Add to this mix a county jail deemed overcrowded in 1995. Knezovich told the board one of the challenges facing deputies with property crimes is because the jail is overcrowded, repeat property crime offenders often aren’t held long, increasing the likelihood of more offenses.

It’s a difficult situation the Sheriff’s Office finds itself in, trying to solve crime while protecting the public and finding a way to prevent first-time offenders from becoming repeat offenders through rehabilitation, which involves everything from drug and alcohol abuse treatment to job training.

If Knezovich could have three wishes, he’d replace at least half — 17 — of the deputies he claims he’s lost, deal effectively with upcoming capital issues like replacing the SCSO’s fleet of discontinued Crown Victoria vehicles, and spend $250,000 on mandatory training not currently funded — but needed to keep the county out of potential lawsuits. And of course, there’s the jail.

Those are good wishes to keep in mind during budget time.