Judiciary and Public Safety Committee

August 4, 2004

9:00 a.m.

DRAFT Minutes

Members present: Merwin Armstrong, Vice Chair; Marilyn Brown; Tom Hartnett; Kurt Behrenfeld; Larry Cornell

Others present: Ann Homer, Bob Duell, Lee Price, Roy Lewis, Jane Goldner, Kim of the Cortland Standard, Ed Desmond

Absent: Dave Wern, Chairman; Kay Breed (Both individuals notified the committee of their absence)

Mr. Armstrong called the meeting to order at 9:10 a.m.

Mrs. Brown moved adoption of the minutes; seconded by Mr. Cornell. All members voting in favor; none opposed; minutes approved.

Resolutions:

1. Accept Fixed Asset Gift, Fire and Emergency Management (Fire Truck) – Mr. Cornell moved adoption; seconded by Mrs. Brown. All members voting in favor; none opposed; motion adopted.

2. Accept Grant /Amend Budget, Fire and Emergency Management/Records Systems Grant (NYS Archives – Local Government Records Management Improvement Fund) – Mr. Cornell moved adoption; seconded by Mr. Cornell. All members voting in favor; none opposed; motion adopted.

Discussions/Presentations:

Tower Discussion – Mr. Duell stated that at the last meeting, he reported a problem with the Solon Tower. This was not due to a storm but it due to old age. We are having difficulty getting parts to repair the tower. It could be four to six weeks before we can get the parts for it. Mr. Duell indicated we are getting by connecting with some of the rural fire departments but the Solon Tower MUST be fixed. The Solon Tower is 1950’s vintage equipment and there is no backup for that tower at this point in time. It is either the microwave or nothing. Mr. Cornell asked if the tower should be replaced? Should we budget for a replacement. Mr. Duell indicated that he does not yet know if the repair is going to be covered under the maintenance agreement or not.

Sheriff Price explained that the Tower Project is moving along nicely. The radios have not been purchased yet. Landscaping will be done this afternoon. Sheriff Price indicated that we need to get releases from the radio companies who will be on the property relieving us of damages should an injury to them occur. Sheriff Price wants to get the trailer out of there. He wants to get everything done before winter. Ed will run the bulldozer and do the grading up at the tower property so that it will look nice up there. Sheriff Price wants the building to be easily seen. Some trees needs to be cut down.

Sheriff Price explained that the jail is full but not as full as it has been. Captain Lewis explained that he would like to spend some of the money from the phone fund. There are two funds being run to the jail – a commissary fund, which can only be used for inmate welfare; then there is a jail phone fund, for which the County receives money based on phones calls placed. There is a little more liberty on what the funds can be used for – either for inmate welfare or for operational expenses. These funds are audited twice a year by the Treasurer’s Office. There is leeway in the utilization of the phone fund. We received $1,400-$1,700 per month. There is constantly costs of replacement of items at the jail. Captain Lewis reported that some of this money has been used for replacement of inmate supplies – bedding, uniforms, etc.; $1,500 of the money has been used to upgrade those. The second part is the radio system. It is critical that this system be kept us to date. Captain Lewis is proposing that a radio and batteries be assigned to each officer as part of their uniforms. They are proposing using approximately $7,800 to purchase radios, batteries, and chargers. The officers will be responsible for the upkeep of the radios as part of their uniform issuance. Annually, then supplemental equipment will have to be purchased – such as new batteries, new cases, etc. Captain Lewis indicated that the microwave in the kitchen, which was donated about 15 years ago, has died. They have purchased a new microwave for about $290. The microwave is used for inmate meal preparation. They updated the drug reference book in the jail at a cost of about $40. Flashlights for the officers are critical. They have purchased heavy duty rechargeable flashlights that will be on each post in master control. Not all areas in the jail have emergency backup lighting. A weapons discharge barrel. When weapons are procured by the officers for transport, the weapons have to be discharged. Currently, the system being used is not the safest situation. This barrel will provide better safety for all involved. The cost is about $300 and will be mounted to the wall and will be kept by the locked safe. Transport and duty belt accessories – these are used for transports. There are a limited number of belts – and the officers are different sizes – but we need more to provide a full complement. The total expenditures is $10,163 for these items. There is $26,000 in the phone account. There will still be $17,900 in the account. Captain Lewis explained that these funds need to be available for utilization by the jail. There are many times when time is of the essence and he is afraid the County will take these funds.

Mr. Cornell suggested that the committee have a meeting in the PSB and then have a tour of the jail.

3. Sheriff Price reported that the jail is full but is not overflowing. There are not inmates being house in the recreation room at this time. He reinforced that there are individuals coming in to the community who are selling drugs and they need to be in jail. The law enforcement agencies are working together on arresting these drug dealers, so the jail will be overflowing again.

4. Sheriff Price distributed a pamphlet entitled "Operation Safeguard", which is a effort to provide a way to report suspicious activity that could be related to terrorism. We should all be aware of what is going on in our community and report activity that is out of the ordinary. Mr. Hartnett asked if there is any educational program to go along with these pamphlets. Sheriff Price reported that Officer Helms is working on a news release to accompany this. This initiative has been reported on the television, radio, and in the newspaper, so it should not come as a surprise to anyone. Mr. Behrenfeld asked if definitions of "suspicious activity" have been provided. Sheriff Price reported that anything out of the ordinary should be reported.

5. There was a brief discussion about the presence of gangs in the community – how they function and the closeness of the members of the gang. There was also discussion of the recent convictions of gang members.

6. Jane Goldner provided a brief overview of the recent presentation about electronic monitoring. They are working on later in August have a demonstration. Dave Hartnett has volunteered to be an individual to have one of the monitors and Mrs. Goldner believes that we will have some other individuals volunteer as well. The company who gave the presentation has been proven through trial and error by other counties to be the best provider of equipment and services.

7. Mr. Duell wanted to clarify the memo about the MCI trailer. It has been stored in the past at the TLC facility. We now have storage space at the Armory for this trailer, which will provide quicker access to this trailer. There is an inventory requirement and minor repairs which must be done. The inventory will be provided at a future meeting.

The meeting adjourned at 10:00 a.m.

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