Men of Conviction - Missouri Sheriffs' Association

 
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Men of Conviction - Missouri Sheriffs' Association
COLD CASES: Bringing Closure to Families, Justice to Victims             Spring 2020

     Men of Conviction
     St. Clair, McDonald, Dade and Barry county sheriffs
     serve different communities but share the same commitment

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Men of Conviction - Missouri Sheriffs' Association
Men of Conviction - Missouri Sheriffs' Association
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Men of Conviction - Missouri Sheriffs' Association
Spring
                                                             Contributors
     CONTENTS                2020

News
7    Director’s Letter
8    Around the State
                                                             Nancy Zoellner

                                                        8
                                                             Editor

ON THE JOB
Cover Story: Men of Conviction
12 A Man with a Mission
13 Sheriff Meets Challenges Head On
14 S heriff Impacts Community Through
   Its Children
15 Sheriff Leads by Following a Family Tradition
                                                             Michael Feeback
Behind the Scenes: Support Staff
16 Fred Cave, Callaway County
18 Dwight Willis, Greene County
20 Vendor Spotlight: Encartele                     16
COMMUNITY
22 CIT: Improving Responses to People                       Sheriff Randee Kaiser
     in Crisis                                               Jasper County

26   ‘Hippie Weed’ or Medication?
30   Solving Cold Cases: Bringing Justice
      to Victims
36   Book Corner

                                                        30
CORRECTIONS
38 Maintaining Order and Safety Inside,                     Kevin Merritt
    Teaching Change for the Outside                          MSA Executive Director

40 Keen: A Professional ‘Committed to
    Excellence’
42 Jasper County: Treatment Concepts
    to Practice

TRAINING
44 New Year’s Trends and BOLD Predictions          40        Bill Sullivan
                                                             Law Enforcement Liaison for the
                                                             National Highway Traffic Safety
                                                             Administration (NHTSA) Region 7

4      THE MISSOURI SHERIFF SPRING 2020
Men of Conviction - Missouri Sheriffs' Association
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Men of Conviction - Missouri Sheriffs' Association
Missouri Sheriffs’
                                                                                           Association
                                                                                           6605 Business 50 West
                                                                                           Jefferson City, MO 65109
                                                                                           www.mosheriffs.com

                                                                                           VOL. 8, NO. 2
                                                                                           SPRING 2020

MSA Executive Board               MSA Staff                    Board Member                MARKETING DIRECTOR
                                                               Zone Leaders                Jeanne Merritt
PRESIDENT                         EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR                                       573.529.6900
Sheriff David Parrish                                          ZONE 1 — Sheriff Bryan      Fax 573.635.2128
                                  Kevin Merritt
                                                               Atkins, Andrew County       jeanne@mosheriffs.com
Lewis County
                                  ADMINISTRATIVE                                           EDITOR
1ST VICE-PRESIDENT                ASSISTANT                    ZONE 2 — Sheriff Rodney
                                                                                           Nancy Zoellner
Sheriff Jerry Galloway                                         Herring, Grundy County
                                  Donna Arney                                              nancyhogland@gmail.com
Caldwell County
                                                               ZONE 3 — Sheriff Mark       CONTRIBUTORS
                                  OFFICE ASSISTANT             Nichols, Randolph County
2 VICE-PRESIDENT
    ND
                                  Gina Kauffman                                            Michael Feeback
                                                                                           Sheriff Randee Kaiser
Sheriff Scott Munsterman                                       ZONE 4 — Sheriff Wayne
                                                                                           Kevin Merritt
Johnson County                    MARKETING DIRECTOR           Winn, Scotland County
                                                                                           Bill Sullivan
                                  Jeanne Merritt
3RD VICE-PRESIDENT                                             ZONE 5 — Sheriff Mark       CREATIVE DIRECTOR
                                                               Owen, Platte County
Sheriff Ben Becerra               PROGRAM                                                  Stacie L. Marshall
Daviess County                    COORDINATOR                                              Hill Design Co.
                                                               ZONE 6 — Sheriff Clay
                                  Victor Pitman                Chism, Callaway County
SECRETARY
Sheriff Jimmy Shinn                                            ZONE 7 — Sheriff Scott
                                                               Lewis, St. Charles County
Marion County                                                                              BECOME A MEMBER
                                                               ZONE 8 — Sheriff Eric       573.635.5925 ext. 105
TREASURER                                                                                  www.mosheriffs.com
                                                               Knox, Benton County
Sheriff John Cottle
Lincoln County                                                                             GENERAL INQUIRIES,
                                                               ZONE 9 — Sheriff John
                                                                                           COMMENTS OR
                                                               Wheeler, Cole County
                                                                                           QUESTIONS
SERGEANT-AT-ARMS
                                                               ZONE 10 — Sheriff Daniel    Jeanne Merritt
Sheriff Doug Rader
                                                                                           573.529.6900
Stone County                                                   Bullock, St. Francois
                                                                                           jeanne@mosheriffs.com
                                                               County

                                                               ZONE 11 — Sheriff Max
                                                               Huffman, Dade County

                                                               ZONE 12 — Sheriff Darin
                                                               Layman, Crawford County

                                                               ZONE 13 — Sheriff Katy      Copyright © 2020 by the Missouri Sheriffs’
                                                                                           Association. All rights reserved. All material
Visit us online at www.mosheriffs.com.                         McCutcheon, Madison
                                                                                           appearing in The Missouri Sheriff magazine
                                                               County
                                                                                           is copyright unless otherwise stated or it
The Missouri Sheriff magazine is the official publication                                  may rest with the provider of the supplied
                                                               ZONE 14 — Sheriff Brad      material. The Missouri Sheriff magazine takes
for the Missouri Sheriffs’ Association.                        DeLay, Lawrence County      all care to ensure information is correct at
                                                                                           time of printing, but the publisher accepts
The Missouri Sheriff magazine is dedicated to providing        ZONE 15 — Sheriff Richard   no responsibility or liability for the accuracy
informative and timely information to enrich the lives                                     of any information contained in the text or
                                                               Stephens, Carter County
                                                                                           advertisements. Views expressed are not
of the dedicated men and women providing county law
                                                                                           necessarily endorsed by the publisher.
enforcement, jail, court security and judicial services        ZONE 16 — Sheriff Mark
throughout the state of Missouri, and the public they serve.   Dobbs, Butler County

6        THE MISSOURI SHERIFF SPRING 2020
Men of Conviction - Missouri Sheriffs' Association
PRESIDENT’S
                                                                                  LETTER

Don’t Tell Me — Show Me
                I
                     n December 2019, Missouri sheriffs,        most dangerous cities in the nation. It is
                     at the invitation of Governor Michael      unfathomable to me that these jurisdictions
                     Parson, went to the capitol to discuss     are owed millions of dollars that could be
                public safety throughout Missouri. As a         used to enhance the safety of their citizens.
                former sheriff, Governor Parson understood      To further complicate matters, the extreme
                the critical role the office of sheriff plays   measures taken by the Supreme Court and
                in the everyday safety of Missouri citizens.    the Missouri Department of Corrections have
                He also had great praise for every locally      led to the premature release of criminals
                elected official in large part because of the   — and that led to numerous citizens and
                close contact they have with the people they    frontline law enforcement officers being
                serve. He was committed to reducing violent     placed in harm’s way.
                crime in Missouri and asked for Missouri          It is my strong belief that law abiding
                sheriffs to assist his administration.          taxpayers continue to believe in the rule
                   In January 2020, Governor Parson             of law and support firm and fair law
                backed his words with action. He formally       enforcement. Citizens want to feel safe and
                announced that $22 million dollars should       have said this to their local law enforcement
                be allocated to pay down the enormous debt      over and over again. They have not only
                the state owes local law abiding taxpayers      “talked the talk” but they have “walked the
 Words alone    for the care and protection of Missouri         walk” by overwhelmingly supporting tax
                inmates housed in county jails. This clearly    increases to enhance their own safety and to
mean nothing.   demonstrates he understands public safety       hold criminals accountable.
                in Missouri must continue to be a local and       Franklin County Sheriff Steve Pelton,
                state partnership.                              Callaway County Sheriff Clay Chism, and
                   Sheriffs across the state have been in       Johnson County Sheriff Scott Munsterman
                contact with their local representatives        led initiatives in their counties that passed
                and senators who are also committed to          with close to 70 percent of the vote. These
                protecting the interests of the law abiding     are astonishing numbers that demonstrate to
                taxpayer. They recognize that this arrearage    our state leaders that Missourians trust their
                is an embarrassment to our state and are        local sheriffs and their local leaders. They
                committed to insuring the safety of their       also expect state leaders and bureaucrats to
                constituents. We appreciate their strong        support and trust their sheriffs as well.
                support and commend them for their efforts.       Missourians should rest assured that
                   However, words alone mean nothing. As        every sheriff, as well as their deputies, will
                a “Show Me” Missourian, I recognize that        continue to fight for their safety in their
                we will not know how committed these            neighborhoods, on their streets and in the
                individuals are until the legislative session   halls of the capitol.
                ends in May 2020. We must continue to
                forcefully make our case.
                   Unfortunately, we live in a state that
                                                                David Parrish
                continues to see a rise in violent crime and    President
                have two cities that are listed as two of the   Missouri Sheriffs’ Association

                                                                                   www.mosheriffs.com        7
Men of Conviction - Missouri Sheriffs' Association
NEWS
                                                             Atchison                   Worth                                        Putnam             Schuyler Scotland
                                                                          Nodaway                                 Mercer                                                                Clark
                                                                                                  Harrison
                                                                                        Gentry                                   Sullivan
                                                                   Holt                                                                               Adair
                                                                                                                  Grundy                                                 Knox           Lewis
                                                                           Andrew
                                                                                                  Daviess
                                                                                        DeKalb                                       Linn
                                                                                                              Livingston                                Macon             Shelby          Marion
                                                                          Buchanan                Caldwell
                                                                                        Clinton
                                                                                                                                       Chariton                                                 Ralls
                                                                                                                  Carroll                                                  Monroe
                                                                             Platte                                                                     Randolph
                                                                                         Clay       Ray                                                                                                  Pike
                                                                                                                                                                                 Audrain
                                                                                                                              Saline             Howard
                                                                                                      Lafayette                                                                                  Mont-          Lincoln
                                                                                        Jackson                                                                 Boone
                                                                                                                                                                                                gomery
                                                                                                                                               Cooper                           Callaway
                                                                                                      Johnson               Pettis                                                                       Warren        St. Charles St. Louis
                                                                                         Cass                                                                                                                                        City
                                                                                                                                                  Moniteau
                                                                                                                                                                                                                              St. Louis
                                                                                                                                                                  Cole                          Gasco-
                                                                                                                                            Morgan                                 Osage
                                                                                                          Henry                                                                                  nade       Franklin
                                                                                                                        Benton
                                                                                         Bates                                                                                                                                  Jefferson
                                                                                                                                                              Miller            Maries
                                                                                                      St. Clair                              Camden                                                 Crawford
                                                                                                                       Hickory                                                                                  Washington                  Ste.
                                                                                                                                                                                    Phelps                                                Genevieve
                                                                                        Vernon                                                                     Pulaski                                                           St.
                                                                                                     Cedar                                                                                                                        Francois          Perry
                                                                                                                                      Dallas         Laclede                                                            Iron
                                                                                                                      Polk                                                                      Dent
                                                                                        Barton                                                                                                                                        Madison                  Cape
                                                                                                     Dade                                                                                                                                                   Girardeau
                                                                                                                                                                                Texas                           Reynolds
                                                                                                                      Greene             Webster          Wright                                                                                Bollinger
                                                                                       Jasper                                                                                                     Shannon
                                                                                                    Lawrence                                                                                                                       Wayne
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 Scott

Former Sheriff Passes
                                                                                       Newton                                  Christian                Douglas                                                  Carter                                                   Miss-
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   Stoddard              issippi
                                                                                                                                                                                 Howell
                                                                                                     Barry          Stone                                                                          Oregon                              Butler
                                                                                      McDonald                                       Taney                 Ozark                                                       Ripley
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             New
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            Madrid

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          Pemiscot
   A man who served Platte County citizens                                                                                                                                                                                                      Dunklin

for nearly three decades has died. The
Platte County Sheriff’s Office announced
the recent death of former Sheriff Tom
Thomas in late December.
                                                                                                   HARD WORK
   Thomas was the county’s sheriff from
1969 until he retired in 1996. He also
                                                                                                    PAYS OFF
served as a Kansas City, Missouri, police
                                                                                                  “Do you realize that your last
officer before becoming sheriff. The
                                                                                                  drink could be someone else’s
sheriff’s office’s law enforcement center is
                                                                                                  last breath? It’s time to Change
named in Thomas’ honor.
                                                                                                  the Numbers. If you’re planning
   “The thoughts and prayers of the men and
                                                                                                  a special celebration for the
women of the Platte County Sheriff’s Office
                                                                                                  holidays, think first about a safe
are with the Thomas family,’’ according to a
                                                                                                  and sober ride home.”
statement from the sheriff’s office.

                                                                                                  That’s the message shared
                                                                                                  with motorists during the 2019
                                                                                                  Holiday DWI Campaign — and it
Sharing the                                                                                       worked. According to Art Amato,
                                                                                                  Missouri Eastern Region Law
Community’s Love                                                                                  Enforcement Liaison, the state
                                                                                                  experienced an overall decrease
  Sheriff Carl Hefner participat-                                                                 of 53 total fatalities as of
ed in The 2019 Subaru Share the
                                                                                                  December 22 and not one fatality
Love Event with Meals on Wheels
                                                                                                  occurred during the official 30-
in Dexter. Sheriff Hefner helped
distribute meals to various
                                                                                                  hour reporting period over the
residents in the Bloomfield area.                                                                 New Year’s holiday.
Meals on Wheels America is one
of four national Share the Love                                                                   “That is some amazing news and
charitable partners supported                                                                     I believe a direct result of all the
through the campaign, which ran                                                                   hard work many sheriffs’ offices
from November 14, 2019 through                                                                    are doing in the area of high-
January 2, 2020. Subaru of                                                                        visibility sustained enforcement.
America donated $250 for every                                                                    We can only hope the trend
new Subaru vehicle purchased or
                                                                                                  continues throughout the rest of
leased to the customer’s choice of
                                                                                                  2020,” Amato said.
participating charities.

                                                                                                  There were no boating fatalities
                                                                                                  or drownings during that time
                                                                                                  period as well.

Announce your special event or award recognition with MSA.
Send information to Nancy at nancy@mosheriffs.com.

8      THE MISSOURI SHERIFF SPRING 2020
Men of Conviction - Missouri Sheriffs' Association
PROTECTING COUNTY K9S
  The Humane Society of the United States recently donated ballistic vests to 10 sheriffs’
offices across the state. Amanda Good, Missouri state director for the Humane Society, said
they donate the vests because they know many agencies don’t have a budget for K9 officers
and handlers must raise money through grants and donations to cover expenses, including
the vests, which are expensive.
  “We are thrilled to be able to provide these lifesaving vests for local law enforcement
agencies and their K9 officers. We appreciate what these officers do to protect us, and
now their jobs are a little safer,” Good said. HSUS also provides a free training program
for law enforcement agencies and prosecutors on how to deal with animal cruelty cases
and techniques for officers to use while dealing with domestic pets when responding to
emergency calls.
  Receiving the vests were Audrain County; Bollinger County; Douglas County; Laclede
County; Lafayette County; Lincoln County — K9 Rigley pictured; Moniteau County; Osage
County; and St. Francois County.

    Keeping                                             Staff Acknowledged
    Students Safe                                                                          Six people were recognized during the Vernon
                                                                                        County Sheriff’s Office seventh annual awards
       The Saline County Sheriff’s                                                      banquet. Sheriff Jason Mosher started holding the
    Office has partnered with the five                                                  event after taking office in 2013 as a way to recognize
    rural schools in their county to                                                    his staff and the hard work they do. This year’s awards
    have access to live video feeds of                                                  went to Deputy Ryan Wood and Suzanne Reese, who
    their security systems. According
                                                                                        received commendations for perfect attendance and
    to Sheriff Cindi Mullins, through
                                                                                        their record of helping with public service events. Sgt.
    the program, dispatch has moni-
                                                                                        Dan Miller, Lt. Eric Terry and Gary Bloom received
    tors that allow them to watch the
    schools in real time.                                                               the Lifetime Service Award, and this year’s Employee
       “In addition, we have the feeds                                                  of the Year award went to Deputy Zesar Huerta
    available at several other comput-                                                  (pictured), who became the rural county DARE Officer
    ers. In the event of an intruder or                                                 in 2018 and serves the county schools along with
    active shooter, we would have real                                                  handling his patrol duties. Deputy Huerta received
    time information that can be dis-                                                   numerous compliments from the public during 2019
    patched while the school officials                                                  along with several letters commending his willingness
    take care of the children without                                                   to help others.
    having to remain on a phone to
                                                          “This is our way of saying ‘thank you’ for what they do throughout the year, seven
    give information,” Sheriff Mullins
                                                        days a week, 24 hours a day,” the sheriff said. “I’m extremely proud of the VCSO staff
    said.
                                                        and the job they are doing for the citizens of our county.”

Taking the Lead
   Vernon County Sheriff Jason Mosher presented Patrol Lt. Travis Cole with a TRILOGY certificate after Cole graduated
from the 336th Executive Leadership Academy FBI-LEEDA. The week-long classes, which included Supervisor
Leadership, Command Leadership and Executive Leadership training, were spread out over a six-month period to
allow working members of law enforcement to attend without being gone for a long period of time. Lt. Cole said the
training was “very valuable and a priceless tool that all law enforcement leaders should have.”
   Sheriff Jason Mosher said his goal is to send all upper-level management to the training.
   “It not only teaches good leadership skills and values, but it takes a good look at the administrative side of law
enforcement, the community relations aspect, and the policy and procedure process for agencies,” Sheriff Mosher
said, adding a large portion of Lt. Cole’s class was paid for by a grant he submitted last summer.
   “I will definitely be applying for grants again this year and sending more of our staff to this training,”
the sheriff said.

                                                                                                                         www.mosheriffs.com    9
Men of Conviction - Missouri Sheriffs' Association
NEWS

     Punkin Run Produces
        About 65 bikes, trikes and automobiles gathered to feast, enjoy fellowship
     and ride in this year’s Fifth Annual Punkin’ Run, held to honor Eddie “Punkin’”
     Johnson, a former Alton Fire Chief, police officer and reserve deputy with the
     Oregon County Sheriff’s Office. He was killed in a car wreck while responding
     to a call in October 2014.
        Oregon County Sheriff Eric King said he, as well as sheriffs from Ripley and
     Shannon counties, have participated in the ride for at least the last two years.
     This year, approximately $4,000 was raised for the Eddie “Punkin’” Johnson
     Scholarship Fund, set up by Eddie’s co-workers to honor the memory of their
     fallen brother.

Sheriff’s                                                         THE NOSE KNOWS
Office Holds
Food Drive
                                                                    In late December
                                                                  the Franklin County
                                                                  Sheriff’s Office
  Thanks to the generosity                                        welcomed its first
of the community, deputies                                        bloodhound, Copper.
were able to deliver food to                                      The newest K9 to
36 families throughout Vernon                                     the Franklin County
County that had been placed                                       Sheriff’s Office and
on their children’s food box list. Vernon County Sheriff Jason    his handler Detective
Mosher said those 36 families consisted of 144 people, most       Jeffrey Friedmann
of whom were children.                                            spent two weeks in
  “We have a passion for helping the children in our              Texas training and are
community and we hope these boxes filled with kid-friendly        now in service. The
food will make their Christmas a little bit brighter,” he said,   scent-specific tracking
adding that they collected a record amount from Vernon            dog is able to follow
County citizens this year. Sheriff Mosher started the food        one scent and not get
drive after he spoke to a small child during a search warrant.    confused, so in addition to locating missing children or missing
The child told him how much he liked school because “it was       elderly people, Copper will also be used to recover items like
warm, and they had food at school.” Mosher said he was very       evidence thrown from a vehicle. Copper’s abilities were put to good
grateful for so many people donating their time to help and       use soon after joining the department when he located a duffle bag
for the food they provided.                                       belonging to a suspect in a field.

10     THE MISSOURI SHERIFF SPRING 2020
Staying Safe with Technology
   As with most agencies, the Cass County Sheriff’s Office has
looked to new technologies to improve productivity, accountabili-
ty and officer safety. These technologies include records man-
agement and computer-aided dispatch software, mobile vehicle
recoding systems, body cameras and digital radio systems, just to
name a few. But there’s one technology that has permeated the
everyday life of most of society and that is cellular.
   With nearly everyone carrying a cell phone today, the Global
Position System (GPS) has become more accessible than ever.
That technology, paired with software, has allowed agencies to
use an automatic vehicle locator (AVL), a system that uses GPS to
remotely track the location of their vehicle fleet and officers in
real time by using the Internet. The program makes them more
productive and safer.
   The Cass County Sheriff’s Office deployed its first AVL in 2014
but that system was cumbersome, slow, problematic and costly.         resulted in a lot of interest in the system by other counties.
While the concept was good, it was clear that a different product       “Because we had the resources, ability and people to setup
was needed. Through time and research it was found — “Gps-            and manage this system, not only for my agency, but others, we
Gate.”                                                                began coordinating for other agencies to join our system,” Sheriff
   “It’s ease of use, employing Google Maps, customization ability    Weber said. “In 2018, we began expanding the system to include
and relatively low cost made it the ideal solution for us,” said      the surrounding sheriffs of Bates, Henry and Johnson counties.
Sheriff Jeff Weber. “I can say that this system has definitely made   From there we included every municipal police department in
us safer.”                                                            our county.”
   In 2017, an agency from an adjoining county had an officer           To date, they have 17 agencies, including two fire departments,
murdered on a vehicle stop and the suspect was at large after         on board with a total 261 tracked units and 563 active users.
fleeing on foot. A mutual aid request brought many sheriffs’          And it’s all been accomplished at the low cost of $51 a year, per
offices to assist. However, the ability to communicate and locate     unit, for those agencies. That’s because Cass County assumed all
officers from so many agencies was problematic. That’s when           administrative work and cost to run the system.
Cass County first shared its AVL system.                                “It has become an invaluable tool, allowing us to work with
   An IT specialist with Cass County was able to upload and de-       multiple agencies on large and small scale operations, deploying
ploy the system on the phones of deputies from other counties,        resources where needed — everything from car chases to man
giving them the ability to locate and coordinate at all times. That   hunts,” the sheriff said.

                                                                                                             www.mosheriffs.com       11
ON THE JOB

BARRY COUNTY SHERIFF GARY DAVIS

A Man with a Mission
Barry County Sheriff Gary Davis’ first job in law enforcement was with the FBI.
    It was 1970 and at the time, he and Mary   whom is a deputy with another Missouri         year, five of whom left to take jobs with sur-
Jane, his wife, were living in Springfield,    county, six grandchildren and two great-       rounding counties who can pay more, and
Missouri.                                      grandchildren.                                 one who went to work in the construction
    “I needed a job and learned the FBI had       After retiring, he spent his first year     industry but wants to come back if we can
openings in Washington, D.C., for finger-      building a new house, but in 2004, not         increase the pay,” the sheriff said, explain-
print examiners. It paid about $1,000 a year   wanting to waste the training and experi-      ing that because the majority of funding is
more than I was making in Springfield and      ences he had gained with the FBI, he got his   through sales tax, another goal is to get a
I thought ‘Wow — that’s a lot of money,’       POST commission and a teaching certifi-        sales tax increase on an upcoming ballot.
so we moved and I worked as a finger-          cate. Except for a year that he took off to    “That will allow me to further increase sala-
print examiner for about five years. Law       care for Mary Jane after she was diagnosed     ries as well as hire two or three more depu-
enforcement kind-of ‘got in my blood’ and      with cancer, he worked the next several        ties. I think the community would support
I liked the culture of the Bureau so I went    years as a substitute teacher in his local     it because 1/2 or even 3/8 of a cent, based
back to school, became a research assistant    school district. Then the weekend before       on the current level of spending, would
doing paralegal-type work for the Bureau,      the 2016 filing period closed, he received     bring in around $2 million a year. Barry
finished my degree and then got appointed      a phone call from someone asking him to        County is a 790-square-mile county and it’s
to special agent in 1980,” he said.            run for sheriff. After much discussion and     a long way from one corner to the other.
    Over the next 23 years he was assigned     prayer, he and his wife agreed that if they    A couple substations and a couple more
to Washington, D.C.; Knoxville, Tennessee;     were going to live in Barry County, they       deputies would go a long way in allowing
New York City; Houston and then El Paso,       needed to be a part of making it better. He    us to respond more quickly.”
Texas, for five years as a supervisor; then    filed, ran against half a dozen other candi-      He’s also realizing another goal — to
back to Washington, D.C., where he worked      dates in the primary and won by 65 votes.      improve the jail. Earlier this year the
as a unit chief until he retired in 2003.      Then he won in the general election with       county commission signed a contract with
During those years he met four or five         more than 70 percent of the votes.             an architect to renovate the existing facility.
presidents, and a young guy named Trump,          Sheriff Davis said that after taking of-    They’ll be tearing down everything except
who liked to visit with the FBI agents when    fice, he was pleasantly surprised with the     cell blocks built in recent years, and adding
he’d speak at their luncheons.                 professionalism of the staff, most of whom     a medical room, a 24-bed cell block for
    He also worked several high-profile        stayed on. He was unpleasantly surprised       the least-dangerous inmates and building
cases. He and his partner were the first two   with the number of animal cases they get       a new kitchen and laundry. Barring any
agents at the Reagan shooting, he worked       called to handle and the amount of paper-      unforeseen problems, they plan to break
the Oklahoma City bombing and he worked        work the job requires.                         ground by August 1.
several drug cases, especially in Texas. “My      “I do more paperwork now than when             Sheriff Davis said he’s also pleased that,
first week in El Paso, when I was lucky        I was with the federal government,” he         through a partnership with the Ozarks
to find the office, we went out and found      laughed, adding that he streamlined much       Drug Enforcement Team, they’ve been able
2,500 pounds of cocaine! In New York I         of what they do by getting new comput-         to dismantle several large drug trafficking
worked national security and counter-ter-      ers. He also continued with the former         organizations in the county.
rorism and helped plan the rededication of     sheriff’s vehicle replacement plan and now        “I really enjoy this job. I enjoy seeing our
the Statue of Liberty. And I was in Washing-   has just one car with more than 100,000        deputies grow and I enjoy helping the peo-
ton, D.C., when 9-11 happened.”                miles. However, he said he feels one of his    ple of Barry County. They’re so appreciative
    His decision to work in law enforcement    most important accomplishments has been        of the job we do. I hope to be elected one
was never an issue at home. His wife of 53     increasing salaries.                           more term so I can see the jail renovation
years also worked for the FBI for 16 years        “The jail staff was making $20,000 a year   through and see the rest of my goals accom-
as a research intelligence specialist. She     and I’ve gotten them up to $24,000. And of     plished. Hopefully the people will feel the
took early retirement when her husband         my 23 sworn deputies, I’ve been able to get    same way,” he said.
hit the FBI’s mandatory retirement age of      more than half of them at $30,000 or above.
57. They have two grown children, one of       They want to stay here but I lost nine last      By Nancy Zoellner

12     THE MISSOURI SHERIFF SPRING 2020
DADE COUNTY SHERIFF MAX HUFFMAN

Sheriff Meets Challenges Head On
Back in the early 90s, Max Huffman             so I could serve my community.”                 always been a challenge. Lately, it’s gotten
was working in IT. His good friend was            He said that when Stapp returned from        even harder.
working as a deputy for the Wright             active duty, he resigned, took a patrol            “Although the commissioners approved
                                               position with Barton County and soon            my budget, because we’re primarily an
County Sheriff’s Office.                       after started campaigning. He won the           agricultural community and we’re funded
   The young-ish Huffman would often           primary and had no one running against          by sales tax and general revenue, which
ride along with his friend as he patrolled,    him in the general election. He was sworn       is down, we’ve actually been asked to
listening attentively to stories about the     into office on January 1, 2013.                 reduce our staff by attrition this year,”
trials and tribulations of chasing bad            After taking office, Sheriff Huffman         the sheriff said. “It’s difficult because
guys and protecting good guys in a rural       said he hoped to build a new 50-bed jail to     everyone wants good law enforcement
county. Finally, in 1996, he decided that      replace their aging and overcrowded 14-         but that doesn’t come cheap and some
he, too, wanted to make a difference           bed facility, but the budget wouldn’t allow     people just don’t understand what law
in his community and enrolled in               it so instead, he focused on improving          enforcement does for the amount of pay
Southeast Missouri State University’s Law      everything he could. Through those efforts,     they receive. But we will find a way to
Enforcement Training Academy.                   he was able to increase the number of          continue delivering the best service we
   After graduation, he                                   deputies patrolling the county       can because that’s what we do.”
volunteered as a reserve                                      from three to seven. He             Cross-training deputies to work both
in Dade County while                                             also began a program          the road and in the jail has been helpful
continuing to work in the                                          that, through careful       in scheduling and stretching his dollars a
corporate world. But                                                budgeting, has allowed     little farther. His deputies also work their
when a road deputy                                                   him to replace one        own drug cases, “and almost all crime
position opened up,                                                  vehicle per year.         in our community is drug-related in one
he applied, was hired                                                  In 2014, he was         form or fashion.”
and has been in law                                                 able to upgrade               Although the job comes with many
enforcement fulltime                                               to the Jail Tracker         challenges, Sheriff Huffman said knowing
ever since.                                                      Records Management            he has the support of his community has
   “It just clicked. I knew                                    System and said that has        helped. Officer-involved shootings and
that’s what I wanted to do with                            been a tremendous benefit.          injuries and delivering death notifications
my life and was fortunate to have a                 The program stores information             — especially when children are involved
very good FTO. That changed my entire          electronically and allows them to share         — have been the most gut-wrenching.
career because I learned a lot of good         information in real time with other jails       To see that cases are handled to the best
information that made the job not only         and sheriffs’ offices on any device with        of their ability and provide justice for
interesting and safe but also fun to do,” he   an internet connection. He said being           victims has been the most rewarding.
said, adding that it was so enjoyable that,    able to share information about detainees          He said it’s also been rewarding
except for a stint at the Barton County        — things like gang affiliations, suicide        to know that he has the support of
Sheriff’s Office while he campaigned for       attempts and behavioral health — has            his now-grown children. “In fact, my
sheriff, his entire career has been spent      allowed his staff and detainees to stay safe.   daughter was also bitten by the law
at Dade County. His friend that got him           “Without the assistance of the               enforcement bug and now works for
interested in law enforcement comes to         Missouri Sheriffs’ Association, and more        Homeland Security in Tucson, Arizona.
town occasionally to visit and work as a       specifically Sheriff Kent Oberkrom, who         My son lives in Minnesota and is CEO of a
reserve.                                       headed up that push, we would still be          dairy cooperative and is also supportive
   “I actually had a rare opportunity to       using yellow note pads and Excel spread         although he probably secretly wishes I’d
try out the job before I tried to get it,”     sheets! I can’t say enough about the help       get back into the corporate world,” he
Sheriff Huffman quipped, explaining that       Sheriff Oberkrom gave us. But now,              laughed. “Although the job ‘has its days,’
he was chief deputy when the current           unfortunately, we’re struggling to fund         I very much enjoy what I do and hope to
sheriff, Steven Stapp, was activated with      the system,” he said, adding that although      continue doing it one more term. Then I
the National Guard and he was appointed        the public is appreciative and supportive       plan to retire and farm, raise cattle and
to serve in his absence. “That’s all it took   — and his commissioners are supportive          enjoy all that the Ozarks have to offer.”
for me to realize that I could do the job, I   of law enforcement — finding money to
could do it well and I wanted to be sheriff    satisfy the law enforcement budget has            By Nancy Zoellner

                                                                                                               www.mosheriffs.com        13
ON THE JOB

MCDONALD COUNTY SHERIFF MIKE HALL

Sheriff Impacts Community through Its CHILDREN
Keeping children safe, teaching them the dangers of experimenting with alcohol                          to attract and then keep good, qualified
and drugs, showing them that law enforcement is there to protect them — those                           personnel has been his biggest challenge.
are all things near and dear to McDonald County Sheriff Mike Hall’s heart.                                 He and his staff have also been busy
                                                                                                        implementing jail standards, creating a
   That’s why he’s spent the majority of his law    For the next couple years, he covered one           policy and procedures manual and updat-
enforcement career working in the schools in        high school and seven elementary and                ing operations by switching to an electronic
one capacity or another. In fact, this year he’s    junior high campuses.                               jail management system which allows them
celebrating his 20th year teaching DARE.               “At the time I was talking to an Arkansas        to share information with other jails in real
   “And it’s still my favorite part of the job. I   police officer whose child had been killed          time. With help from his lieutenant, Sheriff
get reenergized when I walk into the class-         in the Jonesboro school shooting about              Hall established a Special Response Team
room, in part, because I believe this program       developing training for the schools. Then in        and provided special training to handle
can positively impact our community. Our            April of that year, two teenagers went on a         such things as high-risk search warrants.
nation has a drug problem. The best way to          shooting spree at Columbine and every-              He also accomplished his short-term goal
stop it is to never start. That’s what I’m teach-   thing changed. Suddenly we were forced              of acquiring new bullet-proof vests for all
ing these students,” Sheriff Hall said.             to think about the unthinkable and began            road deputies and vests that are less than
   Although he’s dedicated his life to serving      training, sometimes with city police officers,      the suggested five years old for detectives.
his community, that dedication initially took       deputies, other law enforcement, along                 Sheriff Hall’s care for children extends
a different course.                                 with fire and EMS, on how to respond to an          to wanting them to have presents at
   “I got my EMT license for both Arkansas          active shooter in our schools,” he said.            Christmas so in 2009, he and a few depu-
and Missouri during my senior year of high             Because he wanted to do more, in 2000 he         ties started a Shop with a Cop program. It
school and started working for a local ambu-        attended DARE instructor training. A couple         quickly grew to encompass all emergency
lance service after graduation. However, as         years later he was promoted to corporal and         responders and is now called “Shop with a
I got to know law enforcement, I knew that          then in 2005, when another resource officer         Hero.” Thanks to a grant from Walmart and
was where I should be so when I signed up           was hired, he was put in charge of patrol           generous contributions from a supportive
for college, I decided to major in criminal         operations. However, he continued to oversee        community, in 2019 they were able to raise
justice,” he said.                                  school training, attend as many school events       $12,900 — enough to take 118 children
   At the same time, he also started volunteer-     as possible and teach the DARE program.             shopping with around $100 each to spend.
ing at the McDonald County Sheriff’s Office,           In early 2012, he left the sheriff’s office to           His wife Kimberly and two children
assisting with dispatch and the jail. When          work fulltime at the schools while                               have also been supportive of
Sheriff Don Schlessman offered him a job            also campaigning for sheriff. He                                      his work and his choice of
in that division six months later, he jumped        was elected and took office                                              professions.
at the opportunity, and the next semester           January 1, 2013.                                                              “My son actually loves
enrolled in the law enforcement academy.               Conservative budget-                                                     law enforcement and
   “Talk about timing! In April 1997 I turned       ing and careful spending                                                    wants to join the FBI
21. I graduated from the academy in May             through the years by the                                                    when he graduates. My
and in June an overnight road deputy posi-          county’s officeholders                                                      parents have always
tion opened and the sheriff offered it to me.       allowed McDonald County                                                    backed me in my choice
I figured it had to be God’s plan because it        to save enough money to                                                   to go into law enforcement
all came together in a matter of months. It         recently double the size of the                                         — and both are avid scanner
certainly turned out to be an eye-opening           jail and add a kitchen as well as                                   listeners! My dad, Gary, actually
experience,” he laughed. “To go from                office space for the deputies — with-                          wanted to be a trooper when he
dispatch to the classroom to working nights         out increasing taxes.                               was young but at the time, they had a height
where everything happens — especially as               “My next goal is to add more staff,              requirement and he was just a little too short.
a 21-year-old kid — wow!”                           especially in the jail, because although our        Instead, he went into farming and has
   He continued working overnights until            holding capabilities went from 32 to 64, we         raised cattle my whole life. When I retire, I
early 1999 when a school resource officer           have the same number of people working              plan to work the farm with him. I figure by
position opened in the McDonald County              in the jail,” Sheriff Hall said, adding that as     then, I’ll be ready for the peace and quiet!”
R-1 School District. He asked for it and the        a third-class county surrounded by counties
sheriff agreed that he would be a good fit.         with larger, more robust economies, trying            By Nancy Zoellner

14      THE MISSOURI SHERIFF SPRING 2020
S T. CL AIR COUN T Y SHERIFF S CO T T K EELER

Sheriff Leads by Following a Family Tradition
St. Clair Sheriff Scott Keeler was raised in a law enforcement family. His father
                                                                                                          and his office joined forces with
worked as an officer with the Independence Police Department before                                           the Mid-Missouri Multijuris-
taking a job with the Kansas City Veteran Affairs Police. His paternal                                           dictional Drug Task Force,
grandfather was a judge in Moniteau County. Discussions on law                                                     which consists of eight
and justice were commonplace at the dinner table, but it was one                                                     counties and several
particular conversation with his grandfather that set the course                                                      individual municipal
for how he lives his life — and runs his office.                                                                      departments located
                                                                                                                      within those counties.
   “I was just 5 or 6 years old. We had         it and worked there 13                                                  “I couldn’t be more
come back home from a church service            years as a deputy before                                            pleased with the results
where the sermon was ‘Judge not lest ye         I resigned to campaign for                                        we’ve had because of that
be judged.’ I asked my grandfather how          sheriff. That was a fulltime                                   affiliation. In fact, I heard that
he could be a judge when the Bible says to      job in itself because I spent every                         one of the drug kingpins said he
judge not. He said he never judged a person     day going door to door to share my                   wouldn’t come to St. Clair County be-
— he judged the actions of a person — that      thoughts and ideas.”                            cause he knew he was being pursued here.
good people do bad things and bad people           His hard work paid off. He won the elec-     I take that as a compliment,” he said.
do good things and that we are either held      tion, was sworn into office January 1, 2013,       In order to network with other law
accountable or we reap the rewards of that      and has served as sheriff ever since.           enforcement, Sheriff Keeler began hosting
behavior. That has stuck with me to this           Since taking office one of his top priori-   monthly luncheons for sheriffs in sur-
day. It’s how I base my outlook on life and     ties has been making sure everything is         rounding counties and police, prosecuting
guides how I deal with the people I serve,”     transparent and done properly. To help          attorneys, Highway Patrol, conservation,
he said.                                        accomplish that, Sheriff Keeler created a       probation/parole, and others in his county
   Although the young Keeler felt he would      public information officer position so news     as well as the adjoining counties.
work in law enforcement someday, in his         could be made available and questions              An ongoing goal is to build a new office/
younger years he worked as a mechanic           from the public could be answered in a          communication building so they can con-
and tow truck driver. Later he got a degree     timely manner. He also started a website        vert their current 135-bed facility into “just
in electronics, then moved to Phoenix,          that provides up-to-date information on         jail” and add badly needed space — and
Arizona, to look for a job in that field.       court cases so victims — or just interested     beds. A citizen’s board is currently explor-
Although that search was unsuccessful,          parties — can easily keep tabs on cases.        ing expansion options. And as if keeping
he did get in with a security and investiga-       To make schools safer and build rapport      law and order in the county wasn’t enough,
tions company that was just getting off the     between law enforcement and his county’s        each year the sheriff’s office partners with
ground. Too far from family, a couple years     youth, Sheriff Keeler started a School Re-      the schools to provide winter coats, hats
later he moved back to the Kansas City area     source Officer program.                         and gloves for children who need them and
and started his own private investigations         “Two deputies — one fulltime and one         with Dollar General to make sure kids get
firm.                                           part-time — go around to all the schools to     gifts at Christmas. Each fall Sheriff Keeler
   However, in mid-1998 the pull toward         keep those lines of communication open.         organizes a family potluck picnic for his
law enforcement became too strong. He           I’d like to expand the program and put a        72-member staff and their families.
closed his investigations office and enrolled   deputy in every school, not only for safety        “I’m a big believer that this operation is
in the Central Missouri Police Academy.         reasons but because for most kids the only      not just a team — we’re a family — and I
   “I knew then that I wanted to return to      interaction they have with law enforce-         greatly appreciate every member,” he said.
the Truman Lake area and St. Clair County,      ment is when there’s a problem in the fam-      “As a deputy sheriff, I felt like I was making
in particular. I had attended the Boy Scout     ily. However, we don’t have the funding         a difference during my eight-hour shifts.
camp here and loved it and had the honor        to do that and the schools say they aren’t      Since taking office, that’s expanded. Today
of meeting Shirley Collins, a long-standing     in a position to help. So, for now, they        my office is making a difference every hour
sheriff in the county. After I graduated the    divide their time up between the schools,       of every day because it’s no longer just my
academy, I hounded the sheriff’s office for     attend functions and even accompany the         boots on the ground — it’s my staff follow-
a job,” he laughed. “Unfortunately, they        students on field trips, which is a win-win     ing my directives and doing what they can
didn’t have any openings so I went to work      for everybody,” he said.                        to serve and protect the St. Clair County
for the Appleton City Police Department.           To keep his community safer and to bet-      community.”
When a road patrol spot with the sheriff’s      ter fight the war on drugs, Sheriff Keeler
office opened in November 1998, I took          formed a Special Response Team Unit               By Nancy Zoellner

                                                                                                                 www.mosheriffs.com           15
ON THE JOB                    Behind the Scenes: Support Staff

Fred Cave, Callaway County

On the Road Again
T
        ransport and Extradition Deputy        deputy — a retired jail administrator,           else,” he said, adding that when he’s not
        Fred Cave said that during his         a retired civil process server or                transporting prisoners, he’s assisting
        30-year tenure with the Callaway       retired Sheriff Dennis Crane — when              with courtroom security.
County Sheriff’s Office he’s picked up         he’s picking up men — or a female                   Sheriff Chism said he feels transport
prisoners from nearly every state in the       corrections officer when he’s picking up         officers don’t get enough respect for the
Union — even from as far away as An-           women.                                           job they do.
chorage, Alaska. Just as impressive, he’s         On long hauls, he pre-arranges                   “It’s easy for people to think of it as a
accomplished that without incident.            with jails along the                                                      whirlwind vacation
   “I never had anyone get away. I never       route to keep his                                                         on the taxpayers’
even had anyone try to get away, but           detainees overnight                                                       dollars, but in real
I’ve always told them, ‘You respect me.        while he and his                    “I never had anyone                   life that’s one heck
I’ll respect you.’ And because of that,        law enforcement                                                           of a responsibility.
                                                                                   get away. I never even
I’ve never had a bit of trouble,” he said,     ride-along sleep in                                                       Extraditing a prison
adding that he also shares his faith with      a hotel. Meals are                  had anyone try to get                 from the West Coast
his transports. “I tell them ‘God has a        usually grabbed along               away, but I’ve always                 or the East Coast
better plan for your life,’ and they listen.   the way at fast-food                                                      to mid-Missouri
                                                                                   told them, ‘You respect
Sometimes people have to hit bottom            restaurants. Prisoners                                                    can take four to
before they’re willing to make a change.       wear handcuffs                      me. I’ll respect you.’                five days of driving
I figure I might be there for a reason so I    and leg irons but,                  And because of that,                  — two to two-and-
share with everybody — from murderers          depending upon the                                                        a-half days to get
on down.”                                      charges, one handcuff
                                                                                   I’ve never had a bit of               there and then two
   Cave said when he started, he flew          might be removed to                 trouble,”                             to two-and-a-half
quite a bit but as fares increased and air     make it easier for the                                                    days to get back.
travel changed, he began transporting in       detainee to eat.                                 It’s not a job a lot of people could do
a patrol vehicle equipped with special               Cave joined the Callaway County            — or do as well as Deputy Fred Cave,”
safety features.                                          Sheriff’s Office at the request       the sheriff said. “He’s well-respected
   Sheriff Clay Chism said                                     of former Sheriff Harry          within our agency and throughout the
although he may be                                                Lee. Cave said at the         community because, while he’s firm in
considered “old-school,”                                           time it sounded like a       his duty, he is professional and respectful
he prefers to “keep                                                 good, stable way to         in his firmness. The criminal offenders
the wheels on the                                                    earn a living — and it     themselves even recognize this, hence
pavement” because,                                                   has been. However,         why they attempt to contact Deputy Cave
in addition to the cost-                                             although getting paid      when released. Younger deputies simply
benefit, he believes                                                to drive across the         admire how Deputy Cave performs. As
driving is safer than                                              country might sound          much as he deserves his retirement, I
flying. “When you fly,                                           glamorous, it’s usually        can’t imagine the day when I have to
you’re at the mercy of the                                   anything but.                      fill his position because he is one of a
airline. You also take the chance                          “I’ll drive most of the day, then    kind. When you think about what a
of the inmate becoming unruly and the          stop for dinner and to sleep. Then we            law enforcement officer should act like,
airline would then have the right to kick      get up early and try to keep on going            there is no need to look beyond Deputy
the deputy and inmate off. I can’t end up      until we get there. I try to pick up my          Cave as he sets the example at a very
with a deputy and inmate stranded in an        prisoner and drive as far as I can get           high mark! I admire him personally and
airport somewhere!”                            before stopping again for the night. I           professionally.”
   Cave said when he makes his pick-ups,       get to see some beautiful country but
he’s always accompanied by another             it’s really just a job just like anything           By Nancy Zoellner

16     THE MISSOURI SHERIFF SPRING 2020
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ON THE JOB                     Behind the Scenes: Support Staff

Dwight Willis, Greene County

He Never Fails to Deliver
I
    nmates in the Greene County Jail receive a combined average of           Willis has also discovered and turned over information that has
    168 postcards and a dozen or so pieces of legal mail and another      helped bring cases to a successful end — and he’s probably saved
    460-some electronic messages per day.                                 some lives.
  Dwight Willis and his assistant Corey Todd review them all. Every.         “One of the more common things we deal with is victim witness
Single. One.                                                              tampering, especially in domestic violence cases. This is not verba-
  They begin each morning by logging every piece in by hand on a          tim but several times we’ve found outgoing mail that says something
computer, noting the name and address of the sender and the name,         like, ‘If you think you got a beating before I got in here, wait until
cell number and jacket number of the inmate who received it.              you see what happens if you show up in court and testify against
  Next, the men read the postcards and cut off all stamps, which          me.’ We scan those in and send them to the prosecutor’s office,” Wil-
                                                                          lis said, adding that he’s always on the lookout for suicidal tenden-
                                                                          cies — anyone talking about being depressed. “It’s really something
                                                                          we have to keep our eye on, especially during the holidays.”
                                                                             Although he’s never discovered a proverbial “bar-cutting file” in a
                                                                          letter, he did help prevent an escape by an inmate who wrote about
                                                                          saving enough ink pens to dye his green jail uniform blue in hopes
                                                                          of walking out with volunteers. “We caught that letter, went up and
                                                                          looked and sure enough that’s what he had done — but he wasn’t
                                                                          able to get out the front door,” he laughed.
                                                                             Willis and his assistant have also handled a few pieces of mail that
                                                                          could have been dangerous to their health.
                                                                             Back in the day of the anthrax scares, Willis opened an outgo-
                                                                          ing letter addressed to a judge that contained a white powdery
                                                                          substance. It turned out to be baby powder but it caused quite a
                                                                          stir. And before Greene County switched to postcards only, Wilkes
                                                                          opened an envelope that carried only a sheet of blank paper. When
                                                                          unfolded, the paper crackled and little flakes started falling off. “We
                                                                          had it tested and it turned out to be a narcotic,” he said. “Ironically,
have been known to hide illegal drugs. Postcards deemed “unac-            the woman that sent it used her actual name and address on the
ceptable” because of content or failure to meet guidelines are logged     return and she had a visit scheduled with that inmate that very
and a rejection notice is filled out for both the inmate and the          night so the detectives just waited for her to show up. I believe she
sender. Once that job is finished, they process inmate outgoing mail,     was arrested.”
following the same procedures — but leaving the stamps intact.               Willis’ dedication to the job and his keen eye haven’t gone un-
   Then they tackle the texts, reading as many as they can before         noticed. He’s been presented with a challenge coin from the Greene
their eight-hour shift ends. When time allows, they also watch ran-       County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office to thank him for the informa-
dom video visits, which are recorded. “We do the very best we can         tion he’s turned over, and he’s received several letters of apprecia-
to get through the electronic messages but we devote our time and         tion from sheriffs and even one from the Department of Justice for
energy to the paper mail because it needs to be delivered in a timely     his involvement in a pedophile and child pornography case.
manner.”                                                                      Willis said he’s proud of the job they do — and he doesn’t ever
   The job may seem mundane to some but Willis said every day             foresee a shortage of work.
brings new challenges. In his 19 years in the mailroom, he’s seen it         “Inmates can receive an unlimited number of postcards and they
all — some “racy” pictures he’d like to forget and envelopes that are     can send as many as they can afford. Indigent inmates are provided
full of all sorts of prohibited items including glitter and/or candy.     with two postcards per week and we also pay postage for their legal
And he’s read it all — heartbreaking notes from children who are          mail because we have an obligation to keep their legal mail flowing
missing their parents, reports from family members of children be-        and we have an obligation to make sure they maintain contact with
ing taken from the home or letters from spouses detailing the strug-      the outside world. With an average population in the upper 900s —
gles they’re experiencing with the main breadwinner behind bars.          well, do the math.”
   “It can take a toll on you after a while so you have to learn how to
mentally release it, go home and decompress,” he said.                      By Nancy Zoellner

18     THE MISSOURI SHERIFF SPRING 2020
ON THE JOB                   Vendor Spotlight

Encartele: Empowering Corrections
Through Innovative Solutions
Larry Hammerschmidt, Pete Lorenze and Larry Joiner have decades of
experience between them to assist Missouri’s sheriffs with state-of-the-art
solutions for their jails.

E
        ver since it was founded in 2004, Encartele has focused      visitation of every single inmate. However, the ability of flag
        on making a difference in the corrections industry — one     text phrases or words is huge,” he said, adding that it’s already
        jail at a time — by creating fair, secure, and easy-to-use   helped stop a very real risk at one Missouri jail. “That’s just one
technologies for law enforcement professionals and inmates           of the ways we can streamline the jail operation and enable
and their friends and family.                                        them to do more with fewer people.”
  In Missouri, Encartele has made a difference for numerous            Hammerschmidt, Larry Joiner and Pete Lorenz service
facilities including a jail in southwest Missouri where inmates      sheriffs’ offices and jails in Missouri and they have, combined,
and approved contacts traded more than 40,000 messages               more than 100 years of experience that will help develop the
in December 2019 alone. In the same month, inmates in a              system that’s right for the sheriffs’ needs.
central Missouri jail participated in 578 remote visits with           Joiner is a retired police chief from Kansas City, Missouri, and
friends and family.                                                  former U.S. marshal for the Western District of Missouri. He’s
  To bring reliable, next-gen technology into corrections,           been involved in law enforcement and in the inmate phone
Encartele maintains and operates two separate systems: ICENET        business for many years and has developed strong working
and CIDNET. ICENET is a legacy inmate phone system that has          relationships with many police departments and sheriffs’ offices
supported jails for the last 15 years. CIDNET was first deployed     across the state.
in 2015 and currently provides messaging and video visitation          Lorenz is a former deputy, and also started one of the first
services to more than 150 jails across the United States.            private inmate phone companies, so he knows the business
  Of the two systems, CIDNET best represents the future of the       inside out. He, too, has developed strong relationships with
corrections industry.                                                sheriffs’ offices across Missouri.
  The web-based system maximizes a facility’s operational              Hammerschmidt worked for Southwestern Bell for 27 years
efficiency in numerous ways. With CIDNET, digital forms              before retiring. Then in 2001 he got into the inmate phone
replace standard pen-and-paper kites (messages). Content             business and has been working with Missouri’s sheriffs ever
Broadcasting TVs replace bulletin boards and paper postings.         since.
And beyond that, every video visit, message, and user
interaction gets logged and recorded by CIDNET, ensuring for         “One of the reasons we work very hard to stay
accurate reporting and auditing.                                     connected through the Missouri Sheriffs’ Association
  Here are some other reasons why people love CIDNET:                is because our relationship with the sheriffs and jail
     • Clean, intuitively designed interface                         administrators helps us understand how they do things
     • User-friendly controls and functions that are easy to learn   and determine what’s important to them and what
     • A.I. visual moderation for picture messages (to detect        they need. Our products impact safety and security in
        nudity/illicit activity)                                     the jail but they also impact manpower requirements,”
     • New, staff-requested enhancements that are released bi-       Hammerschmidt said, adding that he has always kept
        weekly (including documentation)                             his own personal membership in the MSA in addition
     • Flag text moderation for messages, which can be set           to the company membership because he supports
        to automatically detect and then notify jail staff when      the organization. “Involvement is one of the most
        certain phrases or potential offensive and/or unwanted       important things we can do,” he said.
        images are used.
  Larry Hammerschmidt, director of client relations at                 For more information about Encartele’s products, visit www.
Encartele, said that’s a major benefit.                              cidnet.net or contact Hammerschmidt at lhammer@encartele.net
  “As you can imagine, jails don’t have the manpower and their       or 314-650-5800.
staff doesn’t have the time to monitor every single call and video

20     THE MISSOURI SHERIFF SPRING 2020
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