Sheriff Turner Gives 2016 Crime Statistics Update

WAITSBURG – Walla Walla County Sheriff's Office calls for service in 2016 were up over the previous four years in Waitsburg. But Sheriff John Turner told Waitsburg's city council that is a good thing, during his quarterly update at the March 15 city council meeting.

The WWCSO received 532 calls for service in Waitsburg in 2016, more than double the 247 calls received in 2015, and more than any of the three years prior to that. The number of Suspicious Circumstances calls jumped from 22 in 2015 to 54 last year.

"I'm hoping that means mine and the deputy's message, 'if you see something, say something,' is getting through. That's the type of statistic we really want to see. Not that there is more going on but that more people are feeling comfortable calling us. It means we're building trust with the community," Turner said.

But not all the statistics were positive. Total recorded crime jumped from 18 crimes in 2015 to 40 in 2016. Burglary/Breaking and Entering was down one, from 10 to nine, but all other crimes (aside from Forcible Rape, which has been zero for the last four years) showed an increase.

Turner said his office plans to keep an especially close eye on Motor Vehicle Theft, which jumped from zero in 2015 to five in 2016, the highest it's been in four years. Larceny doubled from six to 12 recorded cases and simple assault increased from one to eight.

Turner submitted a time summary for 2016 which shows deputies patrolling Waitsburg 573.78 hours above what was contracted for the year.

Council member KC Kuykendall relayed a query from a citizen who wondered why officers are so often parked just past the Main Street Bridge. Turner said deputies are most likely engaged in paperwork, while parked.

Council member Kevin House said he generally sees deputies parked in one of three spots: across the Main Street Bridge, in the county shop parking lot, and in the parking lot between the ball field and the cemetery. House asked if deputy presence would be more of a crime deterrent if they parked in more visible locations, such as along the Highway.

Turner said it could be a matter of safety and that where officers park is a matter for the staff sergeant, not the sheriff.

"I'm not going to dictate where they park. They need to be comfortable with where they're parked and what they're doing. If they're engaged in a light report and can keep their head up, they may park in a more populated area.

"If they're in a deeper report and really concentrating, I agree, I would park in a place that's harder to walk up on, too. We have police officers that are ambushed and killed in their cars every year across this nation, often in small communities. We have well-trained deputies and they know what they're doing," Turner said.

Kuykendall challenged whether officers were always deeply engaged in deep report-writing and asked if it would be reasonable to request that deputies park in more visible locations when they are not deeply engaged.

Turner responded that he was not interested in micromanaging how deputies spend their time. "I don't think you want me to go there," he said.

"I don't think it's the city council's job to tell the Sheriff's Office how to run their business. So we're going to leave that to the Sheriff's Office," Mayor Marty Dunn said.

Turner said he would gladly pass on council concerns, public perceptions, and public observations and allow his staff to respond accordingly.