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CAT Tracks for September 28, 2009
WOE IS US |
From the Southeast Missourian...
Alexander County's budget problems get 'worse and worse'
By Bridget DiCosmo ~ Southeast Missourian
CAIRO, Ill. -- Financial woes that recently caused the sheriff's department in Alexander County to lose three-fourths of its personnel to layoffs have also created an outstanding debt the county owes to a Missouri hospital, according to Alexander County Coroner Willie Bingham.
Bingham said the Alexander County Coroner's office currently owes about $10,000 in autopsy fees to the Mineral Area Regional Medical Center in Farmington, Mo.
The debt further compounds budget problems for Alexander County, where 27 percent of the residents live below the poverty line and Sheriff David Barkett has been forced to rely on just four deputies to cover the more than 250-square-mile county.
Last week, Barkett lost five of six county-owned patrol cars to First National Bank of Cairo because the county had defaulted on their payments for the vehicles.
"It's just getting worse and worse," Bingham said of the county's budget problems.
As county coroner, Bingham is forced to send a body out for an autopsy each time he can't pinpoint the exact reason for a death. Mineral Area is the facility that generally conducts autopsies for local counties, including Cape Girardeau, and fees usually run about $1,750, Bingham said.
He said he fears there will come a point where he'll be unable to have an autopsy performed unless the debt is paid off.
"That's basically where I've got the bag over my head," Bingham said.
The county's general fund currently has about $30,000, and county board member Angela Greenwell said things have been in a "downward spiral" for decades.
The clerk's office has a new computer to store all of the county's registered voters and ballot results, but it sits unusable because the county has run up a $35,000 tab with the provider of the system and software, according to County Clerk Nancy Kline.
An amount of $50,000 was recently transferred by a judge to the county's general fund from the court system, giving them enough money to pay what was owed to four of the deputies recently laid off, Greenwell said.
Alexander County also owes about $86,000 to Tri-County Jail in Ullin, Ill., for costs associated with housing prisoners, Greenwell said.
With such limited staffing, Barkett has been taking emergency measures to keep the county safe, including an appeal last week to state and federal officials in Springfield, Ill., for donated vehicles.
From the WPSD TV Channel 6 Website...
UPDATE: Sheriff's Department Gets Donated Cars
Reported by: Jeff Stensland
ALEXANDER CO., IL - Just two days after the Alexander Co. Sheriff's Department turned five of its patrol cars over to the bank for defaulting on its loans, agencies from across the country have offered a helping hand in the form of patrol cars.
The Law Enforcement Service Office in Springfield is figuring out how to get those patrol cars to Cairo. All five cars that have been donated to the department replace five the department returned to First National Bank Tuesday.
The Sheriff's Department owed about $55,000 on the loans and was six months behind in payments. Sheriff David Barkett says Gov. Pat Quinn, D-Illinois, has already outfitted him with a new Ford Expedition.
The new patrol cars are being donated to the county and are paid in full.
Statement From St. Lucie, FL, Sheriff:
Responding to a nationwide request for assistance by a cash-strapped southern Illinois, St. Lucie County, Fla., Sheriff Ken J. Mascara said today he is prepared to help.
“Alexander County, Ill., Sheriff David Barkett, has had his budget reduced by 75 percent,” Sheriff Mascara said, “and the Alexander County Commission has not been able to keep up the payments on five squad cars for the Sheriff’s Department. A bank has repossessed the cars.”
Sheriff Mascara learned about these problems from the Florida Sheriff’s Association.
“In 2004, St. Lucie County was the epicenter of three devastating weather events: Hurricanes Frances, Jeanne and Tropical Storm Wilma,” Sheriff Mascara said. “The St. Lucie County Sheriff’s Office and our community were the benefactors of an outpouring of support from across the country. Now that a fellow Sheriff finds himself in a time of need, I believe it is appropriate to offer assistance.
“Public safety is perhaps the most important service government can provide to its citizens. Without it, a community would cease to exist. In these trying economic times, public safety is more important than ever,” Sheriff Mascara said. “As a Sheriff, I know the responsibilities and daunting tasks faced by a fellow Sheriff. Because I know how important vehicles are to the operations of a Sheriff’s Office, I felt compelled to offer assistance to Sheriff Barkett in his hour of need.
“Although I am somewhat surprised and disappointed that others closer than South Florida to Alexander County, Ill., have not stepped forward to help at this time, I want to help,” Sheriff Mascara said. “I have informed the Alexander County, Ill., Sheriff’s Department that I am prepared to donate five high-mileage, out-of-commission vehicles to that department.”
Sheriff Mascara said that the high mileage on those five cars renders them unsuitable for use by the St. Lucie County Sheriff’s Office. “If we auctioned these vehicles, we could expect to receive no more than $3,500 to $4,000 after deducting selling expenses.”
The St. Lucie County Sheriff’s Office will install out-of-use light bars on the donated cars. “We use newer, lighter, more efficient light bars on our squad cars than the light bars we are donating,” said Sheriff Mascara.
“It is my understanding that Sheriff Barkett is conferring with state officials to try to deal with funding issues,” Sheriff Mascara said. “In the meantime, we are prepared to help.”
Sheriff Mascara said, “Though the vehicles I am providing to Sheriff Barkett would fetch only a small amount if sold on the open market, I know these vehicles will be priceless to Sheriff Barkett and the people of Alexander County, Ill., to help their Sheriff’s Department operate effectively.”
To view previous stories Local 6 has done on this issue, click here.
