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Sheriff reports rises in activity; commissioners press for rural coverage MOUs and funding, GPS policy adopted
Summary
Sheriff Naul reported increased arrests and activity for 2024 and described coverage challenges across Grant County's large, rural geography. Commissioners pressed for MOUs with municipalities and use of law-enforcement protection funds; the commission later adopted a countywide GPS policy.
Sheriff Naul told the Board of County Commissioners on Jan. 9 that the sheriff's office responded to 5,409 dispatched calls and recorded 14,018 self-initiated calls in 2024, figures he described as an operational increase over the prior year.
"The sheriff's office was dispatched to 5,409 calls for service, and we had self initiated calls of 14,018," Naul said, and he walked the board through crime and service statistics including burglaries, domestic-violence investigations, stolen vehicles and animal-control activity.
Commissioners used Naul's report to press for clearer rural coverage commitments and funding strategies. Commissioner Flores pressed the sheriff and the board to pursue formal agreements with municipalities to direct state-derived law-enforcement protection funds to the sheriff's office for equipment and staffing, saying, "I want to see, and at some point in the near future, come up with an MOU to get that law enforcement protection fund to give to you." Several commissioners also discussed the need for improved communication with residents after incidents and for deputies to leave follow-up contact information for victims.
Naul defended current operational choices and said restoring resident deputies to rural posts was a priority: he described directives that shift commanders send officers into rural sectors when resident deputies are off duty and said he had reestablished at least one resident deputy in several areas since returning to the office in 2023. On accountability measures he described the department's use of in-vehicle GPS and said the system supports officer safety and driving-accountability review.
"I will never deny any resident, no matter if they have a police department, if they want the sheriff's office, the sheriff's office is going to respond," Naul said.
The commission later considered and approved a countywide GPS policy (Resolution R-25-09). Commissioners said the policy is intended to standardize expectations across county departments and to provide an additional accountability layer beyond departmental rules.
Ending: Commissioners and the sheriff agreed to pursue follow-up discussions about resident coverage levels, possible MOUs with municipalities, and the use of grant or law-enforcement-protection funds to purchase equipment or fund staffing extensions.
