Callahan County approves MOU with City of Baird and Baird ISD to place school resource officer

At its March meeting, the Callahan County Commissioners Court approved a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the City of Baird and Baird Independent School District to station a school resource officer (SRO) in Baird schools.

The MOU, discussed at length during the meeting, says the school district and city will cover the SRO’s salary and related daily rate for days worked; the sheriff’s office will retain supervisory control and responsibility for policies and training. Commissioners approved the MOU by voice vote, recorded as 4 in favor and 2 opposed.

Supporters said the SRO will shorten response time in serious incidents. Sheriff Chad, describing a recent case in which deputies spent roughly an hour locating a student who had left campus with a large knife, said an on-campus officer would have reduced that response time: “It took us about an hour to locate that kiddo and get him into our custody and get their knife away from him.” He told the court the arrangement would also allow the deputy to be trained for other county duties such as fire-investigation work and that the county benefits from having a deputy available for county emergencies.

Opponents and some commissioners pressed for clarity on who would pay for overtime, vehicle usage and equipment. The MOU, as revised during the led discussion, specifies that the city and school district will be responsible for overtime related to after-school functions (football, basketball, track and similar extracurriculars). The sheriff said the county would be responsible only for certain equipment costs, naming uniform ammunition as an example. The precise language in the MOU is: field overtime for extracurricular events will be billed to the city and district; county responsibilities are limited and defined in the agreement.

Commissioners and the sheriff debated vehicle assignment and take-home policy. Some raised concerns that requiring the deputy to drive a personal vehicle to school and leave a county vehicle parked there could increase wear-and-tear and costs when the deputy uses the vehicle for county patrol duties. The sheriff said the SRO’s vehicle would likely be an older unit kept at the school while the deputy is assigned to school shifts and that the deputy could be recalled for county emergencies.

Speakers also discussed confidentiality limits for school staff seeking information about juvenile investigations, with the sheriff noting legal constraints on what law enforcement can share with school officials.

The motion to approve the MOU was made by Commissioner Michelle McGowan and seconded by Commissioner Windham. The court recorded the vote as 4 in favor, 2 opposed. The agreement was not read into the record in full during the meeting; the court placed the signed MOU on file.