LaPorte County Merit Commission hears monthly sheriff’s report; marine patrol logs more lake hours

LaPorte County Sheriff’s Merit Commission members met Oct. 8 and approved the minutes from last month before hearing a monthly operational report from the sheriff’s office that included mixed trends in calls, traffic enforcement and marine patrol activity.

Sheriff said calls for service fell 10% from August to September — from 2,613 to 2,220 — and reported an 18% drop in crash reports (from 89 to 73) and a 29% decrease in traffic stops (from 1,135 to 895). “So far this year, we've taken 20,488 calls compared to this time last year in which we had 19,627 calls for service,” the sheriff said, noting a small year-to-date increase.

The sheriff also thanked the Merit Commission for a donation to the LaPorte County canine fund following the unexpected death of former commissioner Louise Mach and said he had asked LaPorte High School principal Scott Up to fill Mach’s remaining term.…