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St. Helens council debates whether fee revenue should fund detectives or patrol positions
Summary
Councilors and police leaders debated whether revenue from a potential general services fee should be prioritized for two dedicated detectives for child‑protection cases or used to fill patrol positions and reduce overtime; staff described hiring timelines and current training pipeline.
ST. HELENS, Ore. — A central dispute during the Feb. 11 special session was how revenue from a possible general services fee should be allocated between detective investigators and patrol staffing.
Mayor (unnamed) and several council members said they want the fee to create capacity for dedicated detectives to handle heavy workloads in child exploitation and abuse investigations. "If we're going to be asking citizens to put money forward... we have to take care of our children in this community," the mayor said, urging dedicated investigative positions and…
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