Sheriff warns of AI phone scams, reports staffing and inmate-work figures

During the sheriff''s report, the county''s law enforcement representative warned the public about phone scams that use AI-generated voices impersonating family members to demand money. The sheriff urged residents not to provide personal information or payment over the phone and advised callers to contact the jail directly with questions.

The sheriff said the department is hiring two full-time security positions pending final certification and paperwork, and that a school resource officer who is already certified will be sworn in next Monday after a brief additional training week.

A jail official described recent inmate-management figures, saying the county received roughly $69,000 in state inmate pay and approximately $11,000 from classes, for a combined figure the transcript recorded as about $84,961. The official said the county operates work-release crews (including a female crew) that perform road and trash pickup and community assistance; during a recent winter spell, the county distributed about 65 loads of donated wood to residents in need.

The sheriff''s report included a tax-collection figure read aloud as "808088% collected on taxes," which appears to be a transcription error; the precise percentage was not specified in the transcript.

Quote: "Don't give any information like that on the phone," the sheriff said, warning residents about the scam.

Ending: The court moved on to other agenda items after the sheriff''s report; no formal action was taken on enforcement or fraud-prevention measures at the meeting.