Grafton discusses dispatch gaps and waives indemnity requirement for State agency Armory rentals

City Attorney Rob Fleming raised two operational public-safety issues at the March 10 meeting: gaps in arrangements for housing women who must serve municipal jail time, and limitations in Walsh County dispatch services that have, Fleming said, put city officers at risk.

Fleming reported that since January 2024 Walsh County has not arranged placement for women who must serve sentences and that the county has declined to make such arrangements because it is not compensated for doing so. Fleming said the City is contacting Lake Region Law Enforcement Center for housing arrangements for women and that he will write the North Dakota Attorney General seeking clarity on what dispatch services Walsh County is legally required to provide. Fleming described a case in which a Grafton officer called county dispatch about whether a person had a federal warrant but was initially told dispatch does not provide that service to Grafton; the officer then contacted Chief Tony Dumas and the Sheriff to confirm the warrant existed.

Separately, Fleming presented the Armory rental Indemnity Agreement, outlined three policy options and the council voted to waive the Indemnity form for State agencies when they rent the Community Room. The motion to waive the indemnity form was moved by Mr. Greg Young and seconded by Mr. Brad Burianek and carried unanimously among members present. Fleming said he will update the council after receiving guidance from the Attorney General and after pursuing arrangements for women's jail housing.

The council’s action to table the Valley Ambulance asset-gift request (discussed elsewhere on the agenda) was taken contemporaneously so the city can review VARS’s financial viability before any transfer of assets.