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Residents press council to fix sheriff contract, urge countywide safety levy
Summary
During lengthy public comment at the Oct. 8 Chouteau council meeting, multiple residents urged the council to resolve a disputed contract with the sheriff's office, asked officials to seek an Attorney General opinion and pushed for a countywide safety levy or a city police department as remedies.
A long series of public comments at the Chouteau City Council meeting on Oct. 8 focused on community safety and a dispute over the town's contract with the county sheriff's office. Several residents said they feel unsafe and urged the council to press county commissioners for a countywide public-safety levy or pursue a municipal police department if county cooperation does not materialize.
One resident summarized the public sentiment: "I don't feel safe," and urged the council and county to come together to resolve the service gap. Speakers regularly referenced an Attorney General opinion from 1998 that staff said they had sought for clarification and a cited 1914 Supreme Court ruling that staff said factored into legal questions about whether a contracted sheriff arrangement requires a municipal police chief or commission.
Council members and staff acknowledged the frustration and outlined constraints: the council said it has held multiple public meetings and that the county commissioners and sheriff's office had not proposed a new contract or counteroffer. Staff and the chair said the city had asked the Attorney General for clarification and warned that the AG response can take 45 to 180 days depending on the matter's complexity. Council members encouraged residents to also bring concerns to county commissioners to increase pressure for a county-level solution.
Speakers suggested two distinct remedies: a countywide safety levy (which proponents said would spread costs evenly across the county) or the city forming its own police department — a measure council staff estimated could cost roughly three-quarters of $1,000,000 to stand up. Council members said those were policy options but noted the city lacks authority to unilaterally run a county levy; that would require action by the county commissioners.
What comes next: Council members asked staff to continue seeking legal guidance from the Attorney General and to report back; residents were urged to engage the county commissioners as well. No formal vote on law-enforcement policy or a levy took place during the meeting.
Provenance: topicintro SEG 535, topfinish SEG 1878.
