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Court Clerk Tracy Martinez temporarily transferred to dispatch after council vote
Summary
Milton-Freewater council approved a temporary transfer of Court Clerk Tracy Martinez to the police dispatch unit through Sept. 30 after hearing that the dispatch center is understaffed and current staff face burnout. The transfer is subject to permanent review by the incoming city manager.
Court Clerk Tracy Martinez will be temporarily assigned to the Milton-Freewater Police Department dispatch unit through Sept. 30 after the City Council voted unanimously at a June 22, 2026 special meeting.
Police Chief Joe Shurtz told the council the dispatch center has been operating short-staffed for months and was down two dispatchers, forcing single-coverage 12-hour shifts and causing “extreme staff burnout.” He recounted a recruitment timeline: the department asked Human Resources to post the dispatch opening on March 4, 2026; testing scheduled March 29 drew no applicants; two candidates passed testing May 9 but one withdrew because of graveyard shift requirements; and another dispatcher resigned June 5 to join the Walla Walla dispatch center. Shurtz said new hires require a background check, a three-week academy in Salem and a three-day Emergency Medical Dispatch course, so a new hire hired now would likely not be certified and independent until December.
Shurtz said Court Clerk Martinez is already certified for dispatch work and has covered 71.75 hours of dispatch overtime so far this year and 755 hours since 2022, and he warned that a refusal to allow a transfer would likely force canceled staff vacations, union grievances and possible resignations.
Martinez, speaking from the audience, described a recent 12-hour solo shift in which she coordinated a medical response requiring three ambulances and a Life Flight helicopter while simultaneously handling multiple active police dispatch calls. “I didn’t understand that it was alright for me to fill the position temporarily but not be there full-time,” Martinez told the council, saying the current staffing level is unsustainable.
Councilors raised legal and nepotism questions. Mayor Mike Odman said both the city labor attorney and the city attorney recommended opening a new position rather than processing a direct transfer and flagged potential conflicts under OAR 199-008-0008. Chief Shurtz said the transfer would avoid direct family supervision because Martinez would report to him and later to a second sergeant once hired.
Councilor John Lyon first moved a temporary transfer subject to final review and permanent approval by the incoming city manager; that motion failed on a roll call described in the minutes as “failed unanimously.” Lyon then renewed a motion to transfer Martinez temporarily through Sept. 30, to be analyzed by the new city manager for permanent appointment, with pay at the dispatch scale. Councilor Destiny Jensen seconded the motion, and the council approved it unanimously (6–0). The council minutes note that the transfer remains subject to final review and permanent approval by the incoming city manager.
What happens next: the transfer takes effect as a temporary arrangement; permanent placement and any formal job posting or reclassification is to be decided after the new city manager reviews the matter.
