There was a stark contrast the past two days in our parking lot, email inboxes, and phone systems compared to Tuesday. The frenzy around the Sheriff’s Office has began to fade into yesterday’s news. I am completely honored to have had a national spotlight on our agency, and its’ law enforcement partnerships, in regards to this singular event. Supportive messages and phone calls, and even food (Big Thanks to Mission BBQ Evansville) flooded into the Office as gestures of support. I stated before that the important part of this case for the Sheriff’s Office was settled on Monday afternoon when the criminals were caught, but it was all of the events before and after which really displayed the professionalism of our Office. Support staff were inundated with calls and requests from media outlets, our investigators worked (and continue to do so) tirelessly to gather more information on the case, the Jail staff was tasked with handling a very high profile inmate, the Transportation Unit coordinated with officials in Lauderdale County (AL) to arrange for a very high-risk transport, and our IT and Records staff worked on ways for file sharing, The incredible part is that all of this happened while maintaining daily operations on patrol, within the jail, and at the court complex.
It was not properly addressed at the press conference, but I would like to recognize the McCutchanville Fire Department, American Medical Response, and the Deaconess Emergency Room staff for their handling of the medical needs in this situation from start to finish. They worked hard to provide care for all injuries. I would also like to acknowledge Mr. James Stinson for reporting his suspicions to authorities. His actions played a significant role in the resolution of this multi-jurisdictional incident.
Finally, I want to mention that law enforcement agencies (around the country and within this community) encounter equally dangerous situations such as these on a routine basis, often without much of second thought. Things have changed a bit in the business of law enforcement within my past 42 years, but one thing remains to be true: our community needs high-quality men and women to serve in this profession. Ask any law enforcement leader and they will tell you that recruitment and retention are among the greatest challenges facing them in 2022. In the past it was not uncommon for hundreds of people to apply and test for a position at the Vanderburgh County Sheriff’s Office. Even with large scale efforts, in today’s world, we are fortunate to receive 10 applications from qualified individuals. Safety in our community (which absolutely includes the jail) cannot sustain being under-staffed. If you are ready to be a STAR in this community please visit https://vanderburghsheriff.org/employment/ to find out more. We are currently accepting applications for Jail Officer and Deputy Sheriff.
-Sheriff Dave Wedding
