Dear Editor,
In reference to the front page article on the Commissioners Court meeting held January 22, 2013, specifically, in reference to the possibility of a hiring freeze for all Blanco County departments, I would like to address the Blanco County Sheriff’s Department. This department must be allowed to hire dispatchers, deputies, jailers, etc., as needed. As a Blanco County family who relies on the Blanco County Sheriff’s Department and the Blanco County 911 services, we felt we must address this concern. Even though we live in the City of Blanco, we are aware that to get a police officer we must dial 911 Blanco County Sheriff’s Office.
We feel that Sheriff Morgan is doing an extraordinary job and he must have a budget that allows him to continue to run an efficient department and protect all the fine citizens of Blanco County. We must always make sure our sheriff and his deputies are safe and have enough men for back-up. We have already had two bank robberies in our county and it was the sheriff’s department who ultimately caught the robbers. With times, it seems, getting more unsafe and unsure, we must be SURE our law enforcement, EMS, and Fire Departments are safely and properly manned. One thought was, since we have a new Blanco County Sheriff’s Department Building, with the proper staffing we could house prisoners from surrounding counties for a fee to those counties, then that money can be put in the Sheriff’s Department budget for revenue and to offset expenses.
Folks, if cuts need to be made, they sure don’t need to be made in the Emergency Service Department, including Blanco County Sheriff’s Department, EMS, Fire Departments, etc. If our family has an emergency at 2:00am (i.e., home invasion, illness, etc.) and we have to call Dispatch, we need to know we will be answered and the dispatcher is not overworked and tired, and the same for those responding. Face it, folks - if your spouse wakes you up in the middle of the night with symptoms of a heart attack or a stroke or your child wakes you up and cannot breath because of asthma, you will NOT want to hear the phone ringing endlessly on the other end. Sorry, no one there… not enough funds to man 911 or do you tell the home invader standing in your bedroom to WAIT! No one is answering????
Thank You,
Roxanna and Tom Avants
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