News from Your Sheriff-February

Welcome to February Clare County, it’s only 34 more days until the first day of spring. For the month of January, the Clare County Central Dispatch logged 2,485 incidents. Clare County Deputies handled 1,625 of those calls. Other law enforcement agencies including Clare City Police, Michigan State Police and the Michigan DNR handled 554 incidents. Area fire departments responded to 103 calls, and MMR Ambulance responded to 203 calls.

We would like to congratulate Correction Officer Amber Griffith and Correction Officer Ralph Harrison on completing the 160-hour Corrections Officer Academy in November 2021. The four-week academy offers a comprehensive, interactive instruction program in various disciplines for local correction officers. Training topics include custody and security, defensive tactics, first aid (including CPR and AED procedures), suicide awareness, fire safety and interpersonal communications. The academy, certified by the Michigan Sheriff’s Coordination and Training Council, is an important element of providing the necessary skills for maintaining a safe, secure environment for corrections officers, inmates, and county residents.

I want to thank Deputy Cam Guthrie and my dispatchers for going above their normal duties to help out an elderly man this past month. They took it upon themselves to go and purchase needed food for the elderly man and deliver it to him. The call came in on a weekend and no other services were available at the time. We have great services in Clare County, and we work hand in hand with them. Normally when we come upon an elderly citizen in need we refer them to the appropriate agency for help: Clare County Senior Services or Adult Protective Services.

On Feb. 2, we honored the following employees for standing out in their areas over the last year. Dispatcher of the year was Kerrie Card; Road Patrol Deputy of the year Daniel Parks; Road Command of the year was Sgt. Lawrence Kahsin; Executive Commander of the year was Lt. Brian Dunn; Clerical Officer of the Year Cheryl Sue Lopez; Corrections Officer of the Year Joseph White; Correction Command Officer of the Year Michael Nokes; Court Security Officer of the Year Dan Mohr; and Reserve Officer of the Year Farzad Tafreshi. I would like to congratulate each and every one of these individuals on their hard work and accomplishments over the last year. These are all key employees that work hard for the citizens of Clare County.

I know it’s early to be talking about this, but we are looking at getting newer equipment for our Marine Patrol. Last year we received around $10,000 to cover wages for officers to patrol the lakes of this county from the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. In the past, the DNR has given us money to purchase and update our patrol boats, but that has not happened for several years now. We currently have two normal patrol boats and a flat bottom boat used primarily in the rivers in case there is a need. One of the boats was purchased back in the late 1990s and the other is seven years old. We are currently looking into grant funding to purchase a newer vessel to be used for both marine patrol and as a diving unit for our dive team. Hopefully all will work out and we will have a new boat for when the waters of Clare County open up.

Like Always, God Bless, Stay Safe, Stay Strong.

Sheriff John S. Wilson