News from Your Sheriff-September 2021

Hello Clare County, we hope you are all enjoying this great summer weather we have been experiencing. In the month of July 2021, the Clare County Central Dispatch logged 3,104 incidents for the County of Clare. Your deputies handled 2,166 of those incidents, other law enforcement handled 597 incidents, Fire departments handled 133 incidents, and MMR Ambulance responded to 207 incidents. We currently have 127 people in our jail which consist of nine Diverted Felons, 75 Clare County, one MDOC, and 42 Federal Renters.

We are currently working on the budget for this next fiscal year. We are meeting with the Commissioners this week to plan for the future. At the last Board of Commissioners meeting, I brought their attention to a staggering fact. For approximately the last 25 years, the Clare County Sheriff’s Office has seen an estimated 203 people hired and eventually leave; 102 were hired as deputy sheriffs, 51 were sispatchers, and 50 were correction officers. Only a handful actually retired from the Sheriff’s Office. Most had left for higher paying and better benefits in the same field. Some were washed out during the field training time, but very few.

Welcome back to school to all of our three area schools. Clare and Farwell have started with Harrison starting after the Labor Day weekend. Remember that children are unpredictable in their actions. Take extreme caution when traveling in a school zone. Be more aware of children playing near bus stops. Put DOWN your phone, don’t talk or text while driving. Slow down and prepare to stop whenever you see yellow school bus lights flashing. Never pass a school bus when there are flashing red lights. This is a sign that children are getting off or getting on the bus. Also take extra precautions around our fall sports and the amount of people that will be in those areas during games. Good luck to all the students and athletes this fall.

I would like to congratulate Corrections Officer Luke Tessner and Corporal Darrel Schanck on their retirement from our jail. Both retired with 20 years of service to Clare County, watching over, and caring for those incarcerated in our jail. We want to thank them and wish them the best in their new endeavors.

Happy Labor Day Weekend to all of Clare County and those visiting and enjoying all we have to offer here. Please take time and enjoy our last holiday weekend for the summer.

Be Safe, Be Strong, GOD Bless.

Sheriff John S. Wilson