Communications center reopening July 1

By this summer, Perkins County’s communication center will be reopened at the Sheriff’s Office in Grant. 

Sheriff Jim Brueggeman and county commissioners spent more than an hour at their regular meeting Feb. 18 discussing the current situation. 

One of the driving factors came from a recommendation of a grand jury convened to investigate the death of a 55-year-old Illinois man that occurred during a high speed pursuit with a county deputy Aug. 9, 2019.

While the jury found no wrongdoing or criminal intent by the deputy or the Sheriff’s Office, they found deficiencies that showed up during the incident. 

The grand jury made two recommendations as part of their inquiry. 

The first was that Perkins County commissioners allocate the funds necessary to re-establish the county’s communication/dispatch center at the Sheriff’s Office.

The second was to ensure the Sheriff’s Office’s body and cruiser cameras remain in proper working order at all times, even if a different provider is needed to do so. 

That issue has already been resolved, according to Brueggeman. 

 But that leaves a more pressing issue on what to do with the communications/dispatch center. 

Prior to Oct. 1, 2015, the county ran their own communications center at the courthouse. 

However, finding personnel to fill the jobs for the 24/7 center became increasingly difficult. 

As a result, the county contracted for a four-year period with Keith County’s communications center to handle calls to the sheriff’s office as well as 911 calls. 

Brueggeman told the commissioners that during the 2019 incident, there were communication gaps as long as 25 seconds, which is unacceptable in such a situation. 

He also indicated fire departments and ambulance crews in the county have expressed dissatisfaction with the current arrangement and how their calls are handled. 

For example, he told the commissioners, Keith County’s whole communications center has gone completely offline twice in the last several weeks. One was during an ambulance call and the other during a traffic stop. 

They were still able to relay information through the county’s existing radio system but the situation raised some red flags.

liability issues

Brueggeman said not doing anything after the grand jury made specific recommendations could leave himself as sheriff, his deputies, the sheriff’s office and the county with liability issues if something goes wrong in the future. 

Brueggeman said the legal counsel that represented him during the grand jury questioning advised him to recommend the commissioners re-establish the center. That would absolve him of some liability, especially if the county chose not to take action. 

No additional funds needed

Brueggeman said he spent numerous hours pouring over the sheriff’s office budget to see how to make this work. 

He told commissioners he has been advertising for a fourth deputy but hasn’t found the right candidate. 

In the interim, he said they have been getting along with three deputies. 

By forgoing the hiring of a fourth deputy, that salary savings, along with the $75,000 the county now pays Keith County, would allow the county to re-establish the center with no additional funds. 

He said they can use the existing equipment they had when they closed the center in 2015. 

He estimated he would need to add 2.5 employees, along with the two currently in the office, to run the center on a 24/7 basis. 

When asked about staffing, Brueggeman feels he can find the number of new employees needed to staff the center. 

911 calls

He told commissioners one of the biggest challenges initially will be handling 911 calls. 

When a 911 call is made, it goes directly to a call distribution hub in Grand Island, where it is forwarded to the correct communications center. 

Presently, Keith County is taking those 911 calls for Perkins County and then dispatching them. 

However, Brueggeman said Buffalo County’s center in Kearney has the ability to accept 911 calls and forward them to the respective county. They already do that for other counties, he noted. 

He said this week he is awaiting word approving Perkins County as a member of that regional consortium.

The county will still need to purchase a system to accept the 911 calls after they are forwarded. Brueggeman estimated the price at around $80,000

The county receives about $30,000 from the Public Service Commission from wireless 911 fees paid by cellular customers in this area. That money is currently going to Keith County since they operate the system for Perkins County.

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