Financial concerns weigh on school officer issue

WELLSBURG -- Brooke County Prosecuting Attorney Joseph Barki said financial concerns affecting the number of sheriff's deputies available for investigations and routine patrols are a factor in placing officers in local schools.

At Tuesday's Brooke County Commission meeting, Barki shared the county's perspective on the matter after receiving requests in recent weeks to reinstate the officers.

He offered some hope that a resolution may be near, saying he and attorneys for the school board are looking to "come at it at a different angle."

Barki said he plans to organize a meeting between county officials and leaders of the school district to develop a new agreement for payment of the officers.

Plans had called for a deputy to be placed in each school using funds from the school district's five-year operating levy, which was approved by voters in 2019. But a $3.2 million shortfall in revenue from the levy led school officials to seek a contribution from the county commission.

The commissioners said they couldn't afford the four officers, hadn't budgeted for them, and laid them off.

Barki said Tuesday the county's cost for a newly hired deputy is about $88,850, including wages, benefits and retirement.

He and County Commissioner A.J. Thomas said it also costs about $80,800 to train and provide equipment, including a police cruiser, for each officer.

Barki said an experienced officer, with a higher salary, has been eyed for one of the school officer positions, while the sheriff's department would need to hire two new deputies for the other positions if an agreement is reached.

He said new hires would help to ensure the sheriff's department has sufficient manpower to serve the public outside schools.

"It's not an insignificant amount when you're talking about the total budget for the county and the total cost for the county," he said.

Barki noted to date, school officials have offered to pay $60,000 per officer, about 67.5 percent of their cost.

He added funds for the officers from both parties must come from budgets that already were set for the current fiscal year.

Barki said local school officials also "have a lot of hoops they have to jump through" to conform with policy set by state school officials.

Upon hearing the news of further negotiations, the Rev. Brian Knight told the commission, "It sounds like it's going to come down to, what are we willing to compromise on?"

Beverly Sizemore, who heads the Brooke County Schools service personnel association, said, "I'm just glad there's a new direction."

Sizemore earlier told the commissioners she came to them as a grandmother concerned about her grandchildren and other children at a time when reports of school shootings are wider spread.

In the past, sheriff's deputies and other local police serving as school resource officers received training in handling various emergencies, such as the presence of an active shooter, and often spoke to students about issues involving law enforcement.

They also have been credited with investigating allegations of abuse and other crimes as a result of their presence in schools.

Sizemore noted previous officers were funded by state grants and noted Ohio County has been awarded a $50,000 federal Justice Assistance Grant, and such grants may be used for resource officers.

Barki and County Administrator Adrienne Ward said they will look into those and other grant monies.

The commission also approved a $400 million settlement with three manufacturers of opioids.

It resulted from a lawsuit filed by the Fitzsimmons Law Firm of Wheeling and Farrell and Fuller of Huntington on behalf of more than 100 cities and counties in West Virginia.

The commissioners said it's not clear how much Brooke County will receive from the settlement and how it may be used.

Also on Tuesday, the commission:

● Approved a $2,892 maintenance agreement with Casto Technical Services for the courthouse's heating, ventilation and air conditioning system.

● Accepted the retirement of Maureen Williams, who has served in the county's tax department for about 30 years, 20 of them as chief tax deputy; and the promotion of Lauri Eastham to that position.

The commissioners also agreed to fill the vacancy left with Eastham's promotion.