Sheriff’s Office justifies staffing, overtime
By Ashleigh Plemper
Farmer Staff Writer
As the oil field and economy as a whole have continued to slow down, residents of McKenzie County have questioned if perhaps law enforcement should do the same with their spending.
While it’s become more and more of a topic of hot debate in recent months, last week’s county commissioner’s meeting addressed where the McKenzie County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) stood in comparison to surrounding counties of similar size.
“Our overall budget, per capita, ranks third when it comes to budget comparison per net population,” said Shannon Wellen, McKenzie County Sheriff’s Office chief deputy.
When comparing factors such as mileage, Wellen says the the department ranks third in that category as well.
“It ranks right in line with Williams County,” Wellen said.
For deputy count comparison, Wellen went on to say that the MCSO has one deputy per 150 county residents.
“Per square mile, again, we’re not first and we’re not last. So we’re second in line,” she said. “Williams County is a little more than us.”
But, the amount of overtime the MCSO receives in comparison to other counties would be a little more eyebrow raising.
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