OPED by: CCSO Captain Sean Sanborn, Criminal Division Commander – It has been some time since high school biology and later college biology for me; however, I do recall the importance of a balanced ecosystem. In my experience, the idea of an eco-system, the importance of the balance between systems, holds true for virtually any system, including the Criminal Justice system. If one portion of the system is ineffective or otherwise fails, there is a definite impact on all other parts of the system. The most visible portion of the Criminal Justice system is the various patrol units which you may see patrolling communities within the county. These dedicated Officers, Deputies, and State Troopers are tasked with keeping the peace within the community. They are the cops, the folks who enforce laws and ordinances enacted by legislative bodies. They are the investigators who investigate homicides, sex crimes, and drug and property crimes within our communities. They are the ones who are tasked with the safety of the community. These peace officers deliver criminals to the jail, author the reports, and provide the evidence the District Attorney needs to prosecute crimes successfully. Less visible yet highly important is the incarceration of adults in custody (AIC) in either pre-trial or post-conviction confinement. The deputies who work within the jail are responsible for the safety and well-being of AICs. These men and women are also responsible for the security of the jail facility and the State Courts. The jail and the Deputies who work in it are part of a more extensive state correctional system, including the state prisons. In Oregon, misdemeanor sentences may mean a time in jail, up to a year; however, most cases are adjudicated a shorter jail sentence and some form of probation. Another component of the Criminal Justice system is the District Attorney’s Office. The District Attorney is responsible for the formal charging and trial of crimes within their jurisdiction. These men and women determine what charges will be prosecuted and work with Defense Attorney’s to resolve or bring the person to trial. Their work is done with the courts and within the courtroom. The Public Defender is another vital portion of this system. The Public Defender’s Office is appointed to protect the rights of the accused in any court proceeding. They act on behalf of the defendant as their counsel in legal matters pertaining to a criminal case. As every person is entitled to a legal defense under our system of law, the Public Defender’s Office represents people regardless of their ability to pay. The State Courts are another vital cog in this wheel. This is the arena in which innocence and guilt are decided. The Judge and his/ her staff are responsible for ensuring the timeliness of trials and proceedings. The judge determines the constitutionality of motions and decides on the evidence’s admission into a proceeding. The judge passes the sentence on the convicted and maintains decorum and orderliness within the courtroom. Lastly, there is Community Corrections. There are several men and women who are Parole and Probation Officers who oversee people in our community who are convicted of crimes. These Officers ensure these folks are following the rules set by the court and provide programs and resources to these people to help them with their addictions. It is the parole and probation officer who provides the consequence should the rules of probation, whatever they are, be broken. They provide community rehabilitation, and this is often done in lieu of incarceration. Each of these components are vital parts of the system. They all are needed for our justice system to work effectively. The funding sources for each part of the system differ. The state courts and public defender’s office are funded by state tax dollars. Meanwhile, for Coos County, the Coos County Sheriff’s Office is primarily funded by the General Fund of Coos County. The same holds true for the Coos County District Attorney’s Office and, in part Coos County Community Corrections, though Community Corrections does receive funding from the state of Oregon. Locally, our ecosystem is disrupted. Our jail has one pod, which, at this time, is not manned due to staffing shortages, though that is not from a lack of funding from the county. Our local District Attorney’s Office is down three attorneys, creating a massive backlog of cases that need to be reviewed, filed and tried, or otherwise handled. This imbalance causes a ripple through the system and creates issues not only for the Coos County Sheriff’s Office but for the whole community, every city in it, and for each of the other components of the system. For the part of the jail, we currently have one pod open, though we are booking arrests from other agencies. This creates an inability to lodge folks who really need to be lodged. Most of our beds are filled with people who must be lodged for crimes such as murder, rape, and other sex crimes. We would like to house people for several other crimes who are a detriment to the community; sadly, without filling our ranks, that is just not feasible. The Coos County Sheriff’s Office is aggressively hiring deputies to fill these ranks; however, with retirements and people leaving for other agencies, it is challenging to produce a palpable result. It is the old adage, take one step forward and then one step back, and you are still not going anywhere. The lack of prosecutorial resources is also an area of significant concern. The fact is, law enforcement can conduct outstanding investigations and bring forward really good cases to prosecution, but if there is no one there to prosecute these cases, it will just not get done. I have had several conversations with District Attorney Paul Frasier, and the pool of candidates who wish to be Deputy District Attorneys is all but non-existent. Our DA’s office is competing with large offices throughout the state who are able to provide a better financial package than we can for attorneys. Just like in law enforcement, our DA’s office sees a lot of recruiting within their ranks from other counties also in need. There is a severe shortage of qualified folks in the workforce for both Law Enforcement and DA’s Offices. This is not a local problem. We know for certain that this is a statewide issue. Recently, I saw a press release from Oregon’s certifying and training agency (Department of Public Safety Standards and Training or DPSST) which indicated they were seeking legislative funding to put more classes in to accommodate the hiring occurring throughout the state. That leaves small agencies such as ours competing with much larger agencies in terms of compensation. We know that Coos County has a lot to offer. We have our beautiful beaches, mountain ranges, opportunities for fishing, hunting, and an active outdoor life. We have the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area and Ten Mile Lakes. The quaint smaller towns of Coquille, Myrtle Point, and Powers provide a hometown atmosphere with a rich sense of community. Our unincorporated communities, such as Glasgow, Greenacres, Dora/ Sitkum, Allegheny, and Fairview, have beautiful scenery and a sense of community all along the river. Meanwhile, Coos Bay and North Bend offer the beauty of the bay. The trouble is getting folks to look past the malls and dining options that larger communities provide and see the gem we have here on the Southern Oregon Coast. What we also have are folks who are struggling to make ends meet. Our timber and fishing industries continue to be regulated to a snail’s pace in terms of production. We have young, working-age folks leaving in droves to find opportunities in other parts of the state and country. We have a drug problem. We have crimes occurring as a result of the drug problem, such as burglaries and thefts, which are on the rise as people pay for the drugs we have a difficult time enforcing. We have a lack of mental health resources to cope with people in crisis. And all the while, our communities look to their law enforcement agencies and ask why? The people we have are here for you. We are working hard to combat the rising tide. In a time when law enforcement is being vilified by many, we are struggling through that to bring you the best we can. It isn’t enough. Our ecosystem is broken, and we seek answers to bring it back to life. We have to do better. I believe that, as a community, we can find these answers together. I encourage everyone to attend their town hall meetings. Talk to your commissioners, your Sheriff, and your city officials. Let’s collaborate on how to appropriately fix this problem, and we can come through this as a community looking better on the other end and say we did it together. The Coos County Sheriff’s Office loves our community. I enjoy seeing our folks’ wave at us (with all their fingers) and talking to us on the street and elsewhere. We love participating in community events and being there with and amongst you. I write this to provide clarity and a willingness to forge a path forward that is best for our community. I also write this with the recognition that we can’t do it on our own but as a community. I firmly believe we can and will make our coastal gem here a little brighter, together.
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