Ashford Police Having To Respond To Columbia As A Back Up For Deputy

Rickey Stokes

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Posted by: RStokes
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3347901729
Date: May 18 2019 9:24 AM

HOUSTON COUNTY:    Houston County Sheriff 911 dispatched a deputy to Columbia to a panic alarm on a alarm system. The primary deputy had no deputies available for a backup unit to the deputy responding.

Ashford Police Officer, the only officer on duty in Ashford, was dispatched as a backup for the deputy responding. That leaves the City of Ashford with no police officer on duty in the city limits of Ashford.

Houston County Sheriff Donald Valenza issued a letter to one of his deputies, Sgt. Ricky Herring, who also serves as a Houston County Commissioner. That letter to Sgt. Herring " due to the nature of your required duties , being subject to call at any time it is encouraged that you drive your county vehicle and have all necessary equipment with you in the event you are called to duty".

Therefore with that requirement why not call the Sergeant/Commissioner out and have him respond rather than leave the citizens of Ashford unprotected?

Herring draws $ 33,500.00 a year as a Houston County Commissioner. Herring also draws $ 218.00 a month to furnish his own vehicle in performance of his duties as a Houston County Commissioner. But he drives his Houston County vehicle which is assigned to the Sheriff Department in performance of his duties as a Deputy Sheriff and as a County Commissioner.

Herring also draws a salary as a Houston County Sheriff Deputy. His employment as a Sheriff Deputy is strictly up to the Sheriff. No one has any authority to hire, fire or discipline a deputy other than the Sheriff. So Herring's employment as a Deputy is the sole discretion of the Sheriff.

LOL...the Sheriff's budget depends on the vote of Ricky Herring as a Commissioner, plus at least one or two more Commissioner's.

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