QuickTake:

Carl Wilkerson, the new sheriff of Lane County, says more funding is needed to boost the number of deputies patrolling rural areas of the county. Wilkerson has two sons working as deputies at the sheriff’s office, and, after three decades of experience at the sheriff’s office, it’s a career path “I’ve been blessed to have,” he said.

It’s an old problem, but a top priority for new Lane County Sheriff Carl Wilkerson: Find a stable funding source to hire deputies to respond to calls for help in a geographic area roughly the size of Connecticut.

“I don’t think there’s really a way to fix this long term without having the voters’ approval,” Wilkerson said.

Next week, Lane County commissioners will hear recommendations to consider tax options — including a new payroll tax and the creation of special districts with permanent property tax rates — put forward by a task force that’s been studying public safety funding for about a year.

Their report gives options for new revenue to support the sheriff’s office and the district attorney’s office, stating that there has been a “chronic lack of funding for public safety” in Lane County dating back to the 1980s.

At the sheriff’s office, what needs fixing is a shortage of deputies, Wilkerson said. 

In towns where the sheriff’s office provides contracted policing services, deputies stay in the area, Wilkerson explained.

It’s outside of those towns where too few deputies are on patrol, he said. For this rural area, the sheriff’s office, as of now, has about 25 deputies, according to Sgt. Tim Wallace, a spokesman for the sheriff’s office, with a few more in training.

“Our folks are working extremely hard, going from call to call to call to call to call,” Wilkerson said.

Yet based on the amount of time it takes for them to respond to reports of domestic violence or assault, for example, “we owe our citizens more than what we are providing them at the patrol level,” Wilkerson told commissioners last week.

Wilkerson said there are currently 30 rural deputy positions in the budget, but recently, some deputies have left for other, higher-paying jobs in law enforcement.

“We can’t afford to train other people’s employees,” he said, making salaries another top priority.

Entry-level pay for deputies is $67,745 per year. To compare, the Oregon State Police – an agency that some deputies recently joined after leaving the sheriff’s office, Wallace said – pays more than $77,000 to new hires, according to its website. 

A career of service

Wilkerson, 50, stepped up to replace Cliff Harrold, who retired earlier this year to take over security management for PeaceHealth. Wilkerson served as chief deputy under Harrold, his most recent stop in a three-decade-long career at the sheriff’s office that began with a job in support of the sheriff’s office marine patrol. Wilkerson became a sheriff’s office deputy in 1996.

His career includes a lengthy time period when he worked as a detective, and his resume notes unit citations he received for work he did on high-profile crimes from the past, including the homicide investigation into the death of 15-year-old Jeanette Maples that resulted in the conviction of her mother, Angela McAnulty and also her stepfather, Richard McAnulty.

The way Wilkerson sees it, a solution to the lack of funding is all about building trust in the community. He referred to past voter approval of a levy supporting the Lane County Jail, which is run by the sheriff’s office.

“Whatever we go forward [with] in the future, we’re going to have to be the same way:  ‘You’re going to spend this amount of dollars. We’re going to provide you this service,’” Wilkerson said.

Service to the community has been a key motivator for Wilkerson.

“[I] would say the constant in him has been he is internally driven to serve his community, and always has been,” Cliff Harrold, the previous sheriff, said about Wilkerson after his swearing-in ceremony last week.

The day of his swearing-in, Wilkerson said he rushed from that ceremony to another — the college graduation of his daughter, who earned her nursing degree with a 4.0 grade-point average.

“It’s been a week,” Wilkerson said, followed by an easy laugh. He and wife, Debi, have three children, including two sons who serve as deputies with the Lane County Sheriff’s Office.

“Anything to do with them, our policy is I don’t read any of their documentation, I don’t have any supervisory responsibility. I don’t weigh in on anything to do with them,” Wilkerson said.

Tuesday, Wilkerson paused only briefly when asked by a reporter what career he would have chosen if not law enforcement.

“I would probably be a teacher. Yeah, I’d be a teacher, and a gentleman farmer,” Wilkerson said, followed by a quick laugh. “So, you know, I like being outside. I like that stuff.”

Wilkerson also said that for some 20 years, he’s helped run a youth wrestling program in Creswell, the Lane County community he calls home.

“I have a lot of respect for those who want to serve, you know, our most vulnerable population, which is kids,” Wilkerson said.

Documents submitted for the post include a cover letter in which Wilkerson mentions “[s]trong support from staff of all ranks, to include a recommendation from the Lane County Peace Officers Association,” an organization he once served as president, according to his application materials.

Wilkerson was quick to say that he’s happy with his career choice.

“I will say that I have no regrets about the career, that path that I’ve been blessed to have. It’s been, it’s been amazing for me,” Wilkerson said. “It’s not for everybody, but it’s been amazing for me.”