SL County Sheriff Calls for More Deputies

None by Lara Jones

Winder's First Budget to Ask for 18 New Deputies

(KCPW News) Salt Lake County Sheriff Jim Winder says the department does not have enough deputies. The freshman sheriff says he'll be asking the County Council for more money when he submits his first budget this fall:

"We got 365 sworn right now, we need almost immediately an additional 14 to 18 allocations just to bring staffing to what I would consider to be safe levels."

Each additional deputy will cost $70,000, plus vehicle. Winder says money for more deputies isn't the only request he'll make in his budget. Reopening the 500-bed Oxbow Jail is a must - albeit it a costly one at $6.2 million in annualized costs. But Winder says it's time:

"Population has really skyrocketed - six percent growth a year - and we have less beds now than we had in 1993. So, we got problems."

Winder is optimistic that he can rally support from the County Council when he presents his budget later this year. For an interview with the sheriff, download this Midday Metro podcast.

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