Annual Report - Elkhart County Sheriff's Department

2011
Annual Report
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Elkhart County
Sheriff’s Department

Department
Mission
Since 1830, the Elkhart County Sheriff’s Department has committed
resources in partnership with the community to promote these goals,
ensuring to the best of our ability the place where we live is safe and
without fear of crime.
Service: We will provide quality service in a courteous, efficient and
accessible manner. We will foster community and employee
involvement with problem-solving partnerships.
Integrity: We always will be committed to achieving the highest
standards of performance, ethical conduct, and truthfulness. We will
be accountable for our actions and take pride in being professional and
fair to all.
Respect: We will treat all people in a dignified and courteous manner,
exhibiting when needed an understanding of ethnic and cultural
diversity. We believe in and guarantee the principles and values
embodied in the constitutions of the United States and the state of
Indiana.
Contents
Administrative Team----------------------------3
Accreditation-------------------------------------------4
Community Events-------------------------------5
Administration Review-----------------------6
Patrol Review------------------------------------------7
Investigations Review--------------------------8
Corrections Review------------------------------9
Demographic Statistics-----------------------10
Chaplain Corps-------------------------------------11
New Technology & Cars-------------------12
Letter from Sheriff-------------------------------13
Fairness: We will treat all people impartially and with compassion. We
will be responsive to each other and the community we serve.
2

Administrative Team
Undersheriff Sean Holmes, Detective Capt. Jeff Siegel, Corrections Capt. Norma Albert
Patrol Capt. Michael Culp, Sheriff Brad Rogers, Administrative Capt. Jim Bradberry
Divisions:
The Sheriff is the chief executive of
the agency. The sheriff, elected
every four years, works with the
merit board on personnel and
pension issues, and with fellow
elected officials on fiscal matters,
such as the annual budget.
The undersheriff is the chief deputy
and manages day-to-day operations
of each division and oversees the
vehicle fleet and legal compliance.
Four divisions within the
department, each led by a captain,
work together to achieve the goals
established by the Sheriff and the
requirements set by state law.
Administrative Services: The division looks after recruitment,
hiring, storing criminal and crash records, citations, processing
gun permits, handles the department’s civil responsibilities on
court process, income tax warrants and foreclosures.
Patrol: The men and women in uniform, who respond to
emergency calls, take case reports, write citations, and investigate
traffic crashes. Officers also work with residents on community
policing initiatives geared to improve quality of life by limiting the
incidence of criminal mischief, vandalism and theft.
Investigations: Officers assigned to the detective bureau gather
physical evidence, collect information at crime scenes, and
conduct interviews with victims, witnesses and suspects.
Detectives work closely with prosecutors and other agencies to
insure crimes are resolved in the best manner possible.
Corrections: Limited deputies make certain prisoners housed in
Elkhart County are treated respectfully; get to court on time for
appearances and get to see loved ones and counsel during visits.
3

Accreditation
On November 19, 2011, the Elkhart County Sheriff’s Department was awarded, for the eighth time, its accreditation
award by meeting all the requirements of a highly regarded and broadly recognized body of Law Enforcement
Accreditation standards. During the awards ceremony, the Sheriff’s Department received a second award for
Accreditation with Excellence. The Excellence Award created by the Commission On Accreditation For Law
Enforcement Agencies (CALEA) is a symbolic incentive for agencies to employ CALEA Accreditation in a manner
that sets the benchmark for public safety professionalism. The award is structured for the recognition of agencies
that have met the following criteria:
Excellence in the development and implementation of contemporary policies and procedures.
Excellence in the ability to use the CALEA Accreditation process as a tool for continuous organizational
improvement.
Excellence in the collection, review, and analysis of organizational data for the purpose of public safety.
Excellence in addressing the intent of CALEA standards, beyond compliance.
Organizational culture supportive of CALEA Accreditation.
Standards compliance and accreditation process success.
The title of Excellence is attached to our CALEA Accreditation status for a period of three years. The employees of
the Sheriff’s Department have clearly demonstrated a commitment to professionalism and CALEA Accreditation
has undoubtedly become an institutionalized management model for ECSD.
Our Law Enforcement Accreditation represents the satisfactory completion of a continuous process of thorough
department wide self-evaluation, concluded by an outside review by a team of independent assessors. It also
represents our ongoing acceptance of the obligation to continue the quest for professional excellence by working
toward fulfillment of future standards promulgated by the Commission on Accreditation that may be applicable to
the Sheriff’s Department.
4

Elkhart County Sheriff’s Department
in the Community
This is not the complete list of events in the community the Elkhart County Sheriff’s Department was involved in throughout the year 2011, but a few highlighted.
Shop With a Cop: This year, officers from Elkhart
County Sheriff’s Department participated in the Shop-With-
A-Cop event, an event that benefits children from families
in need. The police officers pick up the children from their
residence and take them shopping for anything they would
like, and end the night with a pizza party.
Bike Safety Events: Throughout the year, the Bike
Patrol Unit remained busy with informing the public at
specific event details including: Jefferson Elementary Fit
Night Program (Bicycle safety and Fitness); Concord
Township Community Event for Distracted Driving;
Goshen First Fridays; Elkhart County 4-H Fair and Kids’
Day; Sears National Safety Day (Bicycle Safety);
Nappanee Apple Festival; Fieldstone Crossing
Neighborhood Watch Event (Bicycle Safety) and New
Paris Town Garage Sale. The unit also patrols
neighborhoods and apartment complexes throughout the
county.
Prescription Drug Drop-Off: Twice a year, in March
(collecting 515 lbs) and September (collecting 882 lbs), the
Elkhart County Sheriff’s Department collected old, unused
prescription drugs to be disposed off correctly without
contaminating the groundwater. The prescription drugs are
taken to South Bend Medical, where they properly dispose of
them. This is a tradition that will be continued in the year 2012.
Teen Driving Event: On July 7, 2011, the Elkhart County
Sheriff’s Department held a teen-driving event called Rule the Road
in conjunction with ICJI. This event targeted teens between the
age of 15-18, those close to obtaining, or having recently obtained
their drivers’ licenses. Rule the Road was a daylong event, and gave
teens the opportunity to learn skills needed to keep them safe
behind the wheel. Nearly 4 million new teens are licensed each
year, and half will be involved in a car crash before the age of 20.
Also, motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for 15-
20 year olds. Therefore, the Rule the Road event was birthed to
better prepare teens and Elkhart County Sheriff’s Department
began implementing the program.
5

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Administration
Year 2011 in Review
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Court Process:
Paperwork generated by the courts
needs to be served by the Sheriff’s
department personnel daily. The
following statistics illustrates the volume
of paper arriving at the department
during 2011 (55,067 total).
January-----------------------------4490
February---------------------------3993
March------------------------------4797
April--------------------------------3791
May---------------------------------4907
June---------------------------------5210
July----------------------------------5272
August-----------------------------5048
September-------------------------4243
October-----------------------------4420
November-------------------------4233
December--------------------------4663
Circuit ------------------------------------------------1777
Superior 1------------------------------------------2861
Superior 2------------------------------------------2623
Superior 3------------------------------------------1430
Superior 4------------------------------------------7727
Superior 5---------------------------------------11434
Superior 6---------------------------------------15010
Juvenile--------------------------------------------------732
IV-D------------------------------------------------------2561
Foreign------------------------------------------------5203
Sheriff’s Sales:
Due to the recent nature of the real estate
market, the Department’s involvement
with foreclosed homes has become
increasingly important. Each month, the
Elkhart County Sheriff’s Department
holds an auction entitled Sheriff’s Sale.
These funds are then stimulated back into
the county. In the year 2011, the
Department handled 862 homes through
the Sheriff Sales, averaging at about 72
homes per month.
Administrative Duty:
The department receives many thank you
letters and calls within a year. ECSD also
receives complaints and grievances from the
public and employees of the Elkhart County
Sheriff’s Department. It is the
Administration division’s duty to respond to
these complaints and take action if necessary.
These are also tracked throughout the year.
Internal
Amount
Directed Complaint 2
Sustained 0
Not Sustained 1
Unfounded 1
Exonerated 0
External
Amount
Citizen Complaint 56
Sustained 0
Not Sustained 21
Unfounded 35
Exonerated 0

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Patrol
Year 2011 in Review
Traffic:
One of the highest priorities for patrolmen is to make Elkhart County’s roads safer. The
best way to measure progress is by crash counts and tickets written. This year brought a
significant reduction to the amount of crashes from last year. In 2011, Elkhart County
experienced 2,445 crashes; this is a decrease of 33% from the year before, having 3,434
crashes. This also meant a reduction in the amount of injuries faced due to car crashes
(from 638 injuries in 2010 to 556 injuries this year, 2011).
Month Crashes Injuries Deaths Tickets Warnings
January 313 22 0 518 440
February 257 35 1 601 665
March 168 22 1 875 1001
April 153 25 2 590 678
May 188 34 3 598 701
June 184 40 0 802 836
July 169 35 1 673 725
August 156 30 1 605 817
September 171 32 3 639 669
October 205 43 2 630 799
November 256 29 1 726 979
December 225 21 1 657 1091
Total 2445 368 16 7914 9401
Reserves:
For 2011, the Elkhart County Sheriff Reserves contributed 6752.75 hours of voluntary
service to the Sheriff’s Department, surrounding agencies and the community. They offer
their services in the areas of administration, the dive team, as FTOs, patrol, training, at
the fair, through meetings and at the jail.
this year.
Year End Crime Statistics:
All reserves completed state mandated training
The Elkhart County Sheriff’s Department responded to 78,412 calls for service.
Part I Crimes
Amount
Murder 1
Forcible Rape 13
Robbery 12
Battery 319
Burglary 467
Larceny-Theft 765
Motor Vehicle Theft 134
7

Investigations
Year 2011
in Review
Crime:
Detectives are responsible for determining
if a legitimate complaint exists. In
addition, they gather all pertinent
information that would lead to the
conviction of a suspect in a crime or
initiate cases based on criminal activity.
Detectives maintain reports of all actions
taken and represent the State of Indiana
and the victim of the crime in court. They
work with other agencies and the
prosecutor’s office on cases received from
patrol officers or through their own
contacts. They make recommendations to
the prosecutor’s office for criminal charges
and work on cases until all leads are
exhausted.
Month Crimes Arrests
January 374 57
February 378 69
March 489 60
April 492 63
May 565 49
June 516 66
July 593 86
August 612 72
September 522 81
October 538 97
November 567 103
December 463 112
Total 6,109 915
Type of Crime:
This is not an exhaustive list of the crimes
reported, rather a list of common and
crimes of note for the year.
Type:
Theft------------------------------------------------------------765
Criminal Mischief----------------------------------369
Residential Burglary------------------------------320
Battery---------------------------------------------------------319
Drug Possession--------------------------------------267
Domestic Violence--------------------------------243
Illegal Consumption-----------------------------173
Child Needing Services-----------------------157
Business Burglary-----------------------------------147
Harassment-----------------------------------------------135
Death Investigation-------------------------------115
Escape---------------------------------------------------------101
Drug Sale/Manufacture------------------------77
Intimidation-----------------------------------------------77
Invasion of Privacy----------------------------------76
Resisting Arrest-----------------------------------------59
Found Property-----------------------------------------58
Public Intoxication----------------------------------44
Child Molest----------------------------------------------43
Criminal Recklessness---------------------------39
False Informing----------------------------------------37
Residential Entry-------------------------------------28
Weapons Law Violation-----------------------20
Neglect of Dependent---------------------------19
Animal Cruelty----------------------------------------15
Rape--------------------------------------------------------------13
Missing Person-----------------------------------------12
Arson--------------------------------------------------------------9
Sexual Battery---------------------------------------------8
Murder----------------------------------------------------------1
Sex Offender Registry:
The Elkhart County Sheriff’s
Department is required under Indiana
law to maintain the Sex and Violent
Offender Registry for Elkhart County.
Detective Holloman, with the
Investigation’s Division, is the Registry
Coordinator and oversees the
completion of registrations for
compliance with Indiana law and is
also responsible for updating
information on Elkhart County
registrants so that the information is
accessible to the general public. In
2011, ECSD completed nearly 1300
registrations. The average number of
offenders registering with the Elkhart
County Sheriff’s Department in 2011
was nearly 408 offenders; of those
nearly 25% were classified as being
Sexually Violent Predators (SVP), the
highest classification in the State of
Indiana. As required under law, the
Elkhart County Sheriff’s Department
conducted nearly 300 SVP house
checks, which must be done on each
SVP at least once every 90 days, and
232 house checks on non-SVP
offenders. In 2011, Detective
Holloman investigated 33 cases
involving non-compliant offenders and
of those, 31 were sent for charges.
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Corrections
Year 2011 in Review
Facility Populations:
The state-of-the-art building at C.R. 26 and C.R. 7
opened in 2007 with housing for 936. The population
varies daily, but an average of the occupants present is
kept. The average for the year 2011 was 858.25
occupants within the Corrections Facility.
Month
Average Population
January 798
February 780
March 791
April 780
May 795
June 824
July 875
August 962
September 952
October 921
November 907
December 914
Year Average 858.25
Reentry Programs:
Especially in the 2011, the correctional facility has been
undergoing a paradigm shift from a “warehouse” of
inmates, to a place which affects change in the inmate’s
“heart and mind” to reduce recidivism. Programs that
have been implemented and are being strengthened are
evidence-based-programming like “Thinking for a
Change”, “Life After Incarceration”, ”Substance Abuse”,
and “Anger Management”. Due to the relative novelty of
the programs, an emphasis on training for the Corrections
staff has been reinforced to facilitate improved inmate
behavior management and risky situations such as
transports and court security. An emphasis on training
has been placed to better prepare correctional staff for
behavioral issues and risky situations.
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Demographics:
The Elkhart County Sheriff Department is publishing the
statistics in regards to demographics. These charts include
information on the division of demographics per citation and
warning written.
The remaining charts include information
to the demographics of applicants and the applicants who
were hired. In 2011, the Elkhart County Sheriff’s
Department received one complaint concerning biased-based
policing, which was unfound.
Demographic Warnings Citations
White Male 3,564 2,726
White Female 1,699 1,155
African-American Male 232 214
African-American Female 119 68
Hispanic Male 288 657
Hispanic Female 133 214
Asian Male 18 19
Asian Female 20 3
Other 20 8
Total 9,401 4,125
Number of Applicants: Corrections Patrol
Applied 137 10
Passed 105 10
Caucasian 122 9
African-American 7 1
Other 8 0
Male 103 10
Female 34 0
Applicants Selected Correc. Patrol Clerk
Caucasian Male 14 9 0
Caucasian Female 4 0 5
African-American Male 2 1 0
African-American Female 0 0 0
Other Male 0 0 0
Other Female 0 0 0
Use of Force:
Comprehensive records are kept on all cases where officers
become physical or take defensive action with a weapon to
control a suspect or inmate. In the year 2009, there were
263 Use of Force reports; in the year 2010, 196 Use of Force
reports were taken. In the year 2011, a total of 225 Use of
Force reports were taken. In 2010, 108 officers were
reported using force, whereas in 2011, 140 different officers
were reported using force.
Division Taking Action:
Corrections--------------------------------------------168
Patrol-----------------------------------------------------57
Shift:
First (6 a.m.—2 p.m.)---------------------------------74
Second (2 p.m.—10 p.m.)----------------------------81
Third (10 p.m.—6 a.m.)------------------------------70
Demographics:
Race:
White----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------129
African-American-----------------------------------------------------------------103
Hispanic-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------17
Other/Not Specified--------------------------------------------------------------5
Gender:
Male-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------223
Female-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------27
Not Specified-----------------------------------------------------------------------------4
Age:
Under 18-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------15
18-25-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------113
26-35-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------36
46-55-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------19
56-65---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------6
65 & over-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------0
Age Unknown--------------------------------------------------------------------------8
10

Chaplain
Corps
This year, the Sheriff’s
Department has made an effort
to enhance and strengthen the
Chaplain association and
services. In the year 2011, the
Chaplains have become an
essential thread in the fabric of
Elkhart County Sheriff’s
Department. There are now
Chaplains serving in the jail
and a separate entity of
Chaplains to Law Enforcement
personnel.
Mike Kupke is the Jail
Chaplain, and overlooks an
average of 458 volunteers
visiting a month. These
volunteers lead Bible studies
and organize a library of books
for inmates. Nearly 113.75
hours are spent volunteering in
the library. There are 100
Bible studies a month, and
around 900 inmates attend
these.
The Chaplain Corps is
comprised of professionals who
are trained to help officers as
well as victims in the areas of
critical emergency situations.
The services include crisis
support for an officer or family
member who is sick, injured, or
killed. They conduct Critical
Incident Stress Debriefings at
the request of the ECSD
administrative staff. They also
provide instruction in matters
of ethics and other special
topics when requested.
11

Technological Advances:
In 2011, Elkhart County Sheriff's Dept. has made an effort
to become more technologically efficient.
All of the patrol cars are now equipped with E-Citation
equipment to log tickets into computers immediately. This
reduces the amount of time necessary for input. The new
equipment in the patrol cars also reads the bar codes of
licenses to transfer driver’s information more efficiently.
The Elkhart County Sheriff’s Department now accepts
credit cards to better convenience the public seeking
background checks, gun permits, incident and accident
reports.
Another technological change for the Elkhart County
Sheriff’s Dept. is the new website design. This makes
features much easier to interact with and locate. These
features include a database to look up inmates; a sex
offender registry map—with access to VINE, an automatic
alerting system that sends updates to victims when an
offender’s status changes; access to accident reports and
firearm permit applications. Another feature that is now
available from the website is a link to the Elkhart County
Sheriff’s Department facebook page. This facilitates better
discussion with the Department, and the opportunity to receive
information in a more convenient and timely manner. To visit
the website and explore the features, please go to
www.elkhartcountysheriff.com.
New Cars:
Elkhart County Sheriff’s Department ordered 12 new vehicles
this year. For the first time ever the cars are white, instead of
the two-tone brown vehicles, which has always been traditional
for the Sheriff’s Departments in Indiana. This was approved by
the Indiana Sheriff’s Association in order to save money. By
ordering all one-color vehicles, the department saved 440-
dollars per vehicle. The vehicle of choice was the Dodge
Charger, because it won the Indiana State bid. The
department saved 15,000 dollars per vehicle by relying on our
garage staff to install all extraneous equipment.
Upon communication with Country Mark, a North Central
Indiana Gasoline CO-OP that receives gasoline from refineries
in Indiana, the ECSD was able to lock-in a gasoline price of
2.98 per gallon in the year 2012. This is anticipated to save the
department around 40,000-dollars.
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Looking Toward 2012 from Sheriff Rogers:
The Sheriff in Indiana is a constitutional office. In other words, the
position of Sheriff is mandated in the Indiana Constitution and is
elected by the people of the county. There are 92 Sheriffs in
Indiana. The United States Constitution, Article 6, requires every
public servant be bound by an oath. This includes the Sheriff and
his deputies. The oath of office for all public servants is
comparable: “I, (name of public servant), swear or affirm to support
and defend the Constitution of the United States of America and
the Constitution of the State of Indiana, and that I will faithfully
and impartially discharge my duties of the office of (office of public
servant), for Elkhart County, the State of Indiana, so help me God.”
With movement around the nation to legislatively minimize the
office of Sheriff or remove arrest authority of the Sheriff, and
disrespect for the Constitution by government officials, it is
imperative that “We the people” continue to expect the office of
Sheriff to be elected and accountable to the people, while
upholding our U.S. and Indiana Constitutions.
Sheriff’s departments are typically a unique, diverse, and complex
entity within the criminal justice community. The Sheriff
collaborates and cooperates with many other entities such as the
County Commissioners and County Council, state and federal
government, the media and local communities. These partnerships
are key to being successful and serving the public effectively and
efficiently. Specific responsibilities include law enforcement,
process service, court security, and corrections.
Administration (Leadership)
As Sheriff, it is my responsibility to establish and maintain high
levels of performance, professionalism, and ethical behavior.
Servant leadership is the emphasis, showing line-staff that command
staff is not above any task and that a goal for command staff is to
break through bureaucracy to obtain necessary resources and allow
the work to be accomplished. A strong foundation built upon
conservative ethics and polices, and choosing command/supervisory
leaders who have integrity, honor and distinction, will be an
ongoing long-term commitment of this administration.
Corrections
The correctional facility philosophy is not to “warehouse” inmates,
but rather, affect change in inmate’s “heart and mind” to reduce
recidivism, while providing a safe and secure environment. A
Sheriff has no statutory mandate to be concerned about recidivism.
However, as a Sheriff, I am concerned about public safety. If exoffenders
continue to commit crimes, our community is victimized
all over again. As tax-payers, we don’t want to build more jails. This
change in ex-offenders will occur through evidence-based-
programming such as “Thinking for a Change”, “Financial
Freedom”, “Life After Incarceration”, “Substance Abuse”, and
“Anger Management”. Statistics from 2009-2011 are promising in
reducing recidivism by half of those offenders who don’t take
programs. With hundreds of volunteers bringing in the gospel,
over 100 church services a month and regular Bible studies, the
community can have an impact not only for the here-and-now, but
also for eternity. The Elkhart County Re-Entry Initiative, with its
goal of “Successfully integrating all adult offenders back into the
Community” is an Annie Casey Foundation program that the
Sheriff, other Corrections staff, and other community leaders are
actively participating in, which further empowers ex-offenders to be
profitable members of society upon release.
Law Enforcement
The long-term goal is to partner with citizens and to empower them
with information and programs to impact their community.
Through web-based dissemination, such as the department website,
social media, and crime-mapping, we will provide crime trends in
neighborhoods, provide for crime tips related specifically to
reported crimes or crimes to be reported, and provide for important
educational and public safety information. Similarly, enhanced
community policing efforts and re-energized Neighborhood
Watches will allow for enhanced police/public dialogue and
intelligence distribution and receiving, while displaying the
“servant” mentality, and partnering with the community, so central
to the core of this department. Internal department enhancements
provide for better resource management of investigators and
improved collaborations with all law enforcement officers through
technology, providing them with real-time intelligence, all of which
will further the goal of reducing crime in Elkhart County.
13

Contact Us
Internet:
www.elkhartcountysheriff.com, facebook and
Twitter
Mail or in Person:
26861 C. R. 26, Elkhart IN 46517
Telephone:
(574) 891-2100
We like to know when we have done well. We need to
know when we do not.
Our department has a policy for receiving complaints or
information about negative experiences. Information is
documented and given to the administrative services captain
for follow up, so we can improve training, change policies or
take corrective action to better serve the public.
Please do not hesitate to contact us. It is helpful to us when
we have this information, including employees’ names and
location, time and date.