The Office of the Sheriff, Ashland County, Ohio

Sgt. Don Sims began his law enforcement career in 1992 in a small village police agency in Wayne county, then started working for the Ashland County Sheriff's Office in 1995 as a Special Deputy working in corrections, dispatching and road patrol. Don began working full time in corrections in 1996, and transferred to the enforcement division in late 1998. In 2001 Don was promoted to his currant rank of Sergeant and has been the assistant supervisor and later supervisor of his shifts. In 2004 Sgt. Sims accepted the challenges of being the Ashland County Community Policing Officer, Junkyard inspector as well as a field training officer and pistol range officer. He has also held positions as a bomb squad member and SRT member.

DEPARTMENTAL PROGRAMS

Community Services performs a number of tasks, which provide direct support to the Enforcement Division, Detective Bureau, Corrections and the Combined Dispatch Center. We believe in and use the Community Policing Philosophy of collaborative efforts between various individuals, groups, organizations and the Sheriff;s office to solve community problems.

Other duties include following up reports for the Patrol Officers and the Detective Units that may need to be completed. By assisting with the investigations and other complaints, the Community Service Officers within the Department, a team approach to problem solving helps to prevent future problems involving criminal activity.

A resident or new business may be contacted about safety issues that the officers or dispatchers feel should be addressed. This gives the owner of the residence or the business personal contact with an officer and a chance to discuss other issues they may have, but didn't think were police related.

ASHLAND COUNTY BOMB SQUAD

The Bomb Squad is staffed by four members of the Sheriff's Office. The Unit is on call 24/7, not only for Ashland County, but surrounding counties and other agencies as well. The Unit handles an average of 30 calls per year. These calls include responding to Bomb Threats, Improvised Explosive devices, Improvised Incendiary devices, military ordinance, commercial explosives and hazardous chemicals that are explosive in nature. In addition the Unit provides training for law enforcement and fire agencies as well as hospitals, schools and private businesses.

Training for bomb technicians is lengthy and ongoing. Schooling is provided by the FBI, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, Ohio Peace Officers Training Academy and other state and federal agencies. Team members train frequently to insure a safe and rapid response to any situation.

In 2005 the team participated in 48 hrs. of joint training with the FBI and other bomb teams, and completed 18 hrs. of local training.

The nature of our work gives us no second chance. The Teams Motto: "Initial Success or Total Failure" reminds us that preservation of life and safety of team remains foremost.

2005 Bomb Squad Statistics

2004 Total Calls: 6 -- 2005 Total Calls: 33
Recovered Military Ordinance: 5
Bomb threats/searches: 4
Suspicious devices/packages: 2
Recovered explosives/pyrotechnics (Fireworks): 2
Recovered/turned in old munitions: 5
Recovered Explosives/Blasting Caps: 3

Recovered explosives/chemicals: 3

Recovered non-Military Ordinance: 8

Bottle Bombs: 5

Pipe Bombs: 30 + (As a result of searching a pipe bomb "factory" in Norwalk)

ASHLAND COUNTY DIVE TEAM

The Dive Team takes on the responsibilities of searching for drowned persons and recovering items and evidence underwater. The Dive Team is comprised of Male and Female Law Enforcement Officers and is presently eight members strong. All those officers are trained to the level of Dive Rescue Specialist 1, with four of those members being trained as Dive Rescue Specialist 2. The Dive Team also has one unit trained as an Underwater Crime Scene Investigator as well as a Scuba Instructor. The Dive Team has equipment ranging from normal dive great to full face masks and dry suits.

Over the last several years the Sheriff's Office Dive Team has recovered stolen guns, vehicles and other items as well as drowning victims. The Sheriff's Office Dive Team takes great pride in their abilities and accomplishments, as their work is very dangerous. The Dive Team operates with little or no knowledge of what is under the water. Information provided by witnesses is often sketchy or distorted. The Dive Team usually experiences very poor visibility in most of the bodies of water in the county. This can make items very difficult to locate.

The dive and rescue team is under the direct command of the Chief Diver, Lt. Ed Staley.

ASHLAND COUNTY K-9 UNIT

Deputy Kurt Schneider K-9 Eika
Sergeant Tim Kitts K-9 Zak

The present K9 unit was established in 1994. At present the unit is comprised of 2 teams, Sgt. Tim Kitts and Zak, and Dep. Kurt Schneider and Eika. All of the K9's were imported from Germany. All of the dogs were raised in Czechoslovakia. The handlers had to learn the native language commands in order to be able to handle the dogs.

All of the dogs were purchased from funds donated by local business and social and fraternal groups. A large percentage of the equipment used in training was also purchased using donated funds.

All of the dogs are German Shepherds and live with their handler and their families. Eika is the only female.

Once the dogs arrived, they along with their handlers were subjected to rigorous training, in preparation for state certification. Both teams are dual certified in general duty and narcotics detection. General duty certification includes such areas as tracking, article and area search, criminal apprehension, and handler protection. All dogs are tested under gunfire in order to obtain their certification. Narcotics detection certification requires that the dogs are able to detect and alert to the odor of Marijuana and it derivatives, Cocaine, Crack Cocaine, and Heroin. Both K9s have numerous finds to their credit.

In addition to working on the roads in Ashland County, the dogs are used to assist in the Correction Division of the Sheriff's Office. The teams put on demonstrations for schools and groups. They also participate in the opening day festivities at the Ashland County Fair.

If any group or organization is interested in having a team put on a demonstration, please contact the Sheriff's Office.

ASHLAND COUNTY K-9 DIVISION

PAST MEMBERS

UNDER CONSTRUCTION

Odett Oct. 26, 2003 Carlos

ASHLAND COUNTY DARE PROGRAM (419) 289-3911 ext. 1521

Deputy Angie Hamilton joined the Sheriff's Office in May of 1997. During her career, she has worked in Communications, Road Patrol and Administration. She was recently assigned duties as the D.A.R.E. (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) officer. She teaches the D.A.R.E. program in Mapleton, Hillsdale and Loudonville School Districts, Elementary through Middle School. Gun safety is taught in the elementary schools with the "Eddie Eagle" program. She also gives public talks about the D.A.R.E. program to public groups and organizations. She is a member of the Buckeye State Sheriff's Association, The Christ Community Evangelical Free Church, The Ashland County Republican Women's Club, the American Cancer Society and the Ashland Chapter of the Eastern Star. She is married to the Civil Officer/911 Coordinator Lieutenant Hamilton. Her hobbies include horseback riding, shopping, playing and coaching middle school volleyball, sewing and scrapbooking.

You may visit the D.A.R.E. America or D.A.R.E. Ohio web pages by clicking on the links below.

Deputy Hamilton may be reached by calling: (419) 289-3911 or by E-mail at: dare@ashlandcounty.org