CAMERON, W.Va. (AP) - A sheriff in the northern Panhandle is calling on the city of Cameron to overhaul how it manages law enforcement after county deputies had to respond to numerous incidents over the Christmas weekend because the city’s police officers were not on duty.
Two of Marshall County’s four active deputies were dedicated to incidents in Cameron after eight of the area’s nine break-ins that occurred last weekend took place within city limits, The Intelligencer and Wheeling News-Register reported (https://bit.ly/2iNklq1).
Police officers were not on duty over the weekend because of budget constraints, and deputies passed the investigations to the officers earlier this week.
Sheriff Kevin Cecil said he doesn’t mind helping with investigations, but he believes Cameron police need to take a more active role in overseeing their jurisdiction.
“I can’t spend all my resources on their investigations, that they’re responsible for,” Cecil said. “It’s not fair to the people in the rural parts of the county that don’t have any law enforcement besides us and the state police. I want the Cameron Police Department to do their work. They’re getting paid, so they need to do it.”
The city will soon hire a third full-time officer, Cameron Police Chief Michael Younger said Wednesday.
“It’s up to the people of Cameron to decide what they’re going to do,” Cecil said. “If they want things to change, then they need to get involved. They need to hold their city council accountable, and make them make the police department do their job.”
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Information from: The Intelligencer, https://www.theintelligencer.net
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