Shares statistics on current law enforcement services
By Barb Pert Templeton
The July 15 meeting of the Algonac City Council included a presentation by St. Clair County Sheriff Mat King.
The St. Clair County Sheriff provides police protection for Algonac residents and enforces all state laws and city criminal, civil and traffic ordinances within the city of Algonac.
The current agreement for law enforcement services between the City of Algonac and the St. Clair County Sheriff was approved by city council on Sept. 3, 2024 to renew the contract for a 3-year period commencing on Oct. 1, 2024 through Sept. 30, 2027.
As King stepped to the podium to share information about the police services being provided to the city he ran down a list of current numbers reflected in a report given to the council members.
Under area checks King shared that 1,674 of those have been logged so far this year. For medical calls the number was 146 and he said that would mean officers were assisting with things like first aid or CPR with the local fire and EMS crews.
There were 138 calls to assist citizens which could be anything from a blown tire, to traffic problems or officers answering questions from the community.
St. Clair County Sheriff Mat King.
The department logged 416 traffic stops and there were 115 calls related to suspicious persons.
“I like highlighting that one because it shows that people in Algonac can be vigilant,” King said. “That shows that they are being vigilant and calling when they see something suspicious.”
Year to date the department had 3,231 calls for service.
“June is a little bit busier than the other months for the most part, that’s to be expected schools out, it’s getting warm and people are taking vacation, people are out and about doing more so that’s just natural for any township or city of village to call for service from the police,” King said.
Mayor Pro Tem Dawn Davey asked King if the statistics for the juvenile category were always part of his report.
He replied that those statistics are broken down more for the current report in order to give a better picture of things.
King explained that they have a public information officer constantly in training and trying to find ways to make things more consistent and transparent. It allows the department to improve things or see improvements at they go.
Davey said the juvenile topic was something that King discussed with officials last year.
“I don’t have any complaints, I really don’t, we love being a part of this community and having a nice foot print down here.”
Sheriff Mat King
“I’m glad to see this in there and I know that some of the tensions aren’t as bad as they were last year which makes me a happy person,” Davey said.
She then asked King if there was any way they can break down the calls for EDP (emotionally disturbed person) in the community.
“I think if we had that in here it would help make a point that we need to have some better services downriver,” Davey said.
“That is certainly a statistic we keep and I thought I saw it on here but now I’m not seeing it,” King said. “That’s definitely information we can fish out of our system.”
Davey said it would help if she had a number when she starts “busting chops” to get better service downriver.
Councilwoman Wendy Meldrum asked the sheriff for a more detailed explanation of the calls for area checks. He said it could be anything from visiting a businesse, to school walkthroughs, checking on activities at the park or even someone out of town requesting the police check on their home.
Councilman Michael Bembas asked what a BOL call was on the report.
“Be on the Lookout is for someone that maybe saw a drunk driver, any suspicious activity almost always in a car or could be a suspicious situation, people walking by,” King said.
Bembas also asked the sheriff about the “abandoned automobile” category.
“Do people actually just leave their vehicles?” Bembas asked.
King said it might be someone simply leaving their car on the road or in someone’s yard and getting a ride some other way. Or it could be a broken-down car and the owner doesn’t want to pay to have it hauled to the dump.
At the conclusion of King’s presentation Bembas asked the sheriff what he would like to see addressed or improved on for the coverage in Algonac.
“What can we do to improve and assist you?” Bembas asked.
“Communication is always key,” King said. “I don’t have any complaints, I really don’t, we love being a part of this community and having a nice foot print down here. There’s open communication and I have everybody’s cell phone numbers down here.”
