Sheriff's Office Benefits From Drug Money & Burglary Seizure, Purchases Needed Equipment

Darren Doyle story and photo
The Edmonson County Sheriff's Office was placed under scrutiny by some when it decided it would be beneficial to the county to withdraw from the Drug Task Force in the fall of 2014 under the direction of then Sheriff Wil Cannon. 

Cannon's argument at the time was that he felt like his deputies would be better off operating within the department, investigating their own cases, investing the appox. $50K/yr paid out to the DTF back into their own department, and being able to keep almost all of the drug seizure property and cash from their own arrests.

The plan would only be effective if, in fact, the department was able to make at least the same amount of drug related arrests in Edmonson County. Since that time, the Edmonson County Sheriff's Office has made more drug arrests in the county than they ever did while a member of the DTF, according to current Sheriff Shane Doyle.

"We worked well with the members of the DTF while we were in the organization," he said. "However, most every case was assisted by a local officer. If our guys helped work the case, then our guys were tied up and their guys were tied up. We were paying around $50,000 per year to the DTF, plus turning over all seized drug money and property to them. We felt like our resources could be better used in another way. I was on board when Wil Cannon, who was sheriff at the time, decided to withdraw, and it's proven to be the right move as our drug related arrests have increased greatly since then."

Seized Glock 23 .40 Pistol from a burglar in a 2014 case.

The department has recently purchased $2400 worth of body cams and dash cams for all deputies thanks to over $9000 in seized drug money and property along with a $2000 anonymous donation to the Sheriff's office.

The Sheriff is also carrying another firearm, thanks to the seizure of a weapon carried by a burglar in a September 2014 case. Although not a drug seizure, the Sheriff's office still benefits when cash and property and seized in arrests.

"Everyone knows we're a small county with a strapped budget," he said. "Opportunites like seized property and cash help us acquire better equipment, which helps us better protect our people and get more drugs out of our county."