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Friday, August 30, 2019

Potter County: Roulette resident questions the county detective position

Posted with permission of Potter Leader-Enterprise
As a concerned citizen I was alarmed when I found out the county commissioners hired a county detective. What’s shocking is how little this hiring has been justified to the public. The public, for instance, has been provided with no evidence confirming that this hiring will actually lead to a substantive decrease in a drug abuse or drug dealing in Potter County.
Nor has any evidence been provided to suggest this hiring won’t actually endanger public safety. Public safety can be endangered by an increased police presence because such measures can lead to more convictions and longer sentences. And more convictions and longer sentences endanger public safety by entrapping the poor in a cycle alternating between being free and unemployed or imprisoned and unhirable. Thus if you’re poor, an increased police presence could actually endanger your safety and ability to be employed.
With this being said, the point here isn’t to criticize the commissioners for this hiring. But it’s clear the consequences of adding a county detective needs to be more thoughtfully considered by our political leadership. Although adding a county detective might make us feel good about what’s being done for our county, good feelings don’t always make for good policy decisions.
In short, I respectfully ask that the county commissioners reconsider the hiring of a county detective. Until more information is provided to ensure the position will actually lead to a decrease in drug abuse and not further endanger the poor, the position should not be reauthorized come December.
Zigmund Reichenbach, Roulette
Here is the background as reported by Halie Kines:
COUDERSPORT — A new position in the Potter County District Attorney’s office has goals of continuing to keep the community safe and make a larger dent in the county’s drug problem. Jake Rothermel was hired as a county detective in July, after a proposal from Andy Watson, district attorney, was approved by the county commissioners. Rothermel, a retired state trooper, will work to help combat the growing drug problem in Potter County and help with the caseloads of borough and township police departments. Watson made the proposal to the commissioners a few weeks ago. Potter was one of 10 counties in the state that didn’t have a detective. After talking with other counties that had one, Watson determined it was an important position to bring back in Potter County. Bryan Phelps, current Sweden Township police chief, was the detective when Dawn Fink was the DA, but Watson said they lost grant funding for it before he took office in 2010. It is a 40-hour/week contractual position through December. In October, Watson will seek re-approval for the next fiscal year. Half of Rothermel’s time will be dedicated to drug enforcement, investigation, conducting surveillance, among several other tactics, and assisting the East Drug Task Force. The East Drug Task Force was created in 2010 when “the drugs were rampant and out of control,” Watson said. He and many local police officers completed training to be on the drug task force. Since then, they’ve conducted several drug busts and have helped addicts get clean. Several signs have popped up throughout the county encouraging anyone with drug information to anonymously share it with the DA’s office to help “push out the pusher.” Watson said in the past, that info would be sent to drug task force members and state police. But because of lack of staff, it might not be followed up on as promptly as needed. In the county detective position, Rothermel will follow up on every lead and conduct surveillance, among other tactics, to make sure the tip is credible before developing a plan for arrest. “A lot of our calls are credible,” Rothermel said. “The layperson has learned they do know what they’re seeing and are reporting it. We’re very thankful for the tips we’ve been given.” Additionally, Watson hopes the county detective will be able to assist the borough police officers with their caseloads and more in-depth investigations. “In my humble opinion, our county-wide borough and township departments are a bit understaffed. There’s a lot going on,” Watson said. “Whereas the state police have 20 plus troopers who are available.” Rothermel hopes to make a positive impact on the people of the county. “I’ve always felt very drawn to law enforcement and since I moved here back in 1997, I made this my home and what happens in Potter County affects me. It means something to me,” Rothermel said. “I would love to be able to make more of a dent in a drug problem.” Watson said now was a good time to bring the position to the county because they had the right person. Rothermel recently retired after being a state trooper for 23 years.
“I’ve worked with him on hundreds of cases,” Watson said. “I know Jake’s integrity, his hard work ethic, he’s a Christian and a family man — which is important to me — and I know I can trust him.”