A bit of unease has arisen in our fair county over some recent tactics of the Sheriff’s Department. Specifically, the JCSD has begun setting up “compliance checkpoints” in which licenses and seat belts are checked. Here’s a video of one such encounter (skip ahead about a minute for the good stuff). The concerns revolve around the Constitutionality and cost of, and the need for, these checkpoints.
This subject came up at the Sept. 23 county council meeting. In the video, three citizens expressed their opposition at the 10:14, 14:22, and 17:00 marks on the video.
After these men spoke, the relevant agenda item (13-0924), to approve a grant from the state to fund these checkpoints, was removed from the agenda by a 7-0 vote. But the item is back on the agenda (13-1010 and 13-1016 – duplicate?) for the October 15 council meeting.
After the Sept. 23 meeting, Sheriff Boyer sent a cryptic, rather threatening email to county executive Ken Waller. He seems to be referring to the woman who spoke at the 23:22 mark in the full video. She talked about being arrested and mistreated by a deputy on questionable grounds (Casenet seems to be down now, or I’d check it out). However, the Sheriff’s letter refers to “several citizens” speaking of complaints that “involve[d] criminal investigations” and calls out councilwoman Renee Reuter for allegedly inviting “these individuals” to speak. The Sheriff suggests that these complaints should be handled by his office (hens, please complain directly to the fox) and not by the council, and that the council should not “[conduct] criminal investigations during a council meeting.”
This in no way happened, as the video makes clear. The council heard her complaint without comment. It is also clear that Boyer’s information about what happened at the meeting is incomplete. I hope he does not conduct law enforcement investigations this way – by taking action on incomplete, incorrect facts. This letter sounds like nothing more than an attempt to intimidate the council into not performing the oversight of his department that is obviously necessary. They have every right to accept complaints from residents about the conduct of the JCSD.
If these issues move you, the council meeting tomorrow at 6:30 in Hillsboro would be the place to express your feelings.
Jefferson County Penknife 
Tomorrow night in Hillsboro at the County Council meeting they will have 2 items on the agenda asking for funding the Compliance (Nazi Gestapo) Check Points in Jefferson County. Anybody that values even an iota of freedom should be absolutely APPALLED to come across these. To have the Gestapo (Jefferson County Deputies) stop your vehicle to demand “your papers” is an outrage! It used to be you were “innocent until proven guilty” in this country. But not so in JeffCo. In this place we are “guilty” until we can prove our innocence to Sheriff Boyer’s brown shirts. I certainly hope you will attend this meeting and make your voice heard and let people know you respect the rights of citizens in Jefferson County and do NOT accept the police state we are becoming!
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They are doing this in St. Ann and surrounding citys.
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I’m getting really tired of this Police State attitude we the public are being subjected to. Time to stand up for our Constitutional rights, and demand they stop spending our tax money on illegal Checkpoints!
Sheriff Boyer should be FIRED immediately!
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Please, Jon, show up tonight (15 Oct 13) @ 6:30 to the county council meeting in Hillsboro and express your opinion! This is really our only chance to stop this immediate threat. Next, (as much as I hate a law to enforce a law) our legislators need to ban the use of these unconstitutional checkpoints county wide!
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Just as troubling to me as the idea of random checkpoints is the idea that this money most likely does not come from the state without strings attached. In the same manner that states have sold their decision making powers on what should be state decisions to the Federal Govt for highway (and other projects) money, now Counties will sell their right to make decisions at the local level to the state.
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How do you expect the law to be enforced, When some one is hurt or DEAD. because the fear of sobriety check points has been removed? Or would you rather we disband all law and decend into chaos. GIve me a Break and read “The Social Contract”
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