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Warrant Writing to Be Turned Over to Detention Center?
by Ashley Murphy

Tuesday, July 13, 2010

Court Clerk Gayla Miller opened the Bradley County Commission meeting this afternoon with a request to pass a resolution turning the duty of warrant writing over to the Bradley County Juvenile facilities. Miller stated that this is an action that needs to be done due to the time constraints on weekend writers and the amount they are being paid to do the job.

Weekend warrant writer's are on call from Friday afternoon to Sunday afternoon and receive $100 for their work. Early in July, Miller had her weekend warrant writers quit due to an influx of calls. One man was sent out 23 times over the course of one Friday evening.

Miller stated she will be turning her budgeted funds over to the Detention Center and letting their 19 employees take over the process. The Commission will vote on this resolution Monday, July 19th.

Commissioner Ed Elkins said he has received several questions from residents in his district regarding a price increase at the Bradley County Landfill for garbage drop-offs. Apparently, the price has been raised from $2 for 5 bags to $3 for 6 bags. Elkins stated that even with the increase, the revenue in the budget for this line item still remains the same and hasn't been brought up to reflect the raise.

Mayor D. Gary Davis stated that he was unaware of the price increase, as this is handled by SanTek Environmental, who run the landfill. Commissioner Ben Atchley, who is on the Landfill Committee stated that he would check with Cheryl Dunston and question the reasoning behind the raise in fees.

John Stone from the Bradley County Sheriff's Department came before the commission to present an idea about possibly building a rappelling tower on the property at the Justice Center. The purpose of the tower is to further the training of BCSO SWAT team members. It would be built using mostly donated materials and donated labor.

There was an issue, however, about how the City of Cleveland would handle the structure and if it would be in compliance with City codes. Chairman Louie Alford advised Stone to gather all plans and information, then meet with the Law Enforcement Committee, County Attorney Joe Byrd and County Engineer Sandra Knight to make final plans, go over codes and check all legal issues before proceeding with the project.

The Bradley County Commission will meet again on Monday, July 19th at 10 a.m. in the Courthouse for a voting session.