Trigg County Sheriff Aaron Acree presented his department’s year in review during Tuesday night’s special called convening of fiscal court — shedding light on what was a busy year for he and his deputies.
Recalling from his coded computer aided dispatch, or CAD, readout, Acree said more than 6,600 services and/or calls were handled over the course of 2023.
That’s an average of more than 18 per day, and one every 80 or so minutes.
Of those, and among his highlights:
— 71 were accidents with injury.
— 202 were accidents with no injury.
— 44 were assisting other agencies.
— 632 were attempts to serve legal papers.
— 21 were burglaries.
— 56 were domestic-related.
— 193 were requests for extra patrols.
— Five were illegal dumping, all of which, Acree said, were prosecuted.
— Eight were pursuits.
— 434 were observed and noted reckless drivers.
— 36 were civil repossessions.
— Two were robberies.
— 24 were shots fired.
— 27 were suicidal tendencies.
— 72 were general thefts.
— And of the 523 total traffic stops, Acree added 113 led to arrests, and 197 led to citations.
More than 300 verbal warnings were issued last year.
Also in 2023? The sheriff’s office handled more than 580 calls for animal complaints, which Acree said could be anything from vicious animals, to loose pigs, to cattle found stranded in the middle of the road.
During a December meeting, Trigg County constituent Rosa Brashears brought forth a serious concern about unleashed animals outside city limits.
Asked by Judge-Executive Stan Humphries if a solution had been found, Acree clarified local jurisdiction — adding that just because there isn’t a leash law, doesn’t mean the county is lawless.
Magistrate Mike Lane said it would be interesting to see a 10-year data plot of calls to the sheriff’s office, just to see comparisons. Acree said he’d provide that in a coming meeting.
In other fiscal court news:
— Magistrate Pat Bush said he’s been in contact with Brandon Calhoun about low-light signage and other safety measures out in the county, following this past weekend’s crash between a vehicle and horse-drawn buggy. Bush said he didn’t know all of the issues surrounding the accident, but described the area as “a well-lit straight stretch,” where speed and/or lack of attention might have been a factor. Southwestern Kentucky’s Amish population, he said, needs protections in place.
— Magistrate Barry Littlejohn said some of his residents contacted him over the holidays, requesting speed limits signs be placed near Beech Springs Road. He said some more permanent residents there have begun to speed “well over 70 miles an hour,” and that some pedestrians felt like they were in danger.
