On Tuesday, March 27, we had a couple of upstanding young men visit the Sheriff’s Office for a tour. Both were very interested in the daily duties of the Sheriff and deputies. Who knows? Maybe these boys will be future employees someday. If you would like to schedule a visit as part of a homeschool or other program, contact Lt. Elmer Horn at 678-486-1200 or ehorn@sheriff.douglas.ga.us.
Celebrating Perfect Attendance Polar Patrol style! Congrats to Bill Arp Elementary for their 9 weeks of perfect attendance!
Thank you to everyone who came by to see us! We had a great time meeting everyone!
The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office and the Douglasville Police Department are teaming up once again for the annual Trunk or Treat at the Courthouse! The event will be held SUNDAY, October 29th from 4 – 8 pm. We will be handing out candy to kids under the age of 14.
This event draws thousands every year, and it keeps getting bigger! If anyone would like to donate store-bought candy or make a monetary contribution, they can stop by our lobby. We will take donations up until Oct. 29.
We would like to thank Heirway Christian Academy for dropping off goodies this morning! It’s their tradition to provide snacks, drinks, and prayers to first responders on the anniversary of September 11th. However, this year Hurricane Irma had other ideas and postponed the kids’ trip a week. We are truly grateful for their generosity and sweetness.
The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office would like to thank everyone who came out to this year’s Labor Day parade!
Sheriff Tim Pounds was the honorary coin toss person at last night’s football game between Fairplay and Stewart Middle Schools, and the Polar Patrol, SCORPION, FIND, and Traffic Safety units handed out ice cream at half-time.
Thank you to Firehouse Subs for providing 40 cases of donated water to the Sheriff’s Office. Every year, Firehouse Subs runs a donation campaign where customers can bring in an unopened 24-count case of water in exchange for a sub sandwich. Read more about Firehouse Subs’ H2O program on their website.
Sheriff Tim Pounds and members of the SCOPE, SCORPION and Patrol divisions held a community cookout at Anneewakee Trails/Falls on Saturday, July 29th. The Sheriff manned the grill along with DA Brian Fortner and Solicitor General Matthew Krull. There were around 450 attendees to the event. Sheriff Pounds is committed to being more active in the Douglas County communities. He wants residents and citizens, especially the kids, to have more positive interactions with the sheriff’s office, and plans to host more community cookout events throughout the rest of the summer. Please contact Lt. Elmer Horn at 678-486-1200 or ehorn@sheriff.douglas.ga.us to learn more about the community cookouts.
The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office and the Villa Rica Police Department were glad to host the first Kids Law Enforcement Academy (KLEA) week-long summer day camp. Fifty kids, 25 from Villa Rica and 25 from unincorporated Douglas County, received lessons in Patrol operations, boat safety, bike safety, evidence gathering, nutrition/physical fitness, and had opportunities to play games and make their own tie-died shirts. The response from the kids and their parents has been tremendous, and we plan on making the KLEA camps a new summertime tradition.
The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office and the Villa Rica Police Department are hosting a youth law enforcement summer camp on July 17th-21st from 8:30-3:00 for 5th thru 8th grade at Mirror Lake Elementary. Anyone wanting to sign their children up for this week-long camp can call Sgt. Jesse Hambrick at 770-577-5106.
| Monday July 17, 2017 | ||
| 8:30-9:00 | Sign In and Welcome | Sheriff Pounds/ Chief Mansour |
| 9:00-9:30 | Team Building/Index Cards | Staff |
| 9:30-10:00 | Patrol Operations | VRPD/DCSO |
| 10:00-10:30 | Team Building | Staff |
| 10:30-10:45 | Break/Snacks | Staff |
| 10:45-11:00 | Games | Staff |
| 11:00-11:45 | DNR/Boat Safety | DNR |
| 11:45-12:30 | Snakes | J. Clark of Southeastern Reptile Rescue |
| 12:30-1:00 | Lunch | |
| 1:00-2:00 | Social Media | Sgt. Hambrick |
| 2:00-2:45 | K-9 Demo | DCSO/VRPD |
| Tuesday, July 18, 2017 | ||
| 8:30-8:45 | Welcome | Staff |
| 8:45-9:00 | Games | Staff |
| 9:00-9:45 | Predator Awareness | Cpl. Moore |
| 9:45-10:00 | Team Building | Staff |
| 10:00-10:15 | Break/Snacks | Staff |
| 10:15-12:30 | Crime Scene | Sgt. Ashcraft DCSO |
| 12:30-1:00 | Lunch | |
| 1:00-2:00 | Drug Prevention | Sgt. Hambrick |
| 2:00-2:45 | Rollover Crash Simulator | Sgt. Ethredge |
| Wednesday, July 19, 2017 | ||
| 8:30-8:45 | Welcome | Staff |
| 8:45-9:00 | Games | Staff |
| 9:00-10:00 | Bullying | Moore/Hambrick/Sullivan |
| 10:00-10:15 | Break/Snacks | Staff |
| 10:15-12:30 | “Get to Know Your Officers” | Bikes, Traffic, SERT, Jail |
| 12:30-1:00 | Lunch | |
| 1:00-2:00 | Pillow Case Project | GEMA |
| 2:00-2:45 | Celebrity Event | |
| Thursday, July 20, 2017 (Safety Day) Participants Wear Orange | ||
| 8:30-8:45 | Welcome | Staff |
| 8:45-11:45 | Pool Safety, Injury Awareness | Amanda Bryant |
| Summer Safety, Alcohol Awareness | Douglas Co. CORE | |
| 11:45-12:30 | Fire Safety | |
| 12:30-1:00 | Lunch | |
| 1:00-1:45 | Operation Lifesaver | Phillip Baldwin |
| 1:45-2:00 | Break/Snacks | |
| 2:00-2:45 | Touch A Truck | |
| Friday, July 21, 2017 | ||
| 8:30-8:45 | Welcome | Staff |
| 8:45-9:00 | Games | Staff |
| 9:00-10:00 | Nutrition/Physical Fitness | Sgt. Ethredge |
| 10:00-10:15 | Break | |
| 10:15-12:30 | Gun Safety/Shooting Competition | P. Baxter/Carroll/ Horn |
| 12:30-1:00 | Lunch | |
| 1:00-2:30 | Social Media and other Safety Awareness for Parents | Sgt. Hambrick |
| 1:00-2:30 | Field Day for Kids | |
| 2:30-3:00 | Graduation | |
The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office unveiled the new Polar Patrol during the Independence Day festivities. The idea for the ice cream truck was brought forward by one of our School Resource Officers, Deputy Mark Matthews. Other agencies, such as the Boston Police Department and the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department, have implemented similar programs aimed at positive law enforcement interactions.
The Polar Patrol truck was purchased with seized drug funds. The vinyl wrap for the truck and money for ice cream were donated by Extreme Images. The lights and labor for installation were donated by Metropolitan Communications who also donated money for ice cream. Telmate is another community partner who also made a donation for ice cream. If your business would like to donate, please contact Lt. Elmer Horn at 678-486-1200 or ehorn@sheriff.douglas.ga.us.
The American Legion Post 145 will be riding through Atlanta today in support of law enforcement. Note: These are not real convicts, and haven’t escaped from anywhere. Our deputies will be escorting them up to Gwinnett County via I20 & I75/85.
Every year, Sgt Donna Morris and the BLAST team (Sgt. Traci Sullivan, Dep Henry Timms and Dep Shelly Kimball) take a group of outstanding 5th Graders to Six Flags for a day of fun in the sun followed by a police-escorted limo ride to Chuck E Cheese.
What is BLAST?
B.L.A.S.T. is a program that is a shared commitment between the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office and the Douglas County Board of Education. Each school year the deputies teach B.L.A.S.T. to 5th graders in 22 Douglas County Schools (all public elementary schools along with two private schools – Brighten Academy and Colonial Hills). The program is self-funded. It is paid for by fund-raisers at each school, workbook donations from the Board of Education, and fund-raisers by each B.L.A.S.T. deputy. The purpose is to educate all 5th grade classes in the Douglas County Public School district about harmful effects of tobacco, self esteem, dealing with stress, assertiveness, social skills, decision-making skills, assertiveness, goal-setting, effects of advertising, conflict resolution and good communication skills.
The B.L.A.S.T. deputies teach at the schools each day (Monday – Friday) during the school year (August – May). Each year the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office B.L.A.S.T. deputies honor and recognize approximately 25 students from Douglas County for being positive role models in their schools. Students are chosen because they all:
Most of the schools require the students to write essays at the end of each school year explaining what B.L.A.S.T. means to them. Then, the deputies review and vote on the essays to determine the winners.
Any questions about the B.L.A.S.T. program, please contact Sgt. Donna Morris at 770-942-2121.
Thank you to Exodus Ranch for inviting us to your Foster Fun Day!
From Exodus Ranch:
The Exodus Ranch in Douglasville, will be holding our 2nd annual foster fun day! This day is a free day of fun for Foster children and their foster families, in the Douglas, Carroll and Paulding county area! Last year, we had over 300 in attendance! What a great day of fun it was! The children were able to enjoy pony/horse rides, games, bouncy houses, food, story telling and much more! The parents were treated to a day of respite with facials, hair cuts, manicures and a wonderful lunch! A great time was had by all! This day is to let Foster parents know how much we, as a community, appreciate them! It is also a day to love and encourage children who need it so badly.
The United States has one of the worst records among industrialized nations – losing on average between four and seven children every day to child abuse and neglect. A report of child abuse is made every ten seconds. The Percentage of children abused, is terrifying!
- Physical Abuse 28.3
- Sexual Abuse 20.7
- Emotional Abuse 10.6
- Physical Neglect 9.9
- Emotional Neglect 14.8
To put this in perspective: This would PACK 10 modern football stadiums…not with cheering fans, but with hurting children in need of love and a family. Many of these children end up in Foster Care. 40% of Foster children end up on the street and many in the sex trafficking industry. 1 in 4 end up in prison. These kids need our love, support and help in healing!