Law enforcement in the time of COVID

BROKEN BOW - It’s business as usual, or at least as close to usual as one can get within the restrictions of COVID-19 at the Custer County Sheriff ’s Office and Broken Bow Police Department.

Both Custer County Sheriff Dan Osmond and Police Chief Steve Scott emphasized that officers are still performing their duties with added safety measures.

“We still do everything we’ve always done,” Sheriff Dan Osmond said.

“We wear masks. We keep our distance,” Scott said. “But we respond as normal.”

Sheriff Osmond said that members of the Sheriff ’s Department wear masks most of the time, especially when dealing with the public. “We have sanitizer. We take precautions. We monitor ourselves,” he said.

Both the Police Department and the Sheriff ’s Office are currently closed to walk-in traffic. If a person needs to meet with an officer, call ahead to be met at the door. Doors are also kept closed between offices and departments. Precautions are taken to protect both staff members and inmates at the county jail.

“The jail makes it difficult,” Osmond said. “We don’t have a lot of help. It’s hard to fill a shift (if someone is out ill). We are very cautious.”

Osmond says wearing a mask is about safety. “It’s like a seat belt. It’s going to help. Not wearing a seat belt is takeing a pretty big risk,” he said. “It’s a safety thing and our job is about safety.’

He will be glad when the times comes when masks are no longer needed. “I miss the human interaction. You miss 90 percent of interaction with a mask.”

Chief Scott and Sgt Shane Fiorelli remind people to be cautious about leaving items in vehicles. “Lock vehicles. Lock homes,” Fiorelli said. “Try to prevent theft.”

Chief Scott also reminds Broken Bow residents that dog owners need to make sure to buy a tag for their dogs. In the event the dog is brought to the pound, a tag will get it back home quicker. A dog tag cost $5 and is valid from May to May. The dog must be current on rabie shots.