Linn County hoping to add more sheriff reserves

CEDAR RAPIDS — The Linn County Sheriff's Office is hoping to bolster the ranks of its reserve deputy division.

Mike Haeder, a reserve deputy for the county for 36 years and administrator for the reserve — or special — deputy program, said the county has an authorized strength of 35 reserve deputies. Their numbers, however, have dropped to 24.

The sheriff's office is accepting applications for reserve officers until July 13, and testing will take place on July 16.

Sheriff Brian Gardner said it takes a particular type of person to be a reserve.

'We're looking for a special kind of person who wants to give back to their community,' said Gardner, who was initially hired as a reserve in 1981.

Haeder said reserves perform a number of duties for the sheriff's office.

In addition to doing most of the officer's public relations events — like appearances with McGruff the Crime Dog — and boat patrols on the weekends, reserves work with full-time deputies in the jail and on patrol with the patrol, civil and rescue divisions.

They're required to work at least eight hours a month, attend monthly meetings and assist with public relations events.

'They're kind of the face of the department,' Gardner said. 'They do a significant portion of the public contacts.'

The reserves are an invaluable resource, allowing the sheriff's office to run two deputies to a squad car, Gardner said. That's important in the rural areas where backup can be 10 to 15 minutes away, he said.

'It's a great benefit for us,' Gardner said. 'That's 30, 35 or 40 individuals that we wouldn't otherwise have. ... They're like an additional set of eyes and ears for our folks.'

In the state of Iowa, reserves have all of the arrest powers of a full-time deputy and are equipped in almost identical manner with a uniform, firearm, Taser, baton and other tools. They always act under the direction of a full-time deputy, however.

Reserves are certified by the state of Iowa and go through six weekends of state-mandated training. The sheriff's office provides training on other topics, such as defensive tactics and firearms. Reserves undergo the same amount of firearms training as full-time deputies.

'We teach them how to shoot, when to use it, when not to use it,' Haeder said.

The process to become a certified deputy reservist takes about 18 months.

While working as a reserve was at one time viewed as a path to a full-time law enforcement officer, Gardner said that's not what sheriffs are looking for these days.

'We're trying to find people who aren't interested in a career in law enforcement,' he said. 'They want to do this as a way to give back to the community.'

Reserves are essentially volunteers, though they are paid $1 per year so they are technically county employees and covered by workers' compensation insurance.

For Haeder and other reserves, though, it's not about the money.

'I wouldn't have been here 36 years if it wasn't fun,' Haeder said.

Johnson County

Johnson County Sheriff Lonny Pulkrabek — a former Linn County reserve deputy — said his department is not currently recruiting reserves, but lead Reserve Deputy Josh Gersten said the department plans to hire in the fall.

Gersten said the Johnson County reserve unit has an authorized strength of 30 deputies, but is down to 23 due to seven reserves taking full-time law enforcement jobs.

Applications for reserve deputy can be obtained at the sheriff's office or online at www.linncounty.org/sheriff. They are due by July 13. Physical fitness testing designed to measure the applicant's fitness level will take place at 9 a.m. July 16 at the Michael J. Gould Recreation Center, 6301 Kirkwood Blvd. in Cedar Rapids. Anyone with questions can contact the sheriff's office at 319-892-6100.