Paul Heroux reviews how Bristol County Sheriff's Office spends its money
DARTMOUTH, Mass. (WJAR) — Sheriff Paul Heroux says he hopes to cut what he sees as wasteful spending at the Bristol County Jail and House of Correction.
"So, a lot of the things that were going on outside of the jail that had nothing to do with corrections, I'm phasing those things out and I'm bringing those resources back in,” Heroux told NBC 10 News on Wednesday.
Heroux has already started to do that by offloading some of the military and police patrol-style vehicles that were left behind by former Sheriff Thomas Hodgson.
"We found out that there are a lot of things that we're spending money on that don't really make sense," Heroux said.
Another place that Heroux hopes to save the department some money is on the Ash Street Jail in New Bedford.
"There's a lot of things with Ash Street suggest we should close it. First of all, it's 200,000 square feet and that is 200,000 square feet of maintenance for less than 100 inmates. That's just not an efficient use of our resources,” Heroux added.
One of the areas that Heroux is hoping to focus on over the next few months is boosting morale within the department and recruiting new officers.
It's an issue that many public safety officials are dealing with right now.
"Recruiting people to work in corrections or law enforcement across the country is tough," Heroux said. "We're down about 100. We should have 100 more than we do."
Heroux also told NBC 10 News that his days as sheriff are numbered.
He intends to serve only a couple of terms, if the voters let him.
"I won't stay long enough to wear out my welcome," he said. "I'll go in, improve some things, and then leave on a high note and then someone else can come in an build on those successes."