A Message From Sheriff William Price
To The Citizens of Early County and The City of Blakely
Dear Citizens,
I want to take a moment to make our community aware of an important change involving law-enforcement radio communications.
In the past, our Sheriff’s Office has been able to hear City Police radio traffic. This allowed our deputies to be aware of calls taking place within the city and, when needed, provide assistance or backup to City Police Officers.
Recently, the City Police Department’s radio communications have been changed to an encrypted system that our Sheriff’s Office can no longer monitor. Because of this change, our deputies may not hear city calls as they are happening.
I want our citizens to understand that if there is an emergency or situation involving City Police and you do not see Sheriff’s Deputies responding as they may have in the past, it does not mean that we are unwilling to help or that we chose not to respond. It may simply mean that we were not able to hear the radio traffic and were unaware that assistance was needed.
Our Sheriff’s Office remains committed to working with all law-enforcement agencies in our community. When assistance is requested and we are made aware of the need, we will continue to do everything within our ability to help protect our citizens and our fellow law-enforcement officers.
I believe our citizens deserve to be informed about matters that can affect public safety. Communication, cooperation and transparency are important to the safety of our entire community.
Please know that our commitment to serving and protecting you has not changed.
If you are experiencing an emergency, please continue to call 911 so the appropriate emergency personnel can be notified and dispatched.
Thank you for your continued trust, support and understanding.
Respectfully,
Sheriff William Price
Early County Sheriff’s Office
