Sheriff releases 2007 statistics

By Al Summers

Gilmer County Sheriff Stacy Nicholson has released statistics from the Gilmer County Sheriff’s Department, and they show that his department is handling over 40 percent more calls that when he took office four years ago.

Nicholson told the Times-Courier, “The sheriff’s department answered 40,819 calls for 2007. During 2004, Gilmer deputies answered 28,278 calls for service, for a difference of 12,541 calls in three years. That represents an increase of 44.3 percent.”

With regards to the Gilmer County 911 Center, the sheriff reported dispatchers dispatched 59,594 calls, which included calls for the sheriff’s office, the Ellijay Police and East Ellijay Police Departments, the Ellijay Fire Department, the Gilmer County Fire Department, and Gilmer County Emergency Medical Service. This computes to an average of 4,966 calls per month or 163 calls per day.

Nicholson said the sheriff’s Criminal Investigations Division opened 870 felony cases and made 112 felony arrests. The detectives also cleared 358 cases in addition to the cases that were cleared by arrest.

The Gilmer County Detention Center booked in 1,777 people to the jail. The average daily inmate population was 108 prisoners.

The Sheriff’s Court Services Division devoted 5,940 man hours to court security. They conducted 1,943 total inmate transports (including in county, out of county and out of state).

Nicholson added, “In the short time the new facility has been occupied, deputies have scanned just over 30,000 visitors to the new courthouse. Deputies from this division served 2,852 civil processes and 270 warrants. A total of 719 warrant attempts were made.”

In conclusion, the sheriff said, “The above activities of the sheriff’s office were certainly not the only ones the sheriff’s office was involved in. These are only highlights for the year.”