Sheriff's posse formed |
| April 22, 2011 |
|
Boundary County Sheriff Greg Sprungl recently
began recruiting a standing posse, comprised of
teams of experts in a diverse array of fields
who stand ready to come to the aid of Boundary
County residents and visitors in time of need. Unlike the old oater cliche, "let's get up a posse!" as the bandits are riding out of town, this one is comprised of experts in their fields, who can be called up and activated as soon as problems arise. "The first and most basic use of the Sheriff's posse is the search and recovery of lost and missing people within Boundary County," reads an introduction letter sent out to prospective members in March. "As the concept of the posse also means assisting the county Sheriff with any and all emergencies that arise, you may be called to gather for additional duties such as natural disaster assistance, which could include responding to flooding problems, heavy snowstorm and heavy wind emergencies, major fire emergencies to provide traffic control and evacuations, crime scene security, hazardous material spills ... and any and all emergencies or activities that the Boundary County Sheriff's Office would need additional trusted and experienced personnel and equipment to overcome the emergency or incident encountered." The posse is comprised of several individual teams, each led by an appointed team leader and assistant team leader. Teams include a ground search team, a 4x4 vehicle/ATV/snow machine team, an air wing comprised of pilots, planes and observers, a high-angle rescue and medical team made up of EMTs and advanced EMTs, a dive team, a marine team, a mounted team and a communications, and an incident command team. While members may be assigned to a particular team, each member is encouraged to cross-train with all other teams to build cohesiveness and esprit de corps so that the individual teams work together effectively as a whole. The posse isn't an organization that people can simply join. Each member must have proven experience in the activities of the team they want to join, and each must qualify as a Sheriff's Reserve Deputy Level 3. All members must also pass most of the same background investigation questions required for obtaining an Idaho Concealed Weapons Permit. Each member must be at least 18 years of age, hold a valid driver's license and maintain valid liability insurance on any vehicle used when the posse is called out. They must conform to high standards, and leaders even higher. "The leadership of the posse is appointed not by popularity contest, but by ability, leadership and organizational skills and common sense to make use of the talent within the team," the letter reads." Each of the leaders initially appointed have long and storied records of aiding people in need and contributing to the community. Leading the ground team is ISP Corporal Dusty Kralik, Chad Farrens is leader of the 4x4/ATV/snow machine team. Pat Gardiner leads the air wing team, Kenny Baker the high-angle rescue/medical team. Dave Kramer is the leader for the dive team, Mike Naumann leads the marine team. Nave Noel is head of the mounted team and Brad Stalcup leads the communications and incident command team. To find out more about the posse or to find out if you can join, call sheriff's investigator Dave McClelland, (208) 267-3151, extension 206. |