Our guest speaker June 28th was Snohomish County Sheriff Susanna Johnson. This is the first visit by our newly elected Sheriff. The Sheriff who was sworn in on January 2, 2024. President Ron Rasmussen read her distinguished years of service in law enforcement. Suzanna's dad was a CPA and a Rotarian in Oregon. So she heard many Rotary stories about being involved in the community. Reform and accountability is important to the Sheriff's Department. They serve the community and work for us. Those that are joining the ranks of law enforcement these days are terrific and want to be part of the community. Difficult times but everyone understands the need to serve. Sheriff Johnson praised the Lake Stevens Police Department and commented that they have a great relationship with the Sheriff's Department. The Sheriff's Department has nine contracts with cities in Snohomish County and is the fourth largest county in the State.
Some of the new challenges are Sound Transit Light Rail coming to Snohomish Count which will require additional surveillance. Security is important to the transportation sector. The Sheriff mentioned the role of police resources officers especially amid the chaos in school violence. It really depends on the school district or the individual schools to decide if they want police resource officers. Another topic she mentioned was treatment vs. jail. Important in today's society. The Sheriff mentioned that the County Executive has proposed a Public Safety tax that will be on the November ballot. The proposal would help increase the entry level salaries for new prosecutors as well as current staff retention.
Communications and 911 have improved with the use of cellphones being available and response time has been part of that improvement. Mental health is important and focusing on families is important as well. This was a great presentation and we look forward to the Sheriff visiting us each year.