Sheriff Responds to Audit Report‏

 First I want to say that maintaining the integrity of running the Office of Sheriff is a priority of mine and I am always open to suggestions on how to be more efficient and effective. But I was offended by the comments that the State Auditor choose to use when referring to the operations of the Office of Sheriff. More specifically "Serious Short comings" within the Sheriff's Office. The Sheriff's Office, to my knowledge, has never been in a better financial condition then it is right now. When I took office in 2009 I was still paying the bills for the previous administration because they either couldn't or wouldn't pay the invoices. 

 My first year, and every year after, I have consistently ended the fiscal year under budget. I believe that I have been under budget to the tune of over $1 million dollars over the last 4 years. I have also secured the Sheriff's Office with over $500,000 in grant funding for Crime Scene Investigations, Task Force funding, Equipment upgrades/purchases and part of a $750,000 grant with three other counties. We have cut cost and renegotiated contracts to increase revenues so that the Sheriff's Office is not a tax burden on our citizens.

 When securing grants of these amounts there are required training/conferences that come with and is paid for by these grants. Training that is attached to these grants serve two purposes. One, is to insure that you are compliant with the Govt regulations attached to the grants, and two, to insure that our community has highly educated and training police officers that respond to their needs.

 Reimbursements: My staff have consistently "fronted" the cost of equipment, supplies or training connected to their jobs, often these "fronted" cost can range from fifty dollars to several thousand dollars just to wait 30 to 45 days for reimbursement from the county. A human mistake was made and caught by county officials prior to the auditors arrival. The Sheriff's Office handled the over payment by not submitting reimbursements to the employee until the amount was covered by the cost. This was due to credit card companies not issuing a refund.

 In regards to the way the Sheriff's Office purchases fuel, The system that is now in place was in place when I took office in 2009.

 Last I will comment on the Auditors findings about commissary. When I took office, the county's commissary generated $5,000 a year. As of 2012 the commissary generated approximately $100,000.00. The recommendation is to segregate the duties that one person is performing to three other people. This would require hiring approximately 3 additional staff. To sum it up what the "press release or summary" by the auditor did not show was that each of the deficiencies that were identified were either already corrected prior to their arrival or had been corrected at their recommendation. I fully understand that an audit report is not intended to show what is being done right, just what is done in a manner that the auditor feels needs to be changed.

 It also fails to show the effectiveness of what is being done right. Burglaries, violent crime, domestic violence and thefts are down across Bates County. It also seems to me that the respect and trust with the community has increased.

                                     Chad Anderson Bates County Sheriff

Obituary - Florence Fay Wilkinson

  Florence Fay Wilkinson, 80, Lone Jack, Missouri, died Thursday, January 17, 2013 at her home. Funeral services will be held at 10:30 a.m. Saturday, January 19 at the Atkinson Funeral Home in Harrisonville, Missouri with visitation from 9:30-10:30. Burial will be in Lone Jack Cemetery. More information will be posted when available.

Birthday Bash for Brice Eidson

Update on wreck outside of Butler last night

 At approximately 8:43pm Wednesday Night, Tyler Peterson-White, 17 from Louisburg Kansas was westbound on East Dakota Street, 1 mile east of Butler when his 2008 Chevrolet failed to maintain the roadway and traveled off the road. Peterson’s Chevrolet then struck a tree and came to rest. According to the Missouri Highway Patrol it was believed White was under the influence of drugs. He was taken to the Bates County Memorial Hospital by ambulance and the investigation will continue.

Wreck outside of Butler

 Bates County EMS  as well as Bates County Fire is in route to a car accident just outside of Butler on the East Dakota St. Not for sure many details at this time but will update when more information  comes available.

CIRCUIT COURT OF BATES COUNTY, COURT NEWS Jan 14 – 18, 2013

St v. Arasha M Ryder, I: Felony assault on Law Enforcement Officer, II: Felony assault on Law Enforcement Officer, set for 1-22-13.

Gary W Cook v Clark M Gilbert, Petition filed.

St v. Amanda L Frailey, Felony possession of controlled substance, marijuana, set for 2-19-13.

St v. Aleda K. Rickey, Felony possession of controlled substance, marijuana/methamphetamines, set for 2-19-13.

St v. Drake M Rogers, Felony possession of controlled substance, marijuana, set for 3-18-13.

St. v. Nathan M. Wasmer, Felony possession of controlled substance, marijuana/methamphetamines,

Defe. arraigned, enters guity plea, sentenced to 5 years in MDOC, sentence to run concurrently with St. Clair County cases.

St v. Travis T Williams, Felony DWI, chronic offender, set for 2-19-13.

Obituary - Audrey Gail Marshall

  Audrey Gail (Barrett) Marshall, 88, formerly of Tempe, AZ, died January 15, 2013 at Cass Regional Medical Center in Harrisonville, Missouri. Private family services will be held at a later date. (Cremation).

  Audrey was born August 11, 1924 in Courtland, KS, the daughter of Wilbur “W. J.” and Ora (Greenwood) Barrett. She held two master degrees, one in Library Science and the other in Business Administration. She was the Director of Library Services for the State of Arizona.

Audrey had five children; four grandchildren; one great-grandchild and one great-great-grandson.

Bates County Robotics Team Competes

The Brick Heads, the FLL team for Bates County Robotics, had a full day of competition Saturday January 12 at Kansas City’s Union Station. The team has been planning for this event since last May when it registered with Firstrobotics LEGO League.

Each year for over twenty years, FLL has issued a challenge to teams of 9-14 year old with competition on an international level. The Brick Heads worked hard; and truly enjoyed finding ways to make life better for their senior partner in Senior Solutions. Their robot which they named “Dominator” performed well for each of the three table competitions. In these, the team divided into three pairs; each pair put Dominator thru its’ paces on a four foot by eight foot arena completing missions to help seniors lead an “Independent, Engaged, and Connected” life. Two of the missions relate to quilting, one is for woodworking, and another is gardening.

There are a dozen missions on the arena; and over the last five months, the team has programmed Dominator to attempt all of them. Each of the three table competitions lasts for two and one-half minutes; so, each pair had to decide which missions to complete. Bowling was added to their list recently. The team members know they must program and set-up the robot precisely to perform a specific mission. Robots are only a part of FLL; there is also the Project, Core Values, and Robot Design presentations.

In the Project the team presents a plan which it has prepared in addition to the missions on the arena. The Brick Heads determined to make a system to access high shelves without using a step stool. Their idea of rotating shelves would do just that. During research they learned a manufacturer does make a moving shelf product. So, they contacted the manufacturer to learn more; which they incorporated into their presentation. In Robot Design they present to a judge the development of their robot. This includes problems they encountered, and how they determined which of their ideas would be used.

Core Values focuses on what FLL calls “Gracious Professionalism” which is the equivalent of sportsmanship. As well as respecting other teams, FLL members work at helping other teams if they see something in which they can help. The Brick Heads have excelled in Core Values and the Project, but the KC Regional is the end for them this year. They are already preparing for next year’s challenge which will be “Nature’s Fury”.

 Bates County Robotics, of which the Brick Heads are a part, is operating under the umbrella of Adrian Community Chest.  Donations made to the community chest with a note that they are for robotics are under Adrian Community Chest which is a 501- C-3 tax exempt organization.  The FLL team or teams will continue this year, and the program will grow.  Sufficient funding will assure expansion to First Tech Challenge which is for 12 – 18 year olds, and having at least two teams in each age group provides opportunity for local competition.  Any questions should be referred to Jerry Ferguson at 816-297-2534 or 512 N Mulberry Adrian, MO 64720.