West End Neighborhood Watch takes shape

Before the West End Neighborhood Watch meeting officially opened, Bruce Charles, chairman of the program, invited the candidates in attendance to share their platform.

Randy Mitchell, candidate for HD 14; Deputy Country Attorney Debra Jackson, candidate for County Attorney; and Undersheriff Wayne Cashman, candidate for County Sheriff all Republicans spoke individually for five minutes.

The same amount of time was given to Gretchen Webb who is gathering signatures to be included on the ballot as an Independent for county sheriff.

Charles then started the meeting of about two dozen people in the Old DeBorgia School by asking, “Raise your hand if you trust what the federal government tells you.” Followed by, “Put your hand in the air if you trust what the MSM (mainstream media) is telling you.”

Nary a hand on either question. The sentiment in the room was "We’re on our own. We need to depend on each other out here when it comes to protection," which was not a slight on the Mineral County Sheriff’s Office but a reality when there are only eight county deputies, which includes the sheriff and undersheriff.

The attendees agreed. It was understood that they are very remote and that is a big reason they chose to live there. But the fact is that I-90 is at the front door and the west-end is the first stop many criminals make when entering Montana.

A lack of money for more law enforcement officers and assistants in the county attorney’s office was one issue discussed.

Different grants or foundation gifts were suggested from the audience. Tactics were discussed on watching the neighborhoods for suspicious people and vehicles and record the information.

Neighborhood Watch signs are available. Two-page packets were given out and suggested to be kept handy if something happens or is suspicious. Fill in as much information as possible on the vehicle: Anyone in the front seat? Back seat? Tinted windows and any body damage? Mini-van, truck, SUV, hatchback, etc., as the obvious descriptions of color, license plates and model.

The same with individual descriptions: Tattoos, scars amputations, speech impediments or accents along with facial hair, glasses and color of clothing.

“Record as much information as you can,” said Cashman. “As this doesn’t fall on deaf ears or go into trash bins. It is maintained by the MCSO and you may not see results, but behind the scenes this information is being processed and shared with other law enforcement offices.”

Cashman added that having a phone-tree for people to call each other in emergencies is needed. “The fastest communication out here is sometimes the old-fashioned way of calling your neighbors to alert them to an emergency”, he said.

“And with cellphone reception as sketchy as it is, those that have landlines might be calling more than their share of neighbors but this formula works when needed.”

Jeff Owens moved to DeBorgia a few years ago and is familiar with the crime and criminals he left behind in Las Vegas. He is also leery of a free lunch.

“If we do get federal funding for more deputies and more prosecutors, what are they (the federal government) going to want in return from us?”

Another participant mentioned that the new people from out of state might have a higher tolerance for crime than the west-enders do, and they need to be informed that this Neighborhood Watch chapter is nipping everything suspicious in the bud.

This was the first meeting for Richard Medley who moved to the west end a year and a half ago from the Portland area. Medley works remotely for a large hospital firm and admits he doesn’t know many of his neighbors.

“I’m really not sure what I’ll get from this meeting, but I know that I’ll get to know more people and that’s a big part of why I’m here,” he said.

The second half of the meeting was a discussion on survival food, medicine and emergency equipment, and Charles demonstrated portable radios available from Amazon that work well in the mountainous areas. And he retrieved the list of those in attendance to initiate an up-to-date phone tree.