County officials are expanding an overtime program at the Harris County Sheriff’s Office that allows deputies to remotely respond to lower-level 911 calls.
The TeleDeputy Unit provides deputies with overtime pay to respond to less-urgent calls, like abandoned vehicles or shoplifting, via phone in an effort to free up patrol deputies to quickly respond to higher-priority calls, like in-progress shootings.
Commissioners Court on Tuesday unanimously approved $1.7 million in federal American Rescue Plan funds to bolster the program over the next year.
“This is huge for Harris County,” Precinct 4 Commissioner Lesley Briones said. “By freeing up law enforcement officers to double down and focus on these high-priority calls, we will be keeping residents of Harris County safer.”
Briones said nearly 60% of the calls the sheriff’s office received last year were considered lower priority, potentially taking away time and resources from higher-priority calls.
The sheriff’s office says response times for urgent calls have soared in the last few years due to an increase in calls, population growth in Harris County and staffing levels at the department. As a result, the average response time for priority 1 calls, which involve in-progress crimes and/or serious injury, currently sits close to 16 and a half minutes — a 23% increase from 2019, according to the sheriff’s office.
The sheriff’s office says they’re aiming to lower that time down to 10 minutes or less.
The money will go towards purchasing equipment and assigning more deputies to the unit, which currently has eight assigned officers. According to Jesse Razo, Homeland Security Bureau Major at the sheriff’s office, the sheriff’s office is aiming to assign at least eight more officers to the unit.
“This approach prioritizes emergency calls, ensuring that law enforcement can respond promptly to critical situations, ultimately giving the residents of Harris County the response times they expect,” Razo said.
Read more about the TeleDeputy Unit from the Harris County Sheriff’s Office:
