Well, we made it through Thanksgiving and man what a holiday. Those of us in the Sheriff's office didn't have much time to relax for we were out in force and the jail was busy as well. The deputies were very busy with traffic and as this was our first holiday with our pro-active approach, we had lots of traffic stops. I was looking at the citation and nearly all I wrote were for 15 mph and above the posted speed limit. That is way too fast and we will definitely keep up the traffic enforcement as long as it takes to slow down some of these drivers coming through our county. I noticed that most of the citations that I wrote were either right outside of Richland Springs or Cherokee. They must not have been expecting us because it was back to back until you were too tired to write anymore.

I know this seems hard to believe, but I really don't like writing tickets. It is part of the job and with the number of highway death's in and around Texas, it is not something to ignore. We all have family and friends on these roadways and most of us never think it is going to happen to them. Yet when it does, it never fails to devastate our small community. We are not going to prevent everything, but we can sure work like we think we can. The Sheriff's Office will also be writing for seatbelts, please be sure and buckle up. It is the law and it is not something to be ignored.

We have some good news. During the Thanksgiving weekend there were no DWI arrest's in San Saba County. We have set a record number during this year and over the month of November we have seen a real slow down. I hope that this is not the calm before the storm, and maybe a changing of behavior. Yet I can assure you we will be out hunting them on every single day that ends in "y". I have stated in the past and will state it again now, there is no more dangerous person in San Saba County than a drunk driver. Please drive safe, and if you drink please drink responsibly and think of the rest of us.

We have been working numerous new cases and I am very proud of the way we have been getting information from individuals out in the county who are calling in things that they see in their neck of the woods. You never know if it might be your phone call that is the key to the puzzle and helps stop these burglaries. The deputies are out and about and making numerous contacts all over the county at all times of the night and early morning hours. Please don't take offense, just know that they are out there working and doing their best to gather leads. It is impossible to know and remember every vehicle that you have stopped and who drives what, so please bare with us.

We are moving towards the final phase in our new dispatch office. We will be through with the construction by the middle of January and hopefully up and running by the end of January. We are already into my two year plan on our twelfth month. I am very pleased with the staff and the progress at the jail. One thing I am learning is that with all this change comes more opportunities, and boy do we have opportunities. Yet the staff at the jail are meeting each change head on and working through them.

I have been Sheriff for nearly a year now. The first lesson that I learned is that it is a big job. I have three department's consisting of some 17 employees, 6 vehicles and numerous prisoners in four different county jails. We have some 1,337 square miles of county roads and river crossing with three highways running through our county. There are 11 FM roadways and more county roads than you can shake a stick at. We have a state park and two large fishing campground's in our southeast corner of the county and two incorporated and one non-incorporated cities inside our county line. There are also three school districts in our area as well. We have a four man police department in San Saba, two game wardens, one DPS trooper and one TABC officer to work with us in policing all of this area. Well, by now you are wondering why I am telling you all of this and it's really simple. The Sheriff's Office has been running full speed into this proactive policing and we are generating a lot of work. This is a good thing, but it also brings with it lots of new opportunities. It is a lot to balance and what I am asking is to bare with me as I attempt to return all of the phone calls, make all the meetings, and follow up on all the reports. We are growing at an alarming rate, and while it is very challenging, it is also something that I am very proud of. We have a long way to go and numerous things still to work on, but I still believe that we as a community and each of us as an individual can and will make a difference here in San Saba County.

Once again we want to thank you for all your support and all your prayers. If you have any information or need to report anything, please call the Sheriff's office at 325-372-5551 or 325-372-5432.