2022 WCSO Annual Report - Report - Page 4
MESSAGE FROM WASHINGTON COUNTY
SHERIFF PAT GARRETT
We are honored to serve
Washington County, home to
about 613,000 residents and the
second most populated county in
Oregon. You have a remarkable
group of about 600 professionals
at the Sheriff’s Office who do a
fantastic job fulfilling the many
public safety responsibilities of
Washington County and who care
deeply for our community.
In 2022, voters strongly supported
continuing our Enhanced Sheriff’s
Patrol District (ESPD) services by
passing the ESPD levy. We thank
you and remain committed to you
and your safety.
What does commitment look like
for the Sheriff’s Office today?
It means serving you in ways
that reflect our core values to
do our best, do the right thing,
and treat others the way you
want to be treated. Commitment
means we are in the community,
2 | 2022 WCSO Annual Report
learning how to best meet your
high expectations for service,
transparency, and accountability,
whether at community meetings,
advisory groups, cultural
celebrations, or through surveys.
Commitment means our
professionals serve knowing
they face potentially dangerous
situations, from a single deputy
managing a jail housing unit of 64
individuals to an unknown threat
awaiting patrol deputies at their
next dispatched call.
As a stark reminder of how
dangerous their work can be, in
April 2022, Deputy Mike Trotter
was seriously injured when
responding to a call; a driver drove
through a red light and struck
Deputy Trotter’s patrol vehicle at a
very high rate of speed. Life-saving
surgeries followed, and today,
Mike is working hard at physical
therapy and making massive
progress in his recovery. Thank you
for joining us in our support for
Mike and his family.
As Sheriff, I stand by my staff
with an unwavering amount
of gratitude and commitment
because their commitment to you
is also unwavering. In this past
year alone:
Our staff responded to 98,545 calls
for service, an average of almost 270
calls a day. Earlier this year, deputies
came to the scene of a vehicle that
had crashed into a river at night.
The passenger cried out that she
could not swim. Without delay,
one of the responding deputies
dove into the water, located her in
the darkness, and brought her to
shore, later discovering she was six
months pregnant.
