WCSO 2021 Annual Report - Flipbook - Page 7
Deputies serving the ESPD provide
a rapid response to 9-1-1 calls 24/7
ENHANCED SHERIFF’S OFFICE PATROL DISTRICT (ESPD)
The ESPD is a service district formed by the Board and approved by voters in 1987. Its purpose
is to provide residents of urban unincorporated Washington County a mechanism to
increase law enforcement service levels beyond the traditionally provided County baselevel of about .50 officers-per-1,000 residents to a level of about 1.00 officers-per-1,000
residents. Voter-approved ESPD services have continued for 32 years. The ESPD provides
law enforcement services for about 211,000 residents in the urban areas outside of cities
in Washington County, including Bethany, Cedar Mill, Cedar Hills, Aloha, Cooper Mountain
Reedville, Garden Home, Metzger, Rock Creek, Raleigh Hills, Bull Mountain, Bonny Slope,
West Slope, Oak Hills, and more.
Enhanced Services: If you live in the ESPD and call 9-1-1, our deputies will be the law
enforcement agency that answers your call. Residents inside the district can sleep peacefully
knowing that we have some of the best trained and most agile deputies in law enforcement
today working tirelessly to keep them safe around the clock.
A voter-approved local option levy has provided the funding mechanism for the ESPD services for its 32-year history. Specifically, the local option levy supports services that include:
• A rapid response to 9-1-1 calls.
• The county’s Mental Health Response Team that pairs a deputy and clinician to respond
to people in crisis and divert them from the criminal justice system.
• Advanced training in crisis intervention and de-escalation for deputies to use when
working with individuals experiencing a mental health crisis.
• Deputies connecting people experiencing homelessness with community resources.
• A public safety response to the increased overdoses and abuse of Xanax, OxyContin,
Fentanyl, and other drugs in the community.
• Maintaining current levels of policing services similar to neighboring cities.
Advanced training in crisis intervention
and de-escalation for deputies
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