PARIS — Oxford County Sheriff Wayne Gallant said Thursday that there have been significant coverage improvements since a call-sharing agreement with Maine State Police was abandoned and a revised mutual aid agreement between county sheriff’s offices was implemented.

Removing patrol coverage duplication, added resources and keeping calls for assistance local are some of the advantages of the revised system, he said.

“It’s a better way to manage the entire county,” he said. “Certainly, I think it’s worked well.”

Under the old agreement, state troopers from Troop B Barracks in Gray and county deputies covered calls in an alternating zone arrangement that had been in place since 1998.

Under the new call arrangement, the Sheriff’s Office took over primary coverage for the entire county.

Gallant said there are 19 deputies assigned to patrolling 2,200 square miles in the county, which borders Canada and New Hampshire. The county includes 36 towns and 19 organized and unorganized townships with a year-round population of about 54,000.

There are also four detectives, the deputy sheriff and the sheriff.

“We don’t patrol 24/7 but we have 24/7 coverage,” Gallant said. There are five deputies patrolling the county at any given time.

“We could certainly use more officers but budgets don’t allow that,” he said.

One open spot was filled this week when Stephen T. Witham, a former Fryeburg police officer, graduated from the Maine Criminal Justice Academy and was hired as a deputy.

Gallant said the new call agreement has allowed the deputies and the state police officers to better define their roles. While state police, who maintain three officers in the county, still respond to calls when backup is needed, each focuses on their areas of expertise.

Additionally, the county receives support from municipal departments, neighboring counties, the U.S. Border Patrol and even New Hampshire officers on occasions when incidents happen closer to another agency.

“It did away with duplication of patrol coverage,” Gallant said.

The arrangement also improved communication for callers who need assistance. Calls for police service and 911 calls to the Oxford County Regional Communications Center in Paris used to be transferred to the state police barracks in Gray at times, but now remain local.

“Now the calls remain here and are dispatched to a deputy,” Gallant said.

Maine State Police told the Sun Journal several months after the call sharing agreement was dropped that the reduction in calls allowed them to devote more resources to proactive law enforcement in Oxford County.

Mutual aid enhanced

Improvements also were seen in county coverage this year after a legislative amendment was made to the county Sheriff’s Department’s mutual aid agreement, Gallant said. It opened up further resources to law enforcement in Oxford and Cumberland, Franklin and Androscoggin counties.

“If Franklin County, for example, has expertise we can rely on them to assist us and help us,” Gallant said. “What a resource for us all.”

Gallant said Oxford County is one of two in Maine that has also set up an emergency plan for every school.

Using a grant secured by U.S. Rep. Mike Michaud, D-Maine, Oxford and Penobscot county sheriff’s departments have developed emergency school plans.

Not only does the Oxford County plan include floor plans for every school, but aerial views as well. If the situation were serious, as many as 100 officers could be deployed immediately.

Maine State Police, who have their own system, have access to the county’s main database and sharing of those systems is being further enhanced as more grant money becomes available, he said.

“We’ve had growth,” Gallant said.

ldixon@sunjournal.com