Caledonia Argus

County to pay for sexual assault exams; townships urged to use STS

Posted: 11/4/03

By Shannon McKinney
Argus News Reporter

Counties are now responsible for paying for sexual assault exams regardless if the information is used for criminal charges.

Victim Services Director Michelle Herman and Houston County Attorney Rick Jackson explained the new statute to the Houston County board at its Tuesday, October 28 meeting.

Herman said in the past the cost of the exam had been billed to the victim.

Jackson said the state is trying to make its law more victim friendly, ìA victim should never be on the hook for an examination,î he explained of the stateís viewpoint.

After the examination, the victim is told that she or he is not responsible for the $565 bill. He added, ì The law applies whether it is tied to a police investigation or not.î

Commissioners questioned how a sexual assault exam could be done but not be tied into an investigation.

Herman explained that a victim may change his/her mind down the road about pressing charges. Also, a victim may want to be tested to determine if an assault had taken place. Because of the prevalence of the date rape drug GHB, a person can lose consciounsness, and not know what happened after waking up.

Some crimes repaid through hard work

Township boards may not know that they can make use of Houston Countyís Sentence to Serve (STS) crew.

Craig Welsh, STS coordinator appeared before board members to answer any questions commissioners might have about the work of the STS crews.

He informed commissioners that half of the work that the STS crew does can be for local government entities like the county, city, and townships while the other half must be for the state.

The STS consists of individuals who work labor intensive jobs around the area in lieu of spending time in jail or paying off a fine.

Welsh said they have many jobs lined up, and the type of work is dependent on the crew size, which can change daily. He has found it easier for larger crew sizes to work on jobs like repairing fences for the DNR.

Commissioner Ann Thompson said she knows people who have worked with the crews and have been very complimentary of how hard theyíve worked.

Houston County Sheriff Mike Lee said the STS program has worked great for the Sheriffís office. ìHeís does an outstanding job. Iím far more satisfied than with the situation nine years ago,î said Lee.

In the previous situation, the county shared a STS leader with Winona County.

Vacancy filled in County Attorneyís office

The county board approved hiring Julie Von Arx-Abnet to replace Lori Jacobs as administrative assistance in the county attorneyís office.

Jacobs has worked for the office for five months, but is resigning due to other work and family conflicts.

Structural changes approved for Sheriffís office

The board approved a restructuring of the Sheriffís office which includes the elimination of one position.

The changes include eliminating an investigator, chief investigator, and two sergeant positions and replacing them with a captain and two lieutenant positions. The investigator position, now vacant, will not be filled.

Sheriff Lee said this will allow the department to operate more efficiently because the new titles allow for a broader range of duties.

ìThe chain of command will flow better,î he explained.

Meanwhile, the department will be posting in-house to fill the two lieutenant positions. Chief Investigator Gary Eddy will now hold the position of captain.

Chief Deputy Ken Frank further explained, ìIt better explains how the duties have evolved over the years.î

Board approves wetland application

The board approved the wetland application of Gale Evenson to dredge an existing pond which has less than 400 square feet in the Shoreland protection area.

Financial report for drop off sites

In other news, Houston County Zoning and Solid Waste OfficerRick Frank reported on the summary of the drop-off sites expenditures and revenues, which has increased since last year.

Revenues received from selling appliances, demolition/ miscellaneous materials, ferrous materials, household fees, refuse fees, and tires totals $202,040.12 which is almost $18,000 more revenue than last year.

Total expenditures for disposing waste and the cost of operating each site amounted to $261,983.08, which is about $10,000 more than the previous year. About $53,000 of the $65,000 of the cost of site operations is picked up by the county, said Frank.

This means the drop off sites operated on a $9,000 shortfall which was picked up by the county.

In the original aggreement, the county picked up the labor costs while the city and townships picked up the handling and disposal costs.

Any shortfalls, however, are picked up by the county, said Frank.

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