MOULTRIE — Sheriff Rod Howell strongly voiced his concern about the inadequacies of the Colquitt County Sheriff’s Department’s radio system at March 5’s county commission meeting.

“I’m saying it now with the newspaper here. We cannot communicate effectively anymore as deputy sheriffs. I’m telling you,” Howell said.

Howell wants to transition Colquitt County from an analog radio system to the P25 digital radio system, which allows interoperable communications between law enforcement and emergency responders from various agencies in different counties.

According to the Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency’s website, “Purchasing P25 equipment ensures that digital land mobile radio systems will be compatible with other, most importantly contiguous, P25 systems. Additionally, standards-based systems enable interoperable communications between emergency responders from various agencies, jurisdictions, and levels of government in the event they need to communicate during day-to-day incidents, large-scale emergencies, and disaster responses.”

Howell presented a letter to the commissioners to sign that would commit that Colquitt County wanted to receive grant funds from U.S. Rep. Sanford Bishop’s office so that the radio system could be updated to the P25 digital system.

He read the letter, “Approximately $3.9 million was awarded to the region by the office of Congressman Bishop to assist with the upgrade of P25 communications systems. Colquitt County is grateful for the funding and wishes to participate once approval is granted from the commission. We understand that the total project cost for our county is approximately $3.19 million and that up to $986,000 will be paid through the funding received from Congressman Bishop’s office towards the project. The County will be responsible for all costs associated with the operation and maintenance of the equipment.”

Then he said, “So this is Sanford Bishop’s thing to help law enforcement but nobody’s getting that money, so the money’s sitting out there.”

He said that he reached out to Bishop’s office and asked if they could apply for the grant money even though they weren’t in Bishop’s district and he was told, “Yes.”

“We’ll have to have a county portion, which will be about $2 million, but $1 million will be offset and we aren’t even in Congressman Sanford Bishop’s district. So, it is a pretty good olive branch to us,” said County Administrator Chas Cannon.

Howell said that he’d met with Motorola that day and found out that, if the County goes under the Albany P25 digital system, Colquitt County would need to put up three towers to tie-in to it.

“And they were around $4.5 million for the total project,” he said, clarifying that would include the towers and the radios.

He also said that there would be an $80,000 a year maintenance fee, which would have the possibility of being reduced as more departments joined the Albany group.

“All right, so the cost would be $4.5 million,” Commissioner Paul Nagy said and then asked how much money the County would get from Bishop, which was restated that it would be approximately $1 million.

“If we don’t send the commitment letter now, we’re never going to be able to even remotely get to talk about this money. This commitment letter says, ‘Hey! We want to further the process of talking with y’all’,” said Howell.

Commissioner Marc DeMott voiced that he was confused by the number because Cannon had said $2.2 million.

Emergency Management Director Justin Cox explained that the $2.2 million was the County’s part of the total $3.1 million stated in the intent letter, which was an estimation of what it would cost for the sake of the letter.

The actual tentative quote that Howell received from Motorola, that day, was $4.5 million.

“Where are we gonna get the money from?” asked Nagy.

Cannon responded, “That’s a good question. We’ll just have to look at that once it comes to us but I mean we could either finance it or pay cash for it. That might be a solution.

“Or we might have some money in appropriations next year that can give us some appropriations help,” continued Cannon, who is also a state legislator. “We’ll see about that.”

“I’m telling y’all,” Howell said, “and I’ll say it again. I was getting up to put clothes on the other night because a man 1/4 mile behind my house can’t talk to 911, dealing with a mentally ill patient. Let somebody die on my watch because they can’t listen to the radio and we’re all in trouble.”

Cox told the commissioners that Colquitt County was initially licensed by the FCC back in the 1970s. While some equipment has been replaced over the years, the overall system has not.

“And we’ve thrown Band-Aids at it,” he added.

Commissioner Mike Boyd, a former Georgia State Patrol officer, wanted to know more details on the coverage area of the digital radio system and Cox explained that the core system was in Albany with towers in Dougherty County, Lee County, Mitchell County, Thomas County, Grady County and Decatur County. Howell passed out maps that showed the coverage area.

“We’re tying into that system. We operate off of those towers,” Cox said.

Howell said that with the P25 digital system, his officers could talk to Tifton, drive a little way up I-75 and talk to Crisp County, and even talk to Lowndes County from the parking lot of the Sheriff’s Office with a digital radio.

“We are the largest county in the State of Georgia that is not on this P25 system,” said Cox.

He said that there were some possibilities for cost savings because, instead of building one of the three towers, they might be able to lease or purchase one that is already on County property. He said that he had already reached out to the carrier that owns the unused tower.

Howell said there may also be cost savings on the radios because the handheld radio coverage was so good, with the digital system, they might not need “in-car” radios anymore.

Nagy said, “So, I ask again, Chas, where are we gonna get the money from?”

“Good question. Well, we can figure it out,” responded Cannon.

“You’re gonna pay for it when one of my employees’ family don’t sue you for not having an adequate radio,” said Howell. “Please put that on the record. We are going to get sued by a family member because we don’t have adequate radios.”

Boyd interjected, “He’s telling the truth.”

There was some non-serious chatter around the table about ways to offset costs and Howell said, “It’ll be the last time I talk about it with y’all. You start to see me getting frustrated because I’m getting frustrated. Figure out what you’re going to do. Do it. Don’t do it.”

Boyd told the commissioners that none of them had been out there in a dangerous situation and wasn’t able to get help over the radio because it didn’t work.

“If you’re asking people to go out there and do it, we’ve got to find the funding somewhere,” he said.

He also gave an example of a situation where there was a manhunt in the woods and other counties’ law enforcement departments were called in to assist. He said with the radios the Colquitt County sheriff’s deputies have now, they would not be able to communicate with those other agencies, which could cause confusion and possibly injury or death of an officer from “friendly fire.”

“He’s right as far as the liability. We’ve discussed it. At this point, as of tonight, we’re open and who knows what’s going to happen. You pray to God that nothing happens but sooner or later something can,” said Boyd.

Nagy asked, ”You said that we have to communicate to them that we’re going to commit to this?”

Howell clarified that the letter that he had presented to them to be signed committed that Colquitt County was in negotiations to receive the grant money from Bishop’s office and that was all that it committed them to.

Boyd added, “This is the way we lock down the money.”

“It keeps somebody else from getting this money until we figure out what we’re going to do,” said Howell.

Commissioner Chairman Denver Braswell asked for a motion to sign the letter and it was made by Commissioner Chris Hunnicutt and seconded by Nagy. It passed unanimously.