KINGWOOD — Preston Sheriff Dan Loughrie said he and his wife, Donna, are looking forward to spending time with their children and grandchildren who live out of state after he leaves office.
West Virginia has a two-consecutive-term limit for sheriff, so Loughrie couldn’t run again in the recent election.
“We’d like to travel more and ride our motorcycle more,” he said. “And I want to spend time on our small family farm on the Cheat River.”
Loughrie said with the help and support of the men and women of the Preston County Sheriff’s Department he was able to accomplish significant initiatives and goals during his terms.
Chief Deputy Paul “Moe” Pritt, who was recently elected sheriff, said he was “glad” Loughrie chose him as his chief deputy.
“He had the best interest of the county in mind,” Pritt said. “And he was receptive to new ideas.”
Among his accomplishments, Loughrie cited community and officer safety, reduction of crime, transparency of police activity, child safety and applying technology to increase the efficiency of all members of the force.
He said during the eight years he was in office he implemented 24-hour deputy coverage countywide, reducing response times to calls for service, and a process to have all cruisers marked for increased visibility.
“In conjunction with 911, I ensured mile markers were installed for all 57 miles of the Cheat River to support search and rescue along the river,” Loughrie said.
He said In 2013 the department established a narcotics unit. The unit has charged or gotten indicted over 140 individuals on multiple felony drug offenses.
The department also adopted the National Prescription Drug Take-Back program to assist with getting prescription drugs off the street.
In addition to increasing the number of deputies, Loughrie said he doubled the number of K9 partners since 2013.
“The dogs have been directly involved in over 127 drug cases,” Loughrie said “I ensured all of the K9s have vests and we built a training and storage facility to decrease third-party spending.”
In 2013, an in-house forensic lab was established. He said the lab saves money and time on critical data. In addition to his regular duties, an officer was trained, certified and dedicated to the analysis of cell phones, other mobile devices and computers.
“In today’s cyber world, keeping up with the latest equipment and training is essential,” Loughrie said.
He said he also implemented the adoption of new computer reporting systems such as Live Scan, which captures fingerprints in a digitized format and transmits them to a state repository or the FBI. Loughrie said this has resulted in quicker arrests and has saved time and money.
In 2014, the department created the Warrant Service Team. Deputies on the team received additional training in high-risk warrant service, barricaded persons and hostage rescue techniques.
Loughrie said the team is only used for situations in which a traditional law enforcement response could result in injuries to an officer, the public or the suspect.
As part of the Warrant Service Team, two deputies were trained and certified by the FBI as crisis negotiators. The team has been designated as Camp Dawson’s quick reaction force during any threat to the installation.
Loughrie said while in office he supported the development of a social media presence to increase public safety information sharing and overall transparency of the force.
He said a resource officer has been stationed at Preston High School to provide safety for the students and to teach educational programs on drugs, bullying and safety.
“In addition to the officer, all officers and K9 units continue to check in at the schools as well,” he said. “Having an officer present has resulted in drug arrests and children being removed from dangerous home environments.”
Loughrie said the Sheriff’s Tax Office has also undergone improvements since early 2013. He said the sheriff’s office has provided taxpayers with an efficient system second to none in West Virginia. For added safety at the tax office, he said the staff is protected by security glass.
“I would have to say first that just winning both elections, which in turn let us accomplish my goals to better serve, I was happy that most of the people of Preston County were paying attention to the changes needed,” he said.
Loughrie said he was disappointed that a lot of people don’t understand the functions of the sheriff’s office.
“I’ve personally been criticized for letting prisoners go. Again, that’s a judicial matter,” he said. “And lastly, I found it, let’s say, challenging to deal with the commission.”
TWEET @DominionPostWV
