Leaders hear Trumbull County budget requests

The sheriff's department is hoping to bring staffing levels back up in 2006.
By ED RUNYAN
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
WARREN -- Trumbull County Prosecutor Dennis Watkins told county commissioners that 2005 will probably set a record for criminal cases in the county: 890 cases have been processed so far.
The highest number of cases on record was in 2003, when 902 cases were processed, he said this week during his department's annual budget hearing before commissioners. He added that homicides are also up -- 13 so far this year, compared with 10 last year and fewer than 10 in 2003.
For his budget, however, Watkins said, he plans to keep either the same number of employees he currently has -- 34 -- or add one more. He said his office has five fewer employees than it had a few years ago.
The department's total budget request for 2006 is $2,154,932, compared with 2005 funding of $2,025,102.
Wants to restore staffing
The Trumbull County Sheriff's Department, which brought back six deputies from layoff this week for road patrols, is hoping to bring other staffing levels back up in 2006.
Sheriff Thomas L. Altiere and Chief Deputy Ernest G. Cook III told commissioners they would like to refill most of the 28 positions that have been left vacant by layoffs last year.
"Most of those are going to be needed," Cook said. He said filling those positions in 2006 would involve new hiring because the people who formerly held those jobs have found different ones. The workers on layoff who wanted to return to the department have all been brought back, he said.
The department reports having spent just over $5 million overall through November and asks for a budget of $6.27 million for 2006.
Coroner's requests
At the hearing for the county coroner's office, commissioners were asked to provide $474,271 for 2006, a substantial increase over the office's 2005 budget of $306,668. The office took large cuts this year because of budget constraints.
Commissioner Paul Heltzel said the coroner's office wants to maintain its current staffing but wants money to establish a decomposition facility inside Forum Health Trumbull Memorial Hospital where bodies that are part of a coroner's investigation can be stored and examined.
The facility, which would be contained inside the present morgue, would cost around $80,000. At present, decomposed bodies of this type have to be taken to out-of-county facilities at a greater expense to the county.
Dr. Humphrey Germaniuk, chief deputy coroner and forensic pathologist, has been talking with the hospital this week to investigate the idea further and has discussed it with commissioners several times in the past.
Allan Knapp, planning commission director, told commissioners he would like enough funding in 2006 to bring back two workers laid off in 2005. One of the two wants to return to the department. The other would have to be replaced with a new employee because he has found another job he wants to keep.
Karen Davies, interim director of the county 911 center, told commissioners she would also like to bring back the three call dispatchers her department lost because of budget cuts.