Sheriff brings conservation officer aboard

Banner Graphic/JARED JERNAGAN Gathering to celebrate the appointment of retired conservation officer Kim Suitors (center) as a special deputy of the Putnam County Sheriff's Department, conservation officers (from left) Lt. Kent Hutchins and Sgt. Chris Springstun and Putnam County Sheriff Scott Stockton and Chief Deputy Phil Parker also recently discussed ways the two departments can partner. Suitors, a 35-year veteran, will primarily perform water education and compliance duties on Cagles Mill Lake and Glenn Flint Lake as the PCSD water safety coordinator.

The Putnam County Sheriff's Department will have a new asset on the water this summer in the form of a 35-year veteran conservation officer.

Sheriff Scott Stockton recently swore in retired conservation officer Kim Suitors as a special deputy, specifically to serve as the department's water safety coordinator.

As the coordinator, Suitors will spend much of the summer on Cagles Mill Lake and Glenn Flint Lake, supplementing the conservation patrols in those locations.

Education, not enforcement, will be Suitors' primary responsibility, a focus that Stockton said he and Suitors agreed on prior to the new special deputy ever taking his oath.

The goal is for people to safely enjoy their time on the water, so Suitors will be doing routine checks to educate boaters on basics of compliance, such as the number of life vests required on a given watercraft.

What Stockton did not want was someone out looking to write tickets. Instead, the department has Suitors, who typically has a cooler in his boat so he can give out a popsicle or ice cream sandwich to a kid he sees following proper procedures.

"I'm very happy Kim took the appointment," Stockton said. "I can't imagine anyone better suited to it."

Although Suitors is retired as a conservation officer, the appointment signifies a partnership between the agencies. Besides swearing in Suitors, Stockton and Chief Deputy Phil Parker met with conservation officers Lt. Kent Hutchins and Sgt. Chris Springstun, discussing ways the two agencies can better work together.

Suitors' appointment is funding by a Marine Enforcement Grant administered by the Department of Natural Resources.

Springstun said a larger goal is "helping our agencies work together in responding to water-related emergencies."

Suitors' presence on the water puts another experienced set of hands on the water should such an emergency arise.

It also establishes a more official link between the two agencies, increasing their ability to work hand in hand in an emergency.

Springstun recalled a 2013 rescue in which he worked closely with PCSD Deputy Mike Downing to save two people trapped in rising water near Reelsville.

"Mike and I worked closely together and have a good relationship," Springstun said. "Because we had a good working relationship, we were able to make that rescue."

Springstun went on to say that the collaboration would not have been possible without prior work with Downing.

To cultivate such relationships and give deputies some basic water rescue training, the departments are also planning some swift water rescue training for the deputies.

Far from making the deputies into divers -- a specialty left to a few certified conservation officers -- it will give them basic training on techniques such as throwing out a throw bag or a life jacket in water rescue situations.

"Helping our agencies work together is always a good thing," Springstun said.