Young takes over as sheriff

Jen Lawson

Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2003 | 11:06 a.m.

Moments after being sworn in as Clark County sheriff, looking out at a jubilant crowd of friends, family, employees and media, it hit Bill Young: Being sheriff is a big deal.

"It was an awesome feeling. My heart was pounding," Young said while sitting at his desk in his office on the eighth floor of City Hall. "You realize you're the one responsible for the bulk of law enforcement and the safety of the people of this county."

Young has called Metro one of the finest police departments in the country. But like any other government agency, it has its problems:

The department is strapped for cash.

The public has expressed concern that there are too many officer-involved shootings.

There aren't enough officers on the streets and, on top of that, about 40 officers who also serve as military reservists have been called to assist with the fight against terrorism. More could also be deployed.

Asked what he considers his biggest challenge, Young paused and stared at the ceiling.

"Not enough cops, not enough 911 operators, not enough resources," he said. "Law enforcement is about service. We're service-driven, we're call-driven. We get three and a half million calls for service a year. When the volume of service calls exceeds the number of people you have to respond, it's a problem."

Young's goal is to have two officers for every 1,000 Clark County residents. Currently, the ratio is 1.7 officers for every 1,000 people. The national ratio is 2.7 per 1,000.

To fix this, Young plans to request permission from the Nevada Legislature to put a question on a ballot that would seek to raise property taxes to pay for nearly 300 more officers. However, the earliest Young can make his request is 2004.

A new hire costs the department about $58,000 for training, equipment and the first year's salary, according to police.

Metro also needs more than 100 additional civilian employees, including about 30 to work in the 911 center.

He and his staff are putting together the 2003-2004 budget, and Young said he is going to strive this year to hire more officers with what funds are available.

Another issue on Young's plate is Metro's vehicle pursuit policy. Currently, Metro officers may chase drivers suspected of traffic violations, misdemeanors and felonies. There are no definitive guidelines as to when to terminate the chase.

Last Wednesday, a team of four captains and three lieutenants began looking at Metro's chase policy to see if it can be improved. Young said the team is considering whether more supervisor involvement would reduce crashes and injury.

Changes may be made as to when a chase is called off. In addition, Young, who ran Metro's helicopter unit for three and a half years, said helicopters may be used more often in chases.

But he defended the guidelines as to when to initiate a chase.

Last month, Officer Enrique Hernandez chased a suspect, Javier Chavez, for having no license plates -- a misdemeanor -- and the suspect turned out to be a "hardened ex-felon who was willing to use deadly force." Chavez shot Hernandez six times, and the 27-year-old rookie officer spent a week and a half in the hospital. Chavez was later shot and killed by SWAT officers who reported that the suspect turned his gun on them. A coroner's inquest is scheduled for Friday.

If Hernandez hadn't chased Chavez's vehicle, a dangerous person would still be on the loose, Young said.

"That's the kind of thing we're facing in the real world," Young said. "He didn't fire the first shot. It would be pretty tough to criticize those cops."

While civil libertarians say Metro's number of officer-involved shootings is too high, Young said Metro's policy is clearly defined: Deadly force should be used to save the life of an officer or citizen.

In 2000, there were 17 officer-involved shootings; there were 33 in 2001 and 22 in 2002, Young said.

Allen Lichtenstein, general counsel for the American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada, said while he understands some shootings are justified, too many are not.

"There are too many cases, and there have been over the years, where the justification seems to be lacking," Lichtenstein said. "It's not just Metro, but other local police departments. They're shooting people who are unarmed, and the coroner's inquest system is highly flawed."

However, Young pointed out that officers who responded to a downtown shooting last week didn't shoot the suspect, Ricky Horne, even though Horne allegedly shot at officers from an apartment building. One man was left dead, one was injured and a Metro officer suffered minor injuries when bullet shrapnel hit his hand.

"There are a lot of people looking over our shoulders. You're not going to make everyone happy," Young said. "I support the notion that our officers go to work every day not wanting to shoot anybody, but sometimes the suspect leaves you no choice."

"It's pretty easy to sit back and criticize the cops. We're not perfect. We're not infallible," he added.

Every situation is different, just as every play in a football game is different, Young said. In this instance, officers resolved the standoff by establishing a perimeter, evacuating residents and negotiating with Horne instead of firing their weapons.

"We could have killed that suspect early, and justified it, I'm sure," Young said. "We chose to end it peacefully. I'm so proud of our officers."

Citizens who have questions about why officers act as they do in certain situations can sign up for Metro's civilian police academy, Young suggested. The 12-week course, started in 1991, gives citizens a firsthand look at the police profession.

As Young gets adjusted to his new role and a lower salary -- he took a $55,000 a year pay cut when retired as deputy chief and became sheriff -- he has a valuable resource who's just a phone call away: former sheriff Jerry Keller. Keller was a Metro cop most of his adult life, and now he is enjoying some time off with his wife, who retired with him, and their children and grandchildren.

Young and Keller spoke Monday morning: Young asked Keller how his first week of retirement went, and Keller asked Young how his first week as sheriff went.

"I was very familiar with this agency and I had a pretty good idea of the direction we needed to go," Young said. But "I'm so glad to have him as a sounding board."