County HR: 103 sworn hires since January but turnover leaves net staffing short; estimate 3.4 years to reach target

Kenneth L. Herman Jr., chief HR officer, briefed commissioners on jail staffing and said the county has hired 103 sworn officers and detention deputies since January but recorded 45 separations in the same period, yielding a net increase of 58.

Herman said the county has received more than 1,300 completed application packages, referred 332 candidate packages to the sheriff from vendor Walls, and hired 57 from that pool. Using a current applicant‑to‑hire rate of roughly 37 applications per hire, Herman projected it would take an estimated 3.4 years to hire the first 200 of the 392 detention positions identified as needed at the current pace. He said the office would report back with exit‑interview data to explain separations.

Commissioners asked the HR office for quarterly disposition reporting on cases sent to the consolidated trial calendar and for staff to review whether supervisory ranks are top‑heavy, as earlier studies suggested.