Law enforcement agencies are struggling to hire and keep good officers. According to Wharton Police Chief Terry Lynch they used to have 20 people standing in line for one position– now you have departments competing against each other to recruit for that one officer, because the applicants have become fewer
and fewer over the years. He says public perception and low pay are the two biggest factors impacting recruitment. The Wharton County Sheriff’s Office recently got significant raises approved by the county commissioners so they can be competitive in recruitment efforts.