Sheriffs and Their Role in the Criminal Justice System Administration of Justice Crim - 150 Eric Jin, Zane

Wulff, Tristan Bottomley, and Jeremiah Dewhurst

Sheriffs Responsibilities Sheriffs play an important role in the Criminal Justice System of British Columbia. Their main responsibilities are providing security for anyone attending the courts, including people accused of a crime; transporting prisoners to necessary locations; and managing the jury during court. Sheriffs are an integral piece of the courts; their contributions make it possible for the courts to operate. Unfortunately, as we will discuss later, Sheriffs are occasionally overlooked in the Criminal Justice System. Sheriffs are Peace Officers and so possess many of the same powers that Police Officers do. Therefore, they must exercise use of force when necessary for people to lawfully comply. This includes training and handling lethal, and less than lethal weapons. These tools and skills are necessary to properly provide security for courts. Every court has at least one Sheriff present, and visitors to court can rely on the protection Sheriffs provide. Their security responsibilities also include the protection of accused individuals. In some situations this can be a difficult, because of the threat of vigilantism in some highly emotional cases. In addition to their security and Peace Officer roles, Sheriffs are responsible for the handling of prisoners. Upon arrest, Sheriffs are responsible for detaining prisoners in remand until they go to court. The way Sheriffs deal with these prisoners is highly scrutinized because they are not proven guilty of an offence. Sheriffs are also responsible for the transportation of these prisoners to the court and bringing them to their respective court rooms to attend trial. They then return the prisoners to jail after. Without Sheriffs completing these tasks diligently, the courts would not operate properly.

Finally, Sheriffs are also responsible for the protection of the jury, particularly when they are sequestered. Sheriffs are posted outside the room while juries deliberate a case, and enforce the jurys separation from all methods of communication. This is necessary to maintain a fair verdict during trials. Occasionally, jury deliberation will last overnight, and in cases like these Sheriffs must still stand guard to enforce segregation. Sheriffs will also summon the jury, and force people to answer court summons when they are selected for jury duty. Where Sheriffs Fit in the Criminal Justice System According to British Columbia Sheriff Services (BCSS), Governor James Douglas appointed the first sheriff in B.C. in 1857, by the name of Andrew Muir, while the British Columbia Sheriff Services was created in consolidation with county sheriffs in 1974 during the New Democratic Parties government. The BCSS was put under the authority of the Ministry of the Attorney General. Today, the BCSS is still under that Ministry, along with many other pieces of criminal justice, currently led by Shirley Bond. Sheriffs play a unique role in the Criminal Justice System (CJS) because they act as a link between the individual systems. They have more direct interaction with police, prosecutors, defence attorneys, judges, and jail staff than any other member of the CJS. In essence, Sheriffs maintain the smooth working of courts whenever a prisoner is involved. After Police arrest an individual, Sheriffs are largely responsible for the handling of him/her until they are either convicted or acquitted. Employment and Pay Sheriffs have very similar job requirements to many Police Officers. They must interact with prisoners on a daily basis, carry a firearm in public, and operate in a work environment that

could be dangerous. However, their pay, at $26.31/per hr. does not appear to properly compensate them for their job requirements. Many similar positions earn substantially more money than BC sheriffs, including Police, Alberta Sheriffs, and Border Service Officers. This discrepancy in pay has caused many sheriffs to leave their job for other, better paid, positions. Currently B.C. only has about 400 sheriffs in the province. This is substantially less than in 2007 and 2008, when there were 497 and 440 sheriffs, respectively. With this decrease in Sheriffs, the courts have had difficulty keeping up with the number of cases they are facing. The Province has come under pressure to hire more sheriffs to help the courts run more efficiently. A recently dropped case has caused B.C. to hire 36 more auxiliary sheriff staff to help police the courts. Education and Training The minimum requirements to be a Sheriff are similar to the requirements for many police forces. An individual must have their high school grade 12 completed, be physically fit, pass a medical examination including sight, and hearing standards, and have no criminal record for which a pardon has not been issued. If an individual was to apply for the Sheriffs, they would begin with a nine-week course in the Justice Institute of B.C. located in New Westminster. Upon completion of the program, they will then be qualified as a Deputy Sheriff. Training continues at their respective court faculties where they will learn more advanced techniques in their jobs, including motorcade training, drug identification, and use of force options, to name a few. Sheriffs also have room to advance and participate in some unique jobs; as a result, it can be a very fulfilling career.

Issues with Sheriff Services Sheriff services are experiencing a lack of staff at the moment, similar to many areas of the Criminal Justice System. Despite the oversight, many people may give Sheriffs implications in lack of staffing that can be severely detrimental to the efficient operation of the courts. Court cases cannot operate without a sheriff present; this means there can be a judge, prosecutor, defendant, and courtroom, all of which are necessary components for a case to operate. However, without a Sheriff, this can cause the case to be delayed. This is causing current Sheriffs to work more overtime, or travel longer distances, to make up for the shortage of staff. As a result of this contributes to lower job satisfaction, which causes even more Sheriffs to search for employment elsewhere. It is pertinent to consider increasing Sheriff wages and staffing numbers to promote efficient operation in the courts. No matter how many more judges, or courtrooms we supply, we will not improve the effectiveness of our courts without addressing our lack of Sheriff staffing.

References B.C. Government and Services Employee Union http://www.bcgeu.ca/BC Justice Institute of British Columbia according to website http://www.jibc.ca/