Asked and Answered
Grand Rapids Press Editor Paul Keep asked for suggestions on how to "fix" Michigan. Mackinac Center scholars responded with two, both involving law enforcement, and will weigh in with more ideas as The Press begins a 10-month series focusing on Michigan's future.
The first idea is to devolve State Police road patrols to county sheriff's deputies, which would save taxpayers about $65 million a year. The savings come about because a county deputy sheriff costs roughly $20,000 less per year in wages and benefits compared to state troopers.
The second idea is privatization of some or all state prisons. Center analysts have examined this issue several times. Read more about it here, here, and here.
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Replacing the state police road patrols would no more save the tax payers than giving everyone a golden egg. First of all, many stories by the Mackinaw Center claim sheriff deputies just as capable as troopers to do police work. This is false. The training a trooper receives and continues to receive throughout his career is far above any deputy sheriff. Second, only the MSP has the state wide jurisdiction to be mobilized anywhere in the state at the order of the governor. Third, the troopers do more than just "patrol highways" and write tickets as the Mackinaw Center seem to believe. Outside the metro areas MSP is a full service police department. Fourth they are not political pawns to local governments.
I have worked in law enforcement my entire life and have observed first hand troopers and deputies at crime scenes. Troopers may make more in wages in some counties, but not all. Having a county sheriff, a political king in his county to run rouge as the only game in town should scare the hell out of anyone. Unintended consequences would drive the price of a deputy to that and more of a trooper over in time. Move outside your golden community and see how most citizens live in small poor communities in this state and ask them who they want to provide police service. Better yet, do away with county road patrol, that is NOT a mandated service by the sheriff and put more troopers on patrol. Most sheriffs cannot even run their jails proper, let alone a non mandated service as road patrol.