Request By:
Mr. Michael G. Reilly
Hickman County Sheriff
Courthouse
Clinton, Kentucky 42031Mr. Thomas O'Neal
Route #1, Box 348
Clinton, Kentucky 42031
Opinion
Opinion By: Frederic J. Cowan, Attorney General; David H. Ashley, Assistant Attorney General
This is in response to your two letters that raise the questions of whether a sheriff may appoint volunteer deputy sheriffs and, if so, what requirements any such volunteer must meet. You are particularly concerned about whether a person who has been a resident of Hickman County for only five months could be appointed as a volunteer deputy sheriff.
KRS 70.045 allows a sheriff to appoint certain special deputy sheriffs, who receive no monetary compensation for their services, under the following circumstances:
(1) The sheriff may appoint and have sworn in and entered on the county clerk order book one (1) special deputy for each five thousand (5,000) residents or part thereof in his county, to assist him with general law enforcement and maintenance of public order. The population of the county shall be determined by the most recent count or estimate by the federal bureau of census.
(2) The sheriff in each county may appoint and have sworn in, and entered on the county clerk order book, as many special deputies as needed to assist him in the execution of his duties and office in preparation for or during an emergency situation such as fire, flood, tornado, storm, and other such emergency situations. For purposes of this section only, an emergency situation is a condition which, in the judgment of the sheriff, requires a response immediately necessary for the preservation of public peace, health or safety, utilizing special deputies previously appointed in preparation for the contingency.
Therefore, the Sheriff of Hickman County should be able to hire at least one person as a special deputy sheriff pursuant to this provision, based upon 1986 population projections for Hickman County, to assist him with general law enforcement. The sheriff may appoint additional special deputy sheriffs in emergency situations. The requirements for these special deputy sheriffs are set forth in KRS 70.045 (3), which states the following:
"(3) The special deputy shall:
(a) Be appointed and dismissed on the authority of the sheriff;
(b) Not receive any monetary compensation for his time or services;
(c) Serve at the request of the sheriff, unless personal conditions rule otherwise;
(d) Be answerable to and under the supervision of the sheriff, who shall be responsible for the actions of the special deputy; and
(e) Be appointed regardless of race, color, creed or position.
Subsection four of KRS 70.045 provides: "The position of special deputy as created and defined in subsections 1, 2, 3 is subject to the provisions of this section only." Therefore, it is our opinion that by virtue of this provision the special deputy appointed pursuant to KRS 70.045(1) is not subject to the residential requirements imposed by KRS 61.300.
We trust the forgoing is responsive to your needs. Should you desire additional information, please do not hesitate to call upon us.