Humboldt County Sheriff Mike Downey told a crowded meeting in Orleans last week that Measure Z 
funding would finally allow hiring of a deputy assigned to Orleans. Photo: Malcolm Terence.

It was another public meeting in Orleans with the county sheriff last week. Forty locals ran out an inventory of lawlessness ranging from heavy drug use to random firing of automatic weapons. But this time the sheriff could respond with more than hand-wringing and we-feel-your-pain assurances, promising a resident deputy for Orleans by summertime.

More than 40 people packed the meeting room and many were ready to talk. The Orleans Volunteer Fire Department was the sponsor of the evening and Penny Eckert, who is treasurer of OVFD and who volunteers as an emergency medical technician, was the facilitator.

Eckert opened with introductions and some ground rules aimed at keeping things civil. She asked everyone to search for solutions instead of lay blame.

The response from the community was an outpouring of worries and frustration over the lack of law enforcement in Orleans, which sits in a lightly populated north-eastern corner of Humboldt County, 90 minutes from the sheriff’s Eureka headquarters in good weather.

One of the first respondents said there had been no investigations following several arson fires of structures over the last several years. Another said she encountered young children who had been ill-fed or even not fed because “mom and dad were partying.” She said use of heroin, methamphetamines and alcohol were widespread.

A third speaker said that laws were not being enforced in Orleans and “transients know they can come here and do whatever they want.” Another local echoed that sentiment and added that the surrounding communities — Hoopa, Willow Creek and Somes Bar – all have a law enforcement presence “so people come here to hide out.”

A speaker said they’d called the sheriff once to report a burglary and the dispatcher said, “You guys out there need to take care of yourselves. You need to arm yourselves.”

Other locals said their calls to sheriff department dispatchers about random firing of automatic weapons were dismissed with answers like “Well, if they’re just shooting in the air we can’t do anything,” or, “Maybe it’s just fireworks.”

Another Orleans resident complained, “I’ve only called in twice and each time I was treated with disrespect. They took no interest in the identity of the perpetrator.”

Sheriff Mike Downey entered the conversation at that point and invited locals to call him if they felt ignored or ill-treated by dispatchers. He said callers should call him with the name of the dispatcher, or, lacking that, the date and time of the call, since all calls to dispatchers are logged.

Several people said they’d like to see more night patrols. One said, “When do we get a cop? It’s mid-day on a Tuesday.”

Another said he’d see a deputy come into town, stop briefly at the gas station and then head back out of town. One woman listed some of her issues – including fast driving, gunfire and drugs – and said people knew which locales were “drug houses.”

Downey, who was a deputy and undersheriff for 24 years before being elected sheriff in 2010, said he was finally in a position to assign an officer to Orleans because of the funding available from Measure Z, an increase to county sales tax for public safety support that voters approved last year.

He said that it was anticipated that the tax boost would raise $8.8 million to $9 million in its first year. Downey had requested $3.5 million of that purse but been granted $3.2 million, because he had not been able to hire all the new employees yet. The total sheriff departmental budget pre-Measure Z approached $30 million. He is asking for $4.1 million of Measure Z money in the next year’s round.

He said the Measure Z money had allowed his department to hire people at “an unprecedented rate.” He explicitly promised that one deputy would be assigned to Orleans, although he said he couldn’t promise that the deputy would live in Orleans, partly because housing is scarce there.

The sheriff had also attended recent public meetings in Hoopa and in Willow Creek. He said the meeting in Orleans, the smallest town of the three, had the largest attendance and he thanked Penny Eckert, the facilitator, for keeping the session on track.

Downey urged locals to have conversations with the new deputy when he or she arrives and to develop rapport. He also said that there were agreements in the works between the county and the Hoopa Tribe that would bring in more officers there, and this would free up even more law enforcement presence in Orleans when needed.

He addressed the complaints about gunfire by noting that there is no gun-shooting ordinance in Humboldt County, but there are laws about gun safety that could be enforced.

Some locals questioned whether a deputy who lives in Willow Creek could really be a presence in Orleans, a 45-minute drive under the best conditions. Downey said, “If I can’t procure a deputy who will live in Orleans, I won’t hold up hiring an officer. One thing I emphasize is that my resident deputies can adjust the work hours to whatever problems there are in the community.”

Locals reviewed the history of public meetings, begging for better law enforcement in Orleans. One woman said, “We went to a meeting five years ago and we got no results. No law enforcement. They come. They stop a little. They go. Nothing has improved since that meeting.”

An Orleans man added, “We told your people about a particular dangerous person, and nobody did anything. He ended up killing someone and then, finally, they did something.”

Sheriff Downey repeated his promise. Orleans will have a deputy by summer, he said.

A woman stood up from her seat and said, “I take it personal. That was my son who was killed.”

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Orleans locals were given phone numbers to report problems:

• The anonymous sheriff department tip line: 707-268-2539
• Sheriff Lieutenant Kevin Miller, who accompanied Downey to the meeting: 707-839-6603
• Sheriff Sergeant Tony Gomes, who supervises the area that includes Orleans: 707-499-4244 
• Fifth District County Supervisor Ryan Sundberg, who attended the meeting: 707-476-2395

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Malcolm Terence also writes for the Two Rivers Tribune.