Howardwick organizing city marshal office

The City of Howardwick is working to establish its own law enforcement office following last week’s city council meeting, January 11.

City Secretary Sandy Childress said the council voted to amend the city’s budget to set aside $8,000 to create the department of the city marshal, which in addition to providing the community with a certified peace officer will also give the city a way to serve municipal court papers to those with code violations.

“With the crime and thefts we’re seeing in our community, we think we can help our sheriff’s office in squashing crime,” Childress told the Enterprise.

Childress said some residents with prior law enforcement experience have stepped forward to volunteer, and she said the funds budgeted would pay for their state certifications and the expenses of the office.
The money for the department comes from a surplus in sales of properties in the city, Childress said.

“We can get bigger and better here, but it has to be clean and safe,” she said.

Howardwick hopes to have its city marshal office up and running within 90 days.