Ashtabula sheriff to recall 23 of 42 laid off in March

The Cleveland Dealer is reporting that Ashtabula County Sheriff William Johnson will recall 23 of the 42 staff members laid off in March to increase public safety.

From the story:

That is good news to homeowners like Barb Sivko who called 9-1-1 last week and was told there were no deputies to help her fend off a gun-toting neighbor at her Twitchell Road property in the southeast corner of the county.

"They told me, Don't go home,' " Sivko said of the Saturday dispute. "They had no one available. I was screaming for help, and they said they had no one on the road."

Sivko said she drove to the Sheriff's Office in Jefferson to file a report and waited an hour before being told to mail in her complaint.

The rehirings also come after a daring escape Sunday by two federal prisoners temporarily assigned to the Ashtabula County jail. The two overpowered two corrections officers and escaped for several hours. The two were caught with the help of laid-off deputies.

Johnson said his staff is doing the best it can in wake of $1.3 million in budget cuts. Sometimes only one patrol car covers the 716 square miles of Ohio's largest county.

Only you can protect you.

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