Local law enforcement has moved past its challenges of recent months and is moving ahead with positive attitudes, according to its administrators.

“We are fully staffed,” said Polk County Police Chief Kenny Dodd. “I’ve already replaced the officers that were terminated.”

Dodd also said two of the three on military leave have since come back to their posts.

Polk County Sheriff Kelly McLendon said there are no real staffing worries in his office either.

“Our staff is the jail is up to speed. We’re one staff short up top,” he said, referring to administrative offices. “We could always use more road officers.”

Cedartown Police Chief Jamie Newsome said their department has the opportunity to add two officers using the Community Orientation Police Grant.

He also said he has been filling vacancies.

“I’ve replaced all but one,” said Newsome. “We’re still better than we were a few months back.”

A few months back, a total of seven officers from all three departments were arrested after separate internal probes into an alleged car theft ring, steroid use, and an inmate beating. Additionally, a Cedartown officer faced an internal investigation over firing a gun in a domestic squabble.

That investigation is ongoing, Newsome said.

In the heat of the controversy, Dodd, McLendon and Newsome did more routine cop work on the streets. Dodd said all of were putting in 18 to 22 hours days.

“When a major issue arises, the normal call volume doesn’t pause,” Newsome said. “Things have to be done. I’m not going to sit behind my desk when my people need help.”

The three administrators said the various departments in Polk County, including Rockmart and Aragon Police Departments, both of which were not part of the probes, had to work together to cover jurisdictions and offer back up in the low staffing situations.

They said cooperating wasn’t hard to do because many of those heading various departments now “came up the ranks” together.

“The thing is, including Rockmart and Aragon, is we don’t see color in a uniform. We’re all officers,” Dodd said.

“We just want to get the job done. We don’t care who gets the credit.”

Cooperation included working some officers overtime and working them on their scheduled off days.

“Our main concern at that time was court because that was going on. I had off-duty personnel come in to relieve those getting off their shift,” McLendon said.

McLendon said the scandals rocking the local departments affected officers more than just being short staffed. These were their co-workers, their friends. The only way to pull the department through it was to be completely honest with them, he said.

“Right after it happened,” he said. “I called a meeting with my guys and talked to them about what took place. I gave them a chance to discuss it and then said it never leaves this room.”

He said he urged them not to talk to the suspected officers about their situations because things spoken in friendship might not be true and might put the officer in an uncomfortable situation.

“We’ve been up front. We haven’t tried to hide it,” McLendon said.

Dodd and Newsome agreed that up-front honest is the best approach.

“All you can do is say this is what the officers did, this is the evidence, this is why they got arrested,” Dodd said.

Newsome said, “If you don’t give people information, they’ll get it from somewhere and I want them to get their information from me.”

McLendon said morale in his department is much better than it has been in the past and he attributes that to an openness policy.

“Our morale around here is great. The reason being is we don’t hide anything from each other. My guys can come in the door, say something, discuss it and we both leave with positive attitudes,” he said.

Community gossip was something else administrators, their officers, and staff had to face. Newsome said much of it was unfair, but hurtful all the same.

“Law enforcement is different than anyplace else,” Newsome said, making a comparison with a high school teacher who gets arrested.

“They don’t say all teachers are crooked, but in law enforcement, if you have an officer that gets in trouble with situation or a domestic, then it’s all are crooked.”

Dodd said officers try to not take comments to heart.

“Some of the guys get jokes and, while they take it in good humor, it still hurts. There wear the badge with honor and so it hurts,” he said.

Newsome said people have to remember that those in law enforcement are people also.

“Every law enforcement agency is made up of human beings that can screw up. It’s that way in every profession. What I hope people take from this is that we police ourselves,” he said.

Proof of that is in the work of Polk County Assistant Chief Kiki Campbell, Dodd said. Campbell was the lead agent in the car theft ring investigation, which means she was responsible for gathering evidence and preparing the case for the grand jury.

The three said part of policing themselves is to be aware of situations their officers may be facing. That includes immediate supervisors getting to know officers and the open invitation all three administrators have given to any officer needing to talk.

“That’s part of our SOP (standard operating procedure),” Dodd said of supervisors. “They work with the guys and girls every day. They are the first to notice a change in attitude and demeanor. They are usually the one to ask questions.”

McLendon said his officers have, at times, called him at home to talk about a stressful situation. They stop by his house sometimes, he said.

The three are in agreement that officers should be held to a higher standard than the average citizen.

“We are the only entity that has the authority to seize the liberty of an individual in a free nation,” Newsome said. “Since we are vested with that power, we have to take the responsibility seriously and live up to that accountability.”

“We want the public to know even though we’ve had some bad officers, we have dealt with those officers harshly,” McLendon said.

Dodd said this type of work isn’t meant for someone just looking for a paycheck.

“If you want to wear a badge, you’ve got to have and live up to duty, honor and integrity,” he said. “This job has got to be something in your heart.”