BENTONVILLE -- The Benton County sheriff's office's Special Operations Division has been disbanded, Sheriff Meyer Gilbert said.
The division included narcotics investigators, a street crime/gang unit and the SWAT team.
Narcotics investigators are back under the umbrella of the Criminal Investigation Division. Deputies who had been assigned to handle street and gang crimes are now part of the Patrol Division, Gilbert said.
The change is being phased in slowly, and it may take a few weeks before it is fully implemented, Gilbert said.
Former Sheriff Kelley Cradduck created the Special Operations Division when he took office in 2012. Cradduck resigned in April, and Gilbert was appointed to serve the remainder of his term, which ends Dec. 31.
The Special Operations Division was criticized, though it was not specifically named, in a memo the mayors and police chiefs of the cities of Rogers and Bentonville sent to the Benton County Quorum Court and County Judge Bob Clinard in April.
The memo detailed three crashes since October that involved Bentonville residents and resulted from deputies operating their vehicles at high speeds, sometimes exceeding 100 mph.
City officials also cited "sting" operations by the sheriff's office in Rogers. The memo detailed an operation Feb. 3 resulting in a high-speed chase and an accident; a second in which deputies were reported to be speeding through Rogers neighborhoods in a search that also included a helicopter; an April 21 operation that resulted in a high-speed pursuit; and an April 22 operation at a Rogers Wal-Mart that resulted in shots being fired.
The mayors and police chiefs said there are many deputies who are doing good work, but that "some individuals and units within that office are demonstrating reckless behavior further complicated by a continuing lack of leadership."
Kenneth Paul was the captain of the Special Operations Division. He is now an administrative captain and will supervise the SWAT team.
A beefed-up Patrol Division will allow the sheriff's office to have more deputies on the street during the busiest time in the field -- 3 p.m. to 3 a.m. There will be 16 to 20 deputies out during that 12-hour period compared with the nine deputies who used to occupy the shift.
"It should lower response time but also raise public awareness of our presence in the county," Gilbert said.
Deputies also will have more time to handle drug interdiction and driving-while-intoxicated details, he said, and they will handle street crimes and any gang issues.
Rogers Police Chief Hayes Minor said his department's relationship with the sheriff's office has vastly improved since Gilbert took office.
"He's made some very positive changes and made efforts to re-establish relationships with other departments," Minor said. "The deputies have even worked hard to mend fences."
The sheriff's office and the Rogers Police Department have entered into a mutual aid agreement that the Rogers City Council approved Tuesday.
Glenn Latham, the independent candidate for sheriff, posted a request on his Facebook page a few weeks ago for Gilbert to disband the Special Operations Division and have more deputies patrol in the county.
Latham will face Chief Deputy Shawn Holloway, the Republican nominee, in the Nov. 8 election.
"I still make contact with rural residents who are yet to see patrol officers in their area," Latham said. "It's a good first step, but from what I understand they simply moved them out from under the SOD banner. They're still doing the same thing."
But Gilbert said the change has received positive feedback.
"Numerous citizens have called me and expressed their feelings about seeing us more, and they said we seem to be more helpful," Gilbert said.
Metro on 08/15/2016