BEING A ROAD DEPUTY MEANS LONELY DUTY

The life of a road deputy, who patrols isolated, rural areas, isn't too far removed from that of a late-1800s U.S. marshal or Texas ranger, who brought law and order to the West.

The federal marshal and Texas ranger were usually the only "law" for miles around. Those early peace officers had to be fast on the draw, quick thinking, and able to handle some tight situations ... with little or no backup from other peace officers.

That's still true today -- to an extent -- for road deputies in most rural Southeast Missouri counties. The major difference is today's road deputies travel in patrol cars equipped with a two-way radio and shotgun, and not on horseback with a Colt "Peacemaker" on their hip and a Winchester rifle in the saddle.

Today's road officer still responds to potential life-threatening situations alone, using only his training, common sense, and sometimes his weapon as his first line of defense.

Many stories about situations and circumstances of deputies in Cape Girardeau, Scott, and Bollinger counties are similar.

"Being by yourself all the time, I've learned one thing: You don't take anything for granted," said Sgt. James Humphreys of the Bollinger County Sheriff's Department. "You have to be on your toes at all times, but that's one thing I like about working by myself. I know I'm alone, so I'm always aware of what's going on around me. You never assume anything; it's always a heads-up situation."

"Jamie," as he's known by many residents of Bollinger County, comes from a family of peace officers. His brother and brother-in-law are peace officers, and he's always been interested in law enforcement.

Humphreys has been a Bollinger County deputy for three years. He graduated from Southeast Missouri State University with a degree in criminal justice, and now lives in Glen Allen, west of Marble Hill.

Scott County Deputy Wes Drury is a 32-year-old native of Kelso who works north Scott County. Although he's only been a road deputy for less than a month, Drury's law enforcement experience goes back to 1984, when he was a reserve deputy and later a full-time deputy for Sheriff Bill Ferrell.

Drury worked as a dispatcher for a Sikeston trucking company before returning to the sheriff's department in 1991. "My wife is a nurse in Cape Girardeau, which is why I can afford to do this kind of work," said Drury.

Drury's comment reflects a real and dangerous fact of life to road deputies: Most rural counties don't have enough money in their budget to pay for more than one deputy on duty at a time.

In most municipal police departments, there are at least two -- usually more -- police officers are on duty at the same time. Most road deputies aren't pleased with having to work alone and most sheriffs don't like it because it puts officers in even greater harm's way.

Cape Girardeau County Deputy Kris Stoffregen said that's one reason it may take him over an hour to respond to a call. Stoffregen said: "Sometimes I'm at the other end of the county when I get a call. How long it takes to respond depends on the type of call.

"If it's a prowler or trespasser call, and I get another call of an alarm going off at a bank or business, or shots being fired while I'm en route to the original call, I have to prioritize the calls. Since I'm the only deputy on duty, I have to respond to the most urgent call, based on what I know about the situation."

Stoffregen, 27, is a native of Delta. He graduated from Delta High School and went to work for the sheriff's department in 1988.

Like all new deputies in most rural sheriff's departments, Stoffregen began his law enforcement career in the jail and in communications. That's because jail duty gives deputies an opportunity to meet and come in contact with many of the unsavory characters they're certain to encounter sooner or later while on patrol.

Stoffregen's wife, Cheri, works in communications at the Jackson Police Department, so she's often able to keep track of her husband while he's on patrol.

The deputies said in addition to being a peace officer, they must have the skills of a diplomat, mediator, counselor, psychiatrist, accident- and crime-scene investigator, and emergency-medical and hazardous-materials specialists.

A road deputy must be able to respond to and handle homicides, domestic disturbance calls, traffic stops, highway or farm accidents involving injury or death, drownings, and incidents involving lethal chemicals, gasoline and LP gas. And the list doesn't stop there.

The deputies say that's one reason they enjoy their work: It's challenging and every day is different.

Said Drury: "Each day you have to make a lot of decisions. Your supervisor is always a phone call or radio call away, but we're trained to assess the situation and make the most of our own decisions."

The deputies said of all the calls they must respond to the most potentially dangerous is a domestic disturbance call. That usually involves a person beating or abusing someone at a house, and usually the wife or children are victims. The assailant may be intoxicated, and may have a weapon.

When a domestic disturbance call is received, communications try to find out as much as possible about the situation: Is there a weapon involved? Is the person intoxicated? Is the person mentally unstable? Unfortunately, in most situations, the deputy usually has to make that determination when he arrives.

"You may get there and find both parties have settled down, you may find a hostage situation, or worse," said Humphreys. "No matter what the situation, you're the one who has to intervene. You're going to have to do the job by yourself, and your goal is to do it without additional violence and in such a way that no one else gets hurt."

Humphreys said he knows if backup is needed it may be 20 to 30 minutes before help arrives. "That means you have to keep your head and use common sense when everybody else around you is losing theirs," said Humphreys. "You have to be a good talker and a good listener while keeping an eye on the overall big picture."

Humphreys has learned that when he responds to a call in a rural area he sometimes is met at the front door by someone with a shotgun or other firearm. He said, "That's just the way it is out here; people live in remote areas and they're used to looking after themselves."

The deputies said when they respond to a domestic-disturbance call they often must use their skills as a diplomat, mediator and psychiatrist. "The first thing is to get the two parties apart and talking to you," said Humphreys. "In most cases, in about 30 minutes the situation has cooled down.

"The real danger is when the people involved in the dispute all turn on you, which can happen sometimes."

Stoffregen said in most cities a police officer responding to a domestic disturbance would have at least one officer responding behind him and more on the way. When a rural deputy responds to a similar call, there is no immediate backup unless a Missouri Highway Patrol trooper happens to be in the area.

Traffic stops on a lonely stretch of the interstate, a county highway or road are another potential source of danger to road deputies because there is no backup in case they need help. Night stops are more dangerous than those in daylight because the officer's visibility is limited to his headlights.

Stoffregen said when he makes a traffic stop the only thing he knows for sure is a possible traffic violation has occurred. Until he runs the license plate and the driver's license through the Missouri Uniform Law Enforcement System and National Crime Information Center computers for "wants or warrants" he assumes nothing.

Stoffregen said, "The driver may be a little old lady who was weaving in traffic, or it could be a convicted felon with a weapon in the front seat and nothing to lose in a gunfight.

"And while you're keeping one eye on the car and its occupants, you also have to watch out for other drivers coming down the road whose eyes are on the flashing lights and not on the highway."