Mayor: Kelso's first police officer not just for tickets

KELSO, Mo. -- Motorists traveling through the village of Kelso may encounter a kind of speed bump soon. The town of 500 is hiring its first police officer.

The city government approved hiring a police officer at its January meeting, and an officer is expected to start in the next few weeks.

One accusation will invariably travel as fast as speeders on U.S. 61, which is the only highway running through Kelso -- speed trap. After all, why would a little town like Kelso, with very little history of major or dangerous crimes, need a police officer?

The answer -- not to pad the city coffers, said Mayor Tom McClain, even though traffic control is a goal. It's more about public safety than it is about making money from passing motorists, the mayor asserts.

"His main job ... will be doing some patrolling of the streets and maintaining some of the ordinances, just basic law enforcement-type jobs in a small community, I guess," McClain said.

But speed is still an issue.

"We've had some issues with some people with the speed they drive through town on some of the side streets," McClain said. "And of course, before we always relied on the county, and they just don't have the manpower to patrol the streets or be in town."

Scott County Sheriff Rick Walter said the department hasn't had many calls from Kelso.

"We sent a guy out there a couple of months ago on a call for keeping the peace," Walter said. "But there's just not really a lot of crime up there."

Ray Ressel, who frequents city government meetings and owns Ray's Place Restaurant in the heart of the small town, said he's in favor of the move. From time to time there have been small acts of vandalism and burglary in the town, and as a business owner he looks forward to the protection a police presence will provide.

"I just think it's important that somebody be here to enforce some of the ordinances and keep the town the nice, clean town that it is," Ressel said. "Since I am a business owner, my concern is break-ins here, too."

Ressel said he's seen a lot of speeding cars.

"I'm about 200 yards away from the school, and sometimes people fly through this road at 50, 60 miles an hour in a 25 speed zone. One of these days, I'm afraid a kid's going to get killed here."

The mayor said he's only talked to two people who were against the idea of hiring an officer, mostly because they thought it was a waste of money. There's money in the budget to pay for the position, he said. McClain would not say how much the city plans to pay the part-time officer, calling the wages "confidential."

No municipal court will have to be created, as any cases will be referred to a county judge. There is a half-cent sales tax on the April ballot to help fund the officer's salary and equipment costs, but McClain said the position can be funded without the tax increase too.

As for the money from speeding tickets and other fines, there's no indication having a police officer will be a financial boon for the town, McClain said.

"Will it pay for itself? I don't think so. I hope not."

msanders@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 182