COURTESY
CLAREMONT — The Claremont Area AARP Chapter met March 14 at The Earl Bourdon Centre. Sullivan County Sheriff John Simonds and Sgt. Michael Batista informed their audience that the sheriff is the oldest police force in the U.S. Historically, sheriffs came into existence in ninth century England. The first American sheriff is believed to be Capt. William Stone, appointed in 1634. The first elected sheriff was William Waters in 1652. Simonds explained the origin of the word “cop,” a shortening of the name for a constable on patrol in England, which was called a “copper” from the old Anglo-Saxon verb to cop, which means grab or capture.
Sullivan County has seven uniformed officers out of 22 employees stationed in Newport. They serve as security for Superior Court, and one officer is assigned to Lempster and Unity. The department transfers inmates from Sullivan County jail to courts in and out of state. They often serve 20 types of paperwork per day, including evictions, divorce notices, and parent-child custody issues. They can assist many police departments who don’t have jurisdiction in another town. They can stop speeders, issue tickets, but Simonds stressed there are no quotas for tickets. Revenues from tickets go to the state and are not kept locally.
Both officers talked about what scams they have seen in the line of duty. Seniors have been identified as the biggest target in the 21st century. They are seen as polite, easy to engage and having money. They are reluctant to report problems to their children. Sometimes the children are the problem. The handouts and presentation highlighted scams and “spoofing.” With access to cheap software, scammers use local phone numbers, which increase the chance someone will answer. And the types of scam offers run the gamut of Medicare/insurance, counterfeit drugs, funeral/cemetery, fraudulent anti-aging products, lottery winnings, fake accidents, charities, grandchild crisis, reverse mortgage/home repairs, and investments to name a few. Mailings can look official and be fraudulent, so beware.
The advice they gave was to be suspicious of all calls. Never give out personal, banking or credit information to any caller, and hang up (no need to be polite) or allow calls to be answered by machine. Never buy gift cards and give the numbers to a caller. The sheriff’s department is willing to help with questions as is the Federal Trade Commission at 877-382-4357.
Shirley Clark announced the upcoming “Steppin’ Up to End Violence” walk on May 4, sponsored by Turning Points Network. Participants can form teams, join existing teams or walk, run, or roller skate/blade solo. If that isn’t for you, there are volunteer opportunities that day and monetary/food donations are always welcome. For info call 543-0155 or email [email protected].
Door prizes were won by Jean Belaire, Bev McGuire, Lorraine Dion, Sherrie Curtis, Angela Maynes, and Charlie Sisson. St. Patrick’s Day pins were made by Faith and Tim LaBelle and refreshments were served. Non-perishable food was delivered for distribution through the Weekend backpack program and a thank you letter for past donations was read.
As your daily newspaper, we are committed to providing you with important local news coverage for Sullivan County and the surrounding areas.