Efforts on North Fork yielding positive results for SCSO

WALLACE –– In the weeks since Memorial Day weekend, things have quieted down on the North Fork according to the Shoshone County Sheriff's Office.  

"Memorial Day weekend this year was one for the record books," Sheriff Holly Lindsey said. "If my memory serves me right, we called out two or three helicopters for assistance with critical incidents; we had a shooting and several vehicle/ATV crashes. We responded to multiple calls for service throughout the weekend. Since then, things have definitely slowed down, thankfully. We are still responding to more calls than we would during the off season, but not as much as previous years." 

Over the years, patrolling the North Fork of the Coeur d' Alene River has been among the bigger challenges for the SCSO, especially during the summer months when thousands of people flock to the area.  

This year, the numbers tell a different story.  

According to Lindsey, the SCSO has responded to 93 incidents in the North Fork region from May 31, through July 11. In 2023, during that same period, they responded to 139 incidents.  

But what caused the decrease?  

Sheriff Lindsey believes the decreased crime is the result of several factors – and they're not all law enforcement related.  

Funding and staffing shortages have long plagued the SCSO, this has forced sheriffs past and present to find creative ways to bridge those gaps.  

Shoshone County has participated in grant-funded highway emphases, focusing on aggressive, impaired, and distracted driving during high-volume traffic days and holidays. Deputies patrolling as part of these emphases are paid at an overtime rate and able to work additional hours while the emphasis is underway.  

"This is encouraging more deputies to work the holidays where they would otherwise have had a day off," Lindsey said. "This is putting more deputies on the road during high recreation time."

Lindsey also explained how the creation of the county's Backcountry Team has allowed her department to provide coverage to some of the smaller, more rural communities who don't have their own law enforcement agencies.  

"Toward the end of May, we established a Backcounty Team consisting of two deputies who primary focus on the populated areas of our county that do not readily have law enforcement resources," Lindsey said. "These areas would include Clarkia, Calder, Avery, Murray and Prichard - basically the Coeur d'Alene River corridor and the St. Joe River corridor. The Backcountry Team also focuses on the recreation areas most populated in the summertime where the majority of our criminal issues arise."

Lindsey believes these additional patrols and presence have helped lower the frequency of criminal activity, but there are other factors that she feels have these numbers.  

"We can't downplay the possibility of economic restraints for families due to the state of our economy," Lindsey said. "I think it's making it very difficult for people and families to afford to get out and spend time outdoors." 

The SCSO is pursuing an additional grant through the Idaho Department of Transportation that would provide wages for one deputy. This grant comes with a few caveats; the first being that the county pays for the deputy's benefits package; The second requirement is that the deputy must be specifically assigned to work traffic enforcement within Shoshone County.  

"This is an amazing benefit because we can assign them to specific areas of the county where we are having traffic issues," Lindsey said. "The most recent traffic complaint I've received was the St. Joe River Road. As a result, we have assigned that deputy to spend his work week focusing on that area of the county to combat the issue." 

Lindsey is pleased with these results as we reach the midway point of the summer season, but she wants to keep improving.  

"Our number one goal is to keep our residents and visitors safe while they enjoy our beautiful county," Lindsey said.