Law enforcement partnership key to Marshall County residents’ safety

Madill, Okla. – Response to a recently reported crime at a Chickasaw Nation facility offered an example of cooperative relationship between the Marshall County Sheriff and the Chickasaw Lighthorse Police. According to the report, the alleged suspects fled in their vehicle, leaving the victim in the parking lot.

“Lighthorse was on top of it, taking care of the victim,” said Marshall County Sheriff Donald Yow. “Our deputy was close by and because of them relaying information quickly, we were able to get three suspects into custody who were charged with robbery.” Yow sees cross-deputation agreements with Lighthorse Police as beneficial for both parties.

Chief Police Chief Mike Manning agrees and said he is excited about working with Sheriff Yow and will continue to foster the relationship they enjoy, based largely on crossdeputation agreements. The two agree these agreements offer much more than a technical, legal arrangement, they establish a relationship based on a shared mission to protect and serve.

“Cross-deputation agreements give both parties help in jurisdictional areas, but more importantly, they are a partnership between us and the other agency,” said Manning.

“When we go out to work, we are law enforcement brothers and sisters working side-byside to provide the safety and security our citizens deserve.”

Yow is a 28-year law enforcement veteran who began his career as a patrolman in Madill and later became the city’s chief of police in 2018. In 2020 a majority of county residents voted him into his current position.

He said the working relationship with Chickasaw Nation Lighthorse Police began years ago when he served with the Madill Police Department and they continue in his current role as Marshall County sheriff.

“It’s an awesome relationship,” Yow said. “I know any time we’ve ever reached out for any kind of assistance to Lighthorse, they have always been there to help us. And the same with them if they need our help.”

Manning agrees that crossdeputation agreements are ultimately about law enforcement agencies working in tandem – neighbors helping neighbors – acting as one for the benefit of all.

“They are designed to help the citizens – the people we serve. That’s the main thing. It’s not really so much about what one agency can do for another as it is what all of us can do for the citizens we serve,” Manning said.

An incident in 2018 demonstrated the advantages of joining together to share mutually beneficial law enforcement responsibilities.

“Being a small agency, we don’t have the resources for a tactical team,” Yow said. “We reached out to Lighthorse and within 45 minutes we had a response with them being on the ground ready to go.”

Fortunately, the situations were resolved without bloodshed, a credit to the efforts of both local law enforcement as well as the Lighthorse Police presence.

In another instance, Lighthorse Police’s dive team helped salvage an unoccupied vehicle whose brakes failed, sending it deep into a Madill city lake.

“Honestly, any time we request something from Chickasaw Nation Lighthorse Police, they’ve always stepped up and been right here to do it,” Yow said. “I’m sure there will be more times in the future we may call upon them. I think they’re going to be right there to help.”

“I’m very community oriented and I think [cross-deputation agreements] are another outreach tool for us to be able to help the Chickasaw Nation where we can. Our working relationship in the past has gone very well and I think it’s going to get even better.”

Manning said cross-deputation agreements are critically important, particularly in light of a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision. Last year the High Court agreed with a plaintiff that the Muskogee-Creek reservation had never been disestablished, meaning the state of Oklahoma did not have jurisdiction since reservations are considered to be federal land.

Now that the legal precedent has been set, Oklahoma’s Court of Criminal Appeals is expected to render a decision on another case that will impact other state tribes similarly.

“If no cross-deputation agreement is in place you can wind up with cracks, so to speak, because one agency will have jurisdiction and the other one may or may not,” Manning said. “The agreements are great for law enforcement agencies. They allow us to provide law enforcement for citizens in need.”