-
By Shalene White The Madill Record
The Marshall County Jail added a shiny new vehicle to their fleet this past month. This vehicle is a little different, though. It is not one of the vehicles that chases down speeders and traffic violators. In November, the jail purchased a 2020 Ford Fusion to be the new transport vehicle, and Marshall County Sheriff said the new vehicle was needed.
“It’s a 2020 Ford Fusion and was purchased to replace the seized Isuzu which finally broke down after close to 400,000 miles,” he stated.
Cryer said the transport vehicle is crucial to long transports, “mainly to other states for warrant pick-up or court ordered transport to assist DHS.”
The county opted for the Fusion for practical reasons, not for glitz or glamour. “The main reasons we choose this car is mainly due to the great gas mileage, safety functions, and factory warranty.”
Cryer said doing a long-distance transport is stressful enough, without adding the pressure of possible vehicle issues.
“You can imagine the issues that would occur if you were transporting an inmate and was several hundred miles from home, the logistics alone would be enough to drive a person goofy, with figuring out what to do with the inmate, how to get the car back to a local repair shop, still get the transport complete and also worry about how to pay for the overtime for the transport officer or officers, not to mention how to feed and provide facilities to the inmate.”
The sheriff said that if a transport vehicle breaks down, the officer cannot simply rent a car and motel room.
“We had to have a reliable vehicle, that was cost effective, and had a warranty that would be honored at any dealership across the United States. We chose the Ford fusion mainly due to the reasonable price and great gas mileage.”