Lincoln Heights too broke to pay cops

Lincoln Heights is in such dire financial shape it can't afford to pay the Hamilton County sheriff to patrol the village's streets.

The struggling community is being asked to pay more than $800,000 this year to the sheriff, but it's trying to negotiate a better deal because it doesn't have enough money to cover the sheriff's request.

"This is a situation of grave concern to the county," said Commissioner Dennis Deters. "A community that can't handle the basics of public safety should put everybody on high alert."

County officials say they won't abandon the village, which has no other means to protect its 3,200 residents. But their concerns prompted Ohio Auditor Dave Yost to send a team to Lincoln Heights Thursday to review their finances and determine if state intervention is needed.

Village officials say they paid $723,000 to the sheriff last year and owe more than $100,000 for the first two months of this year. "We are in negotiations with the sheriff to get a reduced rate," said Village Manager Rebecca Hopkins. "We must be frugal with the funding we have."

Lincoln Heights has been dealing with financial problems for years and some, including Deters, have suggested it might be time to disband the village.

What happens after that, though, isn't clear. It could be absorbed by a larger community, such as Springfield Township or Cincinnati, but the village's money woes don't make it an attractive partner.

Sheriff Jim Neil learned about the problems when his staff met last week with Lincoln Heights officials. County Administrator Christian Sigman then sent commissioners an email alerting them to the problem.

"Lincoln Heights has indicated they do not have sufficient resources," Sigman wrote.

Although Deters indicated the village owed the sheriff about $650,000, village officials say they only owe the invoices for services so far this year, or about $100,000. Hopkins said some county officials misunderstood the village's concerns about paying for this year, assuming it was in arrears on last year's payments.

Hopkins said the village is solvent and intends to pay its bills. She said the village's continuing financial challenges made it necessary to ask the sheriff for a discount this year, with the goal of reducing the annual payment to about $550,000.

The village disbanded its police department in October 2014 after losing its insurance. Fearing the potential for huge liability costs, village leaders shuttered the department and asked nearby communities to share policing duties until they figured out what to do.

Neil, whose office has taken over patrols in several suburban communities, agreed to do the job for about $700,000 a year.

The sheriff, though, is worried that if he reduces patrols to the level the village is able to pay, he could put both his deputies and the community at risk. Through his spokesman, Mike Robison, Neil said deputies would be in greater danger if there aren't enough of them working in the village.

The sheriff "continues to have ongoing discussions with both county and village officials, working towards finding a solution to keep the citizens safe while not jeopardizing the safety of our deputies," Robison said.