Centreville policing returns to Sheriff’s Department

The duty of police protection in the village of Centreville will return to the St. Joseph County Sheriff’s Department.
Members of the St. Joseph County Board of Commissioners voted Tuesday to accept a contract making the responsibility official. The service will begin Oct. 1.
A team of two deputies will be assigned for police coverage at a cost of more than $64,000 for the six-month period ending March 31, 2017, and nearly $140,000 for the 12-month period beginning April 1, 2017.
Police protection for the community had been provided by the sheriff’s department for more than 20 years before the village started its own municipal force in April 2014.
Staffing eventually became an issue and village officials conceded the arrangement with the sheriff’s department was, in fact, a better value and smoother operation.
Undersheriff Mark Lillywhite said two new deputies will be hired – interviews are slated to take place starting today, according to Lillywhite – and they will each work 40 hours a week, as the contract calls for police coverage 80 hours weekly.