2020 WCSO Annual Report - Flipbook - Page 3
MESSAGE FROM
SHERIFF GARRETT
Washington County is a great place to live, work and raise families.
As one of the four original counties in Oregon, we have a strong
history in the community. While much has changed over the last
178 years, we continue our commitment to quality training and
high standards to best serve our rapidly growing and changing
community.
WCSO has always been a pioneer and leader for public safety. We
recognize and respect our unique and diverse communities. We
strive to ensure the safety and well-being of all through fairness
and justice.
While safety is a priority, service, compassion, and respect for all
people must be the cornerstone of our culture. To that end, we
strive to filter our actions through our core values:
• Do your best
• Do the right thing
• Treat others the way you want to be treated
A safe community provides confidence we are in the right place
to raise families, work, attend school, practice our faith, set and
achieve goals. It is easy to see why being part of a community
where people feel safe ranks high for all of us. One of our strategic
goals is for Washington County to remain the safest major
urban County in Oregon. According to the FBI National Incident
Reporting System (NIBRS) combined crime rate data for the most
recent year recorded — 2019 — we hit that target.
Creating safe communities is not only about deterring crimes but
also about building trust. Trust community members demonstrate
by reporting crime and related concerns, no matter how small
or innocuous. Trust that grows from having sufficient staff and
exemplary leadership to develop relationships with community
members to help ensure our services reflect their diverse voices,
needs and experiences.
The ability to maintain Washington County as the safest major
urban county in Oregon depends very much on honoring our
history as well as continuously striving to improve going forward.
It is our honor to serve you.
WCSO 2020 Annual Report | 1
