HOW WE SEE IT: Funding Idea For Constables Unnecessary

When Arkansas’ constitution was written back in 1874, the idea of elected constables in each county township made a lot of sense. The county sheriffs in those days had few deputies and no real budget. Constables could be a big help in maintaining order. However, law enforcement was a much different discipline then, before cell telephones, squad cars, modern paved highways and police radios.

Here in the 21st century, constables serve little practical purpose in Arkansas government.

County sheriffs and city police can handle the law enforcement needs of practically every Arkansas community. For years, constable oft cesin many counties stood vacant because no one bothered to run for them. County governments around the state don’t rely on them much either, as most are unpaid positions with no equipmentor training provided. Worse, In a few rare cases elected constables have been more of a hindrance to local law enforcement than a supplement.

It comes as no surprise to regular readers of this space that we think the oft ce needs to be abolished. We have no ill feelings toward the people who occupy these oft ces. We even acknowledge that most of them are good folks who just want to be of service. But the existence of the oftce of constable has the potential to create great conflict with trained, professional law enforcement agencies. In some places, it has. It would be best to eliminate the potential confl ict altogether by eliminating the oft ce. That would take a constitutional amendment.

Some counties have done the next best thing by reducing the number of constable oft ces in their jurisdictions. Some counties have only one. Benton County is down to fi ve.

Given all of that, we’re surprised that the Benton County Quorum Court is considering providing some limited funding for constables. A proposal to provide up to $4,500 for expenses accrued from the job has been made to the Quorum Court’s budget committee. Kelly Cradduck, the sheriff -elect in Benton County, says if the constables are going to be around anyway, some reimbursement might be in order. He makes the quite reasonable argument that by engaging the constables, providing them training and involving them to help with things like traftc control and backup, they can actually be of assistance to the sheriff ’s department.

While that’s certainly a possibility, it’s important to remember that constitutionally, the constables don’t have to submit to the sheriff ’s authority.

There’s no real chain of command at work. The potential for conflict remains, with or without the money.

At this point, the Quorum Court’s budget and finance committees are waiting to hear from county Attorney George Spence if the expenditures on constables are even legal. So the question remains up in the air. We’d advise extreme caution here on the part of the Quorum Court. There’s not much future in investing in an oftce that’s stuck in the past.

Besides, couldn’t that money be better spent on the trained, professional deputies the county employs? We think so.