The DeKalb County Law and Justice Committee approved a request from DeKalb County Sheriff Roger Scott for the hiring of a new detective.

   Scott requested $80,000 in order to pay for the additional detective. Scott said if his request is approved by the DeKalb County Board, the new detective would be hired around March 2012.

Scott said the funding will go to restore a detective position that was cut this year. The new detective will team up with the current detective and will investigate county drug-related crimes. Scott said he could not reveal the name of the existing detective due to confidentiality.

  Scott said the addition of a new detective will allow an investigative team to form, which will give more flexibility for the sheriff’s office to follow up on complaints. Currently, officers are pulled from other assignments to help the narcotics detective perform investigations, Scott said.

  “[The detectives] will team up with other narcotics task forces in the area, as well as the DEA [Drug Enforcement Agency],” Scott said. “It will give us better ability to work with other local police departments.”

  During the committee meeting, Clay Campbell, DeKalb County State’s Attorney, also requested additional funding to hire a new prosecutor. His request was not approved.

  “I felt that it was my obligation to make the request considering our current responsibilities,” Campbell said.

Campbell said the DeKalb County State’s Attorney’s Office is currently prosecuting three murder cases, which is a heavy workload for prosecutors serving DeKalb County. Campbell said the state’s attorney’s office is currently involved in prosecuting the Antinette ‘Toni’ Keller case and the Maria Ridulph cold case from 1957.

  Campbell said these cases are very complex, making them unusual for DeKalb County.

  “I’ve been prosecuting in this county for 20 years and I have never seen the State’s Attorney prosecuting multiple murder cases,” Campbell said.

  Campbell said there are currently six felony prosecutors on staff, including himself. The State’s Attorney’s Office currently has 738 pending felony cases.

  Campbell said a new prosecutor would alleviate some of the workload from existing prosecutors.

  “The tragic nature of these cases require more attorneys assigned to them,” Campbell said. “It is very rare to see the State’s Attorney directly involved in these cases, but it’s necessary right now.”

  Campbell said he is aware of the budgetary challenges the county faces, so the board’s decision to deny his request did not surprise him. Campbell said he was disappointed in the board’s decision to reject his request because he felt they did not grasp the gravity of the situation his office faces.

  “It is an honest disagreement between myself and the DeKalb County Board,” Campbell said. “The situation is particularly acute because of the death cases.”

  Since the DeKalb County State’s Attorney’s Office and the DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office are two separate agencies, the decisions regarding each agency’s request for funding were made separately, Scott said.

  “I support what the State’s Attorney was trying to do because of the significant workload at the State’s Attorney’s office,” Scott said. “It definitely wasn’t an either-or decision.”

  Scott said his request was approved by the Law and Justice Committee and must now be approved at a Finance Committee meeting Nov. 2. If his request is approved there, a presentation will be made to the entirety of the DeKalb County Board, Scott said.