Information about PECSO

Information about the Prince Edward County Sheriff's Office

Prince Edward County
is located in the central Virginia area along US 460 and US 15, with US 360 bordering the south eastern portion of the county.
The county consists of approximately 500 square miles of territory, with over 390 road miles within it's borders, and is located within an hour's drive of Lynchburg, Charlottesville, and Richmond.
Founded in 1754 and named after Prince Edward Augustus, son of Frederick, Prince of Wales. Prince Edward County covers most of the Town of Farmville as well as the Darlington Heights, Green Bay, Pamplin, Prospect, Rice, Hampden Sydney, and Buffalo Heights districts.

Prince Edward Sheriff's Office Responsibilities & Duties
The Prince Edward County Sheriff's Office is responsible for: Traffic Control, Criminal Complaints & Investigations in the county, Courtroom security, paper service of both criminal warrants and civil process, transports of; incarcerated adults and juveniles to and from detention facilities or court, and transporting mentally or emotionally disturbed county residents to selected hospitals in the Commonwealth of Virginia.

Life Line
Our deputies are often dispatched to and first on scene for chest pain or heart attack calls. Life Line Defibrillators are now carried in all patrol vehicles to assist our C.P.R. trained deputies in heart attack cases until A.L.S. (Advanced Life Saving) Rescue Squad personnel can arrive on scene. The first 3 Defibrillators were donated by the County Board of Supervisors, and a few more were purchased through donatations from county citizens and organizations. All road deputies are trained to use these life saving tools. Life Line Defibrillators are not miracle machines, but their early presence in heart attack cases can and have made a difference.

Our Sheriff's Office
Captain W. W. Reed
Wesley Reed started with the Prince Edward Sheriff's Office in 1981 as a part-time deputy. In 1985 he was promoted to a full time deputy/dispatcher and in 1986 he was promoted to a field position, and promoted to investigator in 1990. Now serving the department as Chief Deputy while still maintaining his job duties as investigator. He insures that the policies and guide lines set forth by the Sheriff are followed. Like the Sheriff, his primary concern is the safety of the communities in the county as well as the court rooms and deputies of Prince Edward County. His job knowledge and experience in all the duties within the department from ground up, make him a valuable supervisor.

Deputies
Neither the Commonwealth nor Virginia D. C. J. S. requires a department to seek accreditation, yet all full time deputies are certified Law Enforcement Officers through the Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services. The deputies continue to up date their job knowledge and skills through in-service classes and special courses offered by Va. D.C.J.S. Several are Firearms Instructors, Tactical Officers, Officer Survival Instructors, D.A.R.E. Instructors, and D.C.J.S. Instructors. Teaching at the Central Va. D.C.J.S. Academy as case loads and man power permit. All are dedicated to their local community as well as the people of the county as a whole. Most of the present full time deputies, over 85% of the current force, started out in communications as dispatchers.

Dispatchers/Communications
Dispatchers are a vital link between the community, resources, and deputies. They are the ones that get the needed help to the area of the county where there is a complaint or problem. They are as important to the people in need as they are vital to the deputies on the road answering complaints. Those with the desire, often move up to field or court room deputy. Most are also sworn deputies capable of serving warrants, writing initial complaints, with full powers of arrest. They are called upon to do transports of prisoners to court and jail, or the mentally/emotionally ill to the hospitals, or to transport juveniles to and from court when needed. Each dispatcher is certified through D.C.J.S. as Communication Officers. Their ability to get needed information from highly upset or panicked people takes training and patience. Giving the deputies directions to and notifying them accurately of what kind of situation they are responding to, takes job knowledge and the ability to ask the right questions as well as relaying that information, often in busy surrounds; telephones ringing, walk in complainants, radio traffic, and keeping logs of all the traffic coming through.