Law Enforcement
Lawrence A. Stelma - Sheriff
701 Ball Avenue NE
Grand Rapids, MI 49503
General Information: (616) 632-6100
Mission Statement
The Mission of the Sheriff’s Uniformed Patrol Division is to provide general, high visibility police patrol and protection in conjunction with investigation of criminal, civil, and traffic-related matters. This division additionally provides public awareness through education and community programs. By utilizing continuous training and updated technology, the road patrol deputy can be efficient in police service, along with achieving proper and positive action even in the most trying circumstances.
Current 2012 Command Staff:
Captain Kevin J. Kelley, 616-632-6187
Lieutenant Scott Brown,616-632-6188
Lieutenant Marc Burns, 616-632-6191
Lieutenant Jeff DeVries, 616-632-6492
Lieutenant Jeff McAlary, 616-632-6190
Administration, 616-632-6116
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The Patrol Division is responsible for an area that spans 872 square miles with a population of over 230,000 residents. The Sheriff has primary law enforcement responsibilities for the unincorporated area of the County that consists of 21 different townships. The Patrol division manages 9 different contracts for patrol services that account for 36 deputies. |
Standard Patrol Vehicle Equipment for use by Patrol Deputies:
In-car Video SystemElectronic Tickets
Electronic Traffic Crash Reports
Mobile Data Computers
Wireless Internet Connections
Radar/Lidar Equipment for Traffic Enforcement
Patrol Rifles, tasers, bean bag shotguns
Breaching Equipment
2010 Report
2011 Report
Central Sector | East Sector | North Sector | South Sector | Statistics | Calls for Service
A total of 82 patrol deputies traveled approximately 1,621,066 miles and responded to over 75,000 calls for service during 2011.
2011 brought about extraordinary challenges for our patrol staff. There are many stories of bravery, selflessness, and integrity that cannot be contained with this report, but rest assured the citizens of Kent County are protected by some of the best educated, trained and equipped law enforcement officers in the nation.
As we move into 2012 we will continue to maintain the high standards of integrity, professionalism, and transparency the Kent County Sheriff’s Office is known for throughout the Nation. We are constantly striving to form community partnerships with our school systems, business communities, and neighborhoods to improve the quality of life for Kent County residents
Central Sector
The Central Sector is comprised of Alpine, Plainfield, Cannon, and Grattan townships. The Central Sector is assigned 20 deputies with 12 specifically assigned to Alpine, Plainfield, and Cannon Townships.
Highlights:
On September 28, 2011, the Comerica Bank, 857—4 Mile Road NW was robbed at gunpoint. A male suspect entered the bank armed with a handgun, eventually locking all the bank employees in the vault.
A short time later deputies located a possible suspect vehicle, a large rental truck, in the area of West River and Turner. Deputies noted a female driver and a male passenger, who matched the description of the bank robber. After attempting to stop the vehicle, a pursuit ensued. During the pursuit the suspects began throwing money from their vehicle.
Eventually the suspect vehicle crashed near the Caesar Chavez School at 1205 Grandville Avenue in the city of Grand Rapids, and both suspects were placed into custody. The passenger was identified as the suspected bank robber, and the driver was identified as his wife. Several other deputies also responded to assist in the collection of the money that had been thrown from the vehicle.
Due to the coordinated effort of the deputies involved, two dangerous felons were apprehended and the vast majority of the money from the robbery was recovered.
On Thursday, March 10, 2011 at 11:20 p.m. Marry McCabe called 911 because her house at 7910 Bush Drive NE was on fire and she was inside. Fire crews from Cannon Township, Rockford and Grattan Township responded. Deputy Melissa DeBoer and Cannon Township Firefighter Tim Lamos were the first to arrive. They could see Ms. McCabe through a window on the second floor of the bi-level home, which was approximately 6 feet off the ground. Ms. McCabe was trapped inside the residence and fire blocked the nearest exit. With the inside of the residence quickly filling with thick smoke, Deputy DeBoer used her asp baton to break out a large window. Firefighter Lamos used an axe to clear away the broken glass. Deputy DeBoer then lifted Firefighter Lamos into the residence. Firefighter Lamos lowered Ms. McCabe down to Deputy DeBoer who took her to safety.
Deputy DeBoer helped locate the victim in a very quick and timely manner and immediately recognized that the victim was trapped. The victim was completely disoriented and without Deputy DeBoer’s quick response, immediate action, and act of bravery, Marry McCabe would have likely sustained serious injury or death.
East Sector
The East Precinct is a collaborative effort with the Townships of Ada, Cascade and Grand Rapids. Other areas serviced by the East Precinct deputies are the Townships of Lowell and Vergennes.
The East Precinct, located at 877 Forest Hills Avenue, closed at the end of 2011. In discussions with the Townships it was agreed that keeping the office open was no longer cost effective. Limited office hours and technology upgrades allowing Deputies to complete reports from their patrol cars limited the effectiveness of the office space.
There are 20 deputies assigned to the east area of the county and 12 of these are designed to East Precinct Townships.
Highlights:
On October 26, 2011, deputies responded to an unarmed robbery at the Cascade Wal-Mart store. Loss prevention officers for Wal-mart advised that they were watching three individuals that had entered the store and were acting suspicious.
While watching the subjects they observed as they split up within the store and retrieved clothing and merchandise throughout the store. When they met up again, the merchandise was then concealed in a large purse that one of the suspects carried.
When the subjects attempted to leave the store and were confronted by loss prevention, the suspects pulled out a can of mace and sprayed it into the face of the loss prevention officers. With loss prevention blinded by the effects of the mace, the suspects were able to flee the store and escape.
When patrol arrived they interviewed numerous witnesses and were able to retrieve very good video from the store. The video was released to the media and once shown on TV, tips were received leading to the identification of the individuals involved.
All three suspects were arrested and charged with un-armed robbery at the Wal-Mart.
In late June and early July the Kent County Sheriff Department took a number of home invasion reports in Grand Rapids Township. Those investigations came to a conclusion in the early morning hours of July 3, 2011. At 4:16 am on that day, the Sheriff Department received a frantic whispering call from a woman at 4695 Bradford Street NE who stated her home had been broken into. She and her husband had been duct taped and held while two subjects armed with a gun and a crowbar had threatened to kill them and their three children. The family had broken free and was hiding in the bathroom while the suspects were searching the house.
Deputies began tracking the suspects through the stolen GPS enabled cell phones and an Ipad. The track stopped a few miles from the victim’s home at 2640 Middleborough Lane just inside the City of Grand Rapids. Upon arrival there were six people located inside the house. The family evacuated the house; the two suspects stayed inside the home and refused to cooperate. One of the suspects was somewhat cooperative but claimed his partner would not let him or his sister leave the house. Several shots were fired by the suspects inside the home. A full tactical unit call out was initiated and hostage negotiators were called in to speak with the suspect.
After several hours of negotiation, the uncooperative suspect allowed his partner and sister to leave the home. He refused to surrender himself. Hostage negotiators spoke to him for approximately another hour until during their communications they heard a single gunshot and communication stopped. A remotely operated mechanical robot entered the house and confirmed the remaining subject had taken his own life. All stolen property was recovered. The surviving suspect was arrested for home invasion and armed robbery.
North Sector
The North Sector is comprised of Algoma, Courtland, Nelson, Oakfield, Solon, Sparta, Spencer, and Tyrone Townships. The North Sector has 12 deputies assigned to patrol specifically assigned to Alpine, Plainfield, and Cannon Townships.
The North Substation is located at 790 – 17 Mile Road NW and the office is open Thursdays and Fridays from 8:30am to 4:30pm. Services provided include fingerprinting, firearm registration paperwork, copies of police and accidents reports, and requests for police assistance.
Highlights:
On April 14, 2011 the Subway Restaurant in Cedar Springs was robbed by two armed individuals. After the robbery the Cedar Springs Police Department requested the assistance of the Kent County Sheriff Department.
Through the course of several interviews and extensive investigation it was discovered that one of the employees working at the time of the robbery was aware that the robbery was going to take place, and was to receive proceeds from the robbery.
Confessions were obtained from all the suspects. The employee was charged with filing a false report of a felony and embezzlement. The other two suspects were charged with conspiracy to commit armed robbery.
South Sector
The South Sector is comprised of Bowne, Byron, Caledonia, and Gaines Township. The South Sector has 20 deputies assigned to patrol the sector with 12 specifically assigned to Byron, Caledonia, and Gaines townships.
The South Service Sector is located at 8557 Kalamazoo Ave and the office is open Mondays and Tuesdays 8:30am- 4:30pm. Services provided include fingerprinting, firearm registration paperwork, copies of police and accidents reports, and requests for police assistance.
Highlights:
On May 30, 2011 a Deputy was flagged down by a frantic group of individuals on the 68th St overpass above the Thornapple River. Because of recent, heavy rainfall, the Thornapple River was swollen and treacherous, moving more than 11x its normal volume of water.
This group had been riding inner-tubes down the Thornapple River but was now reporting that a female member of their group had fallen off her tube, had gone under water, and now could not be seen. They reported that the subject was not wearing a life preserver and was not a strong swimmer.
The Deputy radioed the information to dispatch and along with a friend of the missing person began searching the river.
A resident that lives on Thornapple River Dr observed an empty inner-tube float past his residence and sensed something was wrong so he prepared a rescue line. He retrieved three 25 foot lines, tied them together, and attached a life jacket to one end.
The friend was able to locate the missing person near 6816 Thornapple River, she was approximately 20 feet off shore, clinging to brush and downed limbs in the river.
The Deputy began pulling the branches to shore in an attempt to tow the subject to the shoreline. The resident saw what was happening and brought Deputies his improvised rescue device.
The friend entered the water and went to the aid of the exhausted swimmer. The Deputy was able to throw the floatation device out to the friend who helped the swimmer with it, allowing the Deputy to pull her safely to shore.
Once on shore the swimmer collapsed on the shore, unable to speak coherently, and vomited copious amount of water and river vegetation. She was transported to the hospital by ambulance where she was treated and released without long term injury.
When Deputies radioed the initial information to dispatch the call was heard by a marine patrol Deputy. The Marine Patrol Deputy had just launched his jet ski on the Thornapple River at the Mariciabo Shores boat launch in Cascade Township and he immediately started to the scene.
As the Marine Patrol Deputy approached the 68th St bridge he was directed toward an island that was south of the bridge, on the east side of the river. As he approached the island he could see several float tubes wedged under some tree branches next to the island. Maneuvering towards the tubes he could see three females on the tubes, clinging to tree branches. None of the occupants were wearing life jackets.
Due to the unusually high water and dangerously swift current, the Marine Patrol Deputy was unable to pull his jet ski next to the girls. After attempting to exit his Jet Ski and realizing the water was much too deep, he then pulled the Jet Ski directly next to the island and was able to exit onto the island and secure the Jet Ski with a rope.
While standing on branches he was able to pull the girls under several branches and closer to the bank of the island. Speaking to the girls he learned that only one of the three was able to swim. He then removed his life jacket and provided it to one of the girls that could not swim.
He was able to pick up the closest girl and bring her to shore. He then brought the girl wearing his life jacket to shore, and had her remove the life jacket. The life jacket was then given to the last girl and she was directed to go from tube to tube until the Marine Patrol Deputy was able to assist her to shore.
The actions of these Deputies and Citizens are directly responsible for saving these four victims from a life –threatening environment.
On 12/07/11 deputies were dispatched to a domestic violence complaint at 9026 Bergy Ave SE in Bowne Twp. The caller said her ribs were fractured. An update from dispatch said the suspect was now armed with a shotgun and the caller fled the residence into a field across the street into the freezing cold. Due to the violent nature of the call deputies with patrol rifles responded from as far away as Plainfield Twp. Additional updates said the caller heard 3 shots come from inside the residence. The caller said the suspect’s parents were inside the residence and she feared that he just shot them. Another update said the suspect was now outside with a flashlight looking for her. Dispatch then lost contact with the caller.
Deputies staged to the north and south of the residence. A React Team was established and approached the residence with the intent to rescue the injured caller. As they were making the approach, the south perimeter said a vehicle was leaving the residence northbound. The vehicle crested a hill and came face to face with the React Team. With no time to plan, a high risk traffic stop was conducted with the oncoming vehicle. The driver and passenger got out of the vehicle and said they were taking their son to the hospital because he had been shot. The suspect was in the backseat of the van. He was ordered out of the vehicle and down to the ground. Paramedics and rescue arrived to treat him. A deputy followed the ambulance with the suspect to a hospital.
While all of this was occurring, the victim still had not been located. Deputies from the south perimeter checked the residence for additional injured people. Finding none they called out for the victim, located her in the field and had another ambulance transport her to the hospital.
This incident could not have been resolved without the quick thinking, tactical knowledge, bravery, and action exhibited by all the deputies involved. Their exemplary performance above and beyond the general course of duty resulted in the apprehension of a suspect, rescue of a victim, and immediate resolution of a significant incident.
Statistical Information
Traffic Accidents 2011
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Calls for Service
| Township | 2010 | 2011 |
| Ada | 3,121 | 3,052 |
| Algoma | 2,521 | 2,915 |
| Alpine | 5,957 | 6,459 |
| Bowne | 553 | 508 |
| Byron | 5,941 | 6,810 |
| Caledonia | 3,537 | 3,536 |
| Cannon | 2,894 | 2,498 |
| Cascade | 6,691 | 6,494 |
| Courtland | 1,605 | 1,587 |
| Gaines | 8,111 | 8,253 |
| Grand Rapids | 5,225 | 5,906 |
| Grattan | 814 | 727 |
| Lowell | 1,534 | 1,724 |
| Nelson | 925 | 894 |
| Oakfield | 1,187 | 1,294 |
| Plainfield | 10,798 | 10,475 |
| Solon | 1,508 | 1,676 |
| Sparta | 1,371 | 1,374 |
| Spencer | 959 | 850 |
| Tyrone | 878 | 813 |
| Vergennes | 801 | 789 |
| Village of Kent City | 530 | 489 |
| Calls for Service within Kent County Jurisdictions | 67,461 | 69,123 |
| Calls within other jurisdictions inside Kent County | 4,913 | 3,999 |
| TOTAL CALLS FOR SERVICE | 72,374 | 73,122 |
