Save The E-Unit

Background

At the July 28th, 2025 Georgetown Township Board meeting, the Ottawa County Sheriff’s Department informed the GT Board that the Georgetown Charter Township Emergency Unit (E-Unit) Program, which provides 24-hour coverage with a state-certified paramedic E-Unit for medical emergencies, will end in 2026. The E-Unit has served the community for over 50 years. The ending of the E-Unit Program marks a significant change for Georgetown Township as it has long relied on this partnership with the Ottawa County Sheriff’s Office for local EMS response. The GT Board tried to dissuade Sheriff DeBoer, but to no avail.

Our Effort and Petition

Our effort has two components:

1. Petition the Georgetown Township Board to preserve the E-Unit by staffing it under Georgetown Township rather than Ottawa County, while reducing the number of police officers hired from the Ottawa County Sheriff's Department some.  Ideally Georgetown Township could hire the E-Unit deputies from the Ottawa County Sheriff's Department who are well skilled and experienced.

2.  Petition Sheriff DeBoer to help and assist the Georgetown Township Board in this process, as good coordination would be important for its success. 

Those who agree are asked to fill out this online petition form:

https://savethecampbell.com/save-the-e-unit-sheriff-deboer/  

Request Sent to Georgetown Township Board

Dear Township Board:

Here was the question I asked AI: can fire department staff perform any police functions? The answer it gave me:

"Yes, fire department staff can perform some police functions, particularly in the role of "fire police," which involves traffic and crowd control at emergency scenes, securing incident perimeters, and assisting law enforcement. In some integrated public safety agencies, personnel are cross-trained to perform law enforcement, firefighting, and EMS duties. Firefighters also generally have the authority to detain individuals suspected of arson until law enforcement arrives, but formal arrest powers are limited and vary by jurisdiction."

So my question to the GT Board is this: as Georgetown Township adds six new staff to its Fire Department, should it consider adding ones who can have more "fire police" and E-Unit functionality?  Even more specifically, should it consider hiring police deputies that have been part of the E-Unit with Ottawa County (and hence are eminently qualified to perform E-unit policing and EMS functions) as most or all of the six new staff it plans to hire to the Fire Department, and then reduce the number of police deputies it uses from the Ottawa County Sheriff’s Department?

So substantively, though not actually because of legal reasons, could the E-Unit move from the County Sheriff’s Department to the Georgetown Township Fire Department?  And could Georgetown Township purchase the EMS equipment, etc. the E-Unit is experienced with using? Since it would be used equipment, Georgetown Township should be able to purchase it at a great price from Ottawa County, but it would be very good equipment.

When Sheriff DeBoer spoke before the GT Board, he seemed to say that many or most of the calls that police deputies responded to were for emergency scenes like described above where “fire police” could be used.  So if GT hires for its new staffing more “fire police”, can it not be the case that we can reduce the number of Sheriff Department deputies, and hence save GT money that way?

Also, IF GT were to hire “fire police” with E-Unit capability for its six new staff, then would it perhaps not make sense to have them not so much stationed at the fire station on a regular basis, but have “fire patrol” cars on the ready to go to emergency scenes as they develop, and these patrol cars be equipped with E-Unit equipment? Indeed, could Sheriff Department E-Unit patrol cars be converted to “fire police” E-Unit patrol cars?

As I stated last evening, I think disbanding the E-Unit was a big mistake, and I think from talking with many of the GT Board, you agree with me as well. So is it possible to effectively albeit not technically move the E-Unit from the County Sheriff Department to the GT Fire Department?  If so, now is the time to do it as GT hires new Fire Department staff and as the County Sheriff Department will presumably no longer be using equipment its patrol cars have been equipped with, plus as Sheriff Department E-Unit personnel will lose their E-Unit functionality with the County Sheriff Department and hence become less valuable to the County Sheriff Department but potentially very valuable to GT.

Thanks for your thoughtful consideration of my questions.

Sincerely,

Joseph Parnell McCarter

Georgetown Township, MI

Per Google AI:

"It can be legal in Michigan for police officers to be under the command of the fire department chief, particularly in municipalities that have established a "public safety department" that combines law enforcement and fire services under a single director. This structure allows for combined response forces where personnel can be trained and certified as both firefighters and law enforcement officers, all under one administrative head."  

Follow-up Request Sent to Ottawa County Sheriff DeBoer : 

Dear Sheriff DeBoer:

Thank you for responding to my concern. I voted for you because I see you as a practical problem solver. While I can appreciate that you have found a paramedic division does not work well within the Ottawa County Sheriff’s Office, I hope you will be open to discussing the possibility of a police paramedic division under Georgetown Township’s fire/public safety department. Of course, the Sheriff’s Office must primarily focus on law enforcement, but EMS has to be a primary focus of Georgetown fire/public safety, especially now as the Sheriff’s Office scales back on the paramedic role.

I would request the opportunity to discuss with you and Supervisor Jim Wierenga the possibility of such a police paramedic division under Georgetown Township’s fire/public safety. In order to work, I think it would need not only the support of Georgetown Township’s leaders, but also your help and support.

Several factors argue for having such a police-paramedic division under Georgetown Township’s fire/public safety department:

1. Ability of a police-paramedic not only to help treat the medical emergency, but also to help secure the scene, as needed. As you well know, securing the scene is really a pre-condition of treating a medical emergency.

2. Rapid response to a medical emergency which is often so critical in saving lives

3. Ability to address medical emergencies where the party in need of help is physically resistant to help, often because of a psychiatric condition or substance abuse. The person needing medical help can actually be a danger not only to themselves but to others.

On this third item above, I personally experienced this situation at our company in recent months. An employee suffering from a seizure and a psychiatric condition refused help and kept walking into dangerous areas in both our factory and then towards a street heavily trafficked. The EMS that arrived could do nothing to restrain the employee and get her on a stretcher; it required police assistance. Someone with both skill sets can be invaluable in those situations.

Could it be that some police-paramedic personnel in Ottawa County Sheriff’s Office might be interested in joining a police paramedic division under Georgetown Township’s fire/public safety?  This would allow them to continue this dual police-paramedic role, with advantages described at https://www.police1.com/police-products/tactical/tactical-medical/articles/how-cops-turned-medics-are-improving-ems-response-8pdtSSfq0lrHmxWi/ . At the same time, it would allow you to continue with your changes to the Ottawa County Sheriff’s Office, in order to promote its primary mission as a law enforcement agency. Georgetown Township could also purchase from the Sheriff's Office the equipment its police paramedics have used, if you and they would be open to that.

Thank you for your thoughtful consideration of this request.

Sincerely,

Joseph Parnell McCarter

Original Request Sent to Ottawa County Sheriff DeBoer : 

Dear Sheriff DeBoer:

Thank you for your public service. I have a cousin who is sheriff of McLennan County, TX, so can better appreciate all that you do.

The article at https://www.ottawanewsnetwork.org/georgetown-grapples.../... reports that “the Ottawa County Sheriff’s Department ends paramedic-licensed deputies in May…Tamminga oversees the 14 full-time deputies contracted from OCSD to patrol in Georgetown Township. Seven of them currently carry paramedic-level licensure and have specialized equipment in their vehicles to respond to medical calls. OCSD has said it isn't able to maintain that level of service any longer, largely due to staffing shortages.”

I would request that the County Sheriff Department provide Georgetown Township more options than just ending paramedic-licensed deputies in May. I can imagine there are many challenges both budget-wise and personnel-wise in maintaining paramedic-licensed deputies. Yet there are huge benefits with having deputies with paramedic-level licensure and specialized equipment in their vehicles to respond to medical calls. The great thing about having police do it is that then they can also be patrolling our streets for public safety as well, so as to keep down criminal activity. EMS and fire on the other hand do not need to be driving the streets patrolling. While patrolling, they can then be the most rapid to the site of a medical emergency. I would thus request that the County Sheriff Department provide Georgetown Township and other county townships with a cost for maintaining the program, and see if the townships are willing and able to contribute to a fund to maintain it. If there are other ways townships could help to make this possible, these could be added in the option as well.

It may be that maintaining such sheriff deputies into the future, while costing more than is allocated now, would still be less expensive than other options.

Thank you for your thoughtful consideration of this request. I am making Georgetown Township Board members aware of this request as well, in case they should wish to express any thoughts about it.

Sincerely,

Joseph Parnell McCarter

Georgetown Township, MI