New wheels for JCSO

Ashley Hunter
ECB Publishing, Inc.

On Tuesday, Sept. 11, two new vehicles rolled into the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office (JCSO) inventory.
Purchased through a $91,000 grant from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, two Tahoes were added to the JCSO vehicle inventory.
The two Tahoes are impressive vehicles; some of the largest in the fleet at JCSO, the Tahoes show off a bold paint job, bright lights, and body work designed to make the Tahoes road-hardy and pursuit-ready.
“There's a lot that goes into these vehicles,” said Sheriff Mac McNeill.
The Tahoes rolled into the JCSO almost fully equipped with a forwards, backwards and officer body camera system, consoles, a locking storage area, sirens and lights.
The vehicles aren't cheap, and exceeded the $91K grant by a few thousand, bringing the total for both vehicles up to roughly $97,000 – which amounts to $48,523.50 for each Tahoe.
While the Tahoes required the JCSO to pay approximately $6,000 for both Tahoes, it was an investment that Sheriff McNeill considers worth their while.
“These are tougher vehicles,” said Sheriff McNeill, adding that the additions and equipment within the Tahoes will allow the agency to go longer without having to pay full price for new vehicles.
In comparison to the roughly four years that can be expected for the life of their current vehicles, the JCSO can expect to get around seven years out of these twin Tahoes.
Within the last couple of months, the JCSO has made quite a few equipment additions through trades and receiving used surplus from larger agencies; but these Tahoes are brand new, and will last longer than if the JCSO had managed to obtain a similar, but used, vehicle for cheaper from another agency.
“We're really proud to have achieved this,” said Sheriff McNeill. “It will let our fleet go longer and ultimately, that saves taxpayer money.”