At a rural Winchester farm, Sheriff Hart heads to his car after a chat with some local farmers.

The ruraI sheriff's beat

The four clocks looking down from the cupola of red-bricked Scott County Court-house reach 10:30. Sheriff DeWayne Hart has spent most of this gray morning in conference. In one room of the courthouse, built just off Winchester's town square in 1885, Hart has been meeting with county commissioners. They were trying to reconcile the budget with dwindling revenues, a common story in many counties.

He now makes his way past the old framed photos of the county's war veterans and former sheriffs, down the stairs into the basement, where his new office lies off the beaten path from the public halls. The unopened cardboard boxes are evidence of how recent was the move to this office.

This is one of five counties in Illinois in which the sheriff is also the county coroner. 'That's a lot of extra responsibility and a lot of added work for me," Hart says. He is called out to scenes of deaths at home and in the field, making reports on the accidents, filling out forms detailing natural causes.

Much of his time, though, is consumed by his duties as sheriff. Elected to that post at age 29, the 34-year-old Hart is serving his second term. His department has two full-time deputies, and a roster of part-time deputies is available. They patrol and conduct investigations throughout the approximately 250 square miles of Scott County. Hart knows the area well. "I grew up in a little place called Oxville, about 10 miles northwest of Winchester. I've never lived outside two miles of it my entire life. In fact, I just moved back to my old home place." He lives there with his wife. Lisa, and four daughters, Kristen, Tara, Hallie and Hannah. "They're my support system. When I was elected, I lay a pad and pencil by the phone and told my wife, 'Here, honey. You're going to need this.' She's my secretary away from the office."

In a small rural county, the sheriffs position isn't an office job. "I work side by side with my officers, I patrol, I work every day virtually. They call me out at night if they need backup, or if they have a problem that needs to be taken care of. Sometimes they need the administrator's opinion on how something should be handled, sometimes they say, 'We need a little help,' and I get dressed and go out."

As a local native, Hart knows a lot of area people personally. As a consequence, the late night phone calls are sometimes from them.

"They have a problem, they know you have an office, they know you have dispatch service, but they call you. And, you know, it's sort of flattering that they trust you enough to want to call and talk to you personally. Many nights I don't go to bed prior to midnight because my phone will ring. People letting me know they're going to be on vacation for a week, this light is going to be on in the house, this neighbor's vehicle may be in the driveway because they are taking care of the dog or feeding the livestock."

Hart emphasizes that sheriffs in larger counties often develop this personal relationship with the citizenry, but the nature of smaller counties tend to promote it more. It may be that small-county nature that prompts the support Hart says he and his department receive from the public.

"I like being called 'Sheriff,' but the refreshing part is when somebody says, 'Hi, DeWayne, how's the wife and kids?' Everybody knows everybody, and I think that assists us in being able to solve some of our burglaries and our criminal damages. The vast majority of people will call you up and say, 'I understand that this happened and I think I have some information for you on it.' I say that the citizens are as big a part of my department as the people on my payroll. That's something I think we should be real proud of."

When someone notices that a strange van is parked at a house in mid-afternoon, Sheriff Hart prefers that his own deputies and the public in general err on the side of caution. "I would much rather send a car out and find that it's an appliance delivery, than to have a neighbor not say anything and the next day, I'm working on a burglary investigation."

Neighbors aren't the only ones who make up the community watch the sheriff deems so important. A member of Illinois Rural Electric Co., Hart says the cooperative and other utilities whose fleet vehicles crisscross the region add to the eyes and ears of law enforcement agencies.

"The people here at our own rural electric co-op, they're from the area. They know what belongs where and what doesn't. They have radios in their trucks and phones in their office. They can radio in to their dispatcher, who calls up here and says, "We've got something that is not quite right down here. I think you'd better check it out.""

Sherriff Hart talks with farmers Hunter Sauer, left, and Ed Craig. Hart says such visits with local residents help him know what's going on in the county.

Calls to the sheriffs departments are varied, from the serious to the odd. Hart says a homicide occurred in Winchester a couple of years ago, the county's first murder in 30 years. "We range from 'I've got a dog in my livestock' to 'My machine shed's been burglarized.' Then, of course, we deal with ever-increasing domestic violence."

The sheriff cites burglary and criminal damage to property as the most common offenses. A good working relationship with neighboring counties' law enforcement agencies has proven vital in solving many cases. Hart explains that when one burglary is solved, it often clears up several others.

"You find that the same people the police deal with in one community come over and do a crime in your county, so we share a lot of information. That works real well since we're understaffed."

It also explains why Hart can sometimes be found on duty outside Scott County. "People see my squad car every day for a week in Jacksonville and they wonder. Why isn't he in our county doing what we elected him to do? Recently, I worked three days in Springfield on a burglary investigation and subsequently apprehended suspects not only in our own burglaries but in neighboring counties' break-ins, too."

Like those of us who think nothing of driving 100 miles to shop at an outlet mall, the criminal is mobile.

"I think the public needs to know times have changed," Hart says. "You don't deal with the neighbor kid who broke in and stole your push mower to get some gas money. You deal with people who travel 200 miles." The criminal elements talk amongst themselves, he adds. They know which town's police response time is quicker and what places have an alarm.

Along with his job's demands, the sheriff participates in a number of other activities, some career related. The state requires a certain amount of training each year. He is also active in the Illinois and national sheriffs' associations and the Morgan-Scott Counties Crimestoppers. He is chairman of the county's Enhanced 9-1-1 board. In the county's DARE program, he visits schoolchildren, encouraging them to avoid drugs and violence. Hart says his "stress reduction" comes from family, church and pitching in at his father's farm.

"I had a desire to be in law enforcement since my early high school days. It was a choice between that and farming with my grandfather and Dad. With the number of acres they farmed, it wasn't going to be feasible to keep three families living off it."

Persistence won him a spot as a part-time deputy for Scott County. In the years before he was elected sheriff. Hart juggled full-time work as a mechanic with part-time law enforcement jobs for the county and South Jacksonville. He's glad his career has allowed him to stay on home turf. He likes being able to feel he is making a difference there.

"The people in my county have shown me great support. When someone calls about a burglary at their house, I take that crime personally. They might as well have broken into my own home. We can't solve them all, but I want to show them I genuinely care."

That care even extends to the perpetrator. "I not only want to solve the crime, but hopefully say something to help that subject turn their life around. If just one listens, that's worth the whole effort."

Steps toward burgular-proofing yoour property

In the next 20 years, three out of four U.S. homes will be burglarized, says theBurgulary Prevention Council . The forecast is simple, effective guidelines that can cut the chance of a household break-in.

Keep all doors and windows closed and securely fastened. Many burglars don't even break in because they can enter easily when they think nobody's home. Thieves are also quick to spot weak locks that can be easily forced open. Doors should have deadbolt locks with a 1-inch throw and reinforced strike plate with 3-inch screws.

Create the illusion that you are home by using timers on lights, radios and TVs. Leaving a dog food bowl on the front or back step can also give a potential burglar second thoughts about entering.

Keep the perimeter of your home well lighted. Installing low-voltage outdoor lighting is a cost-effective way.

Never leave clues that you are away on a trip. Stop mail and newspaper deliveries, or have a trusted neighbor collect them while you're away. Ask a neighbor to park in your driveway or parking place to make the house appear occupied. Keep some shades and blinds up and curtains open to maintain an everyday appearance.

Never leave a message on your telephone answering machine telling callers you are away.

Keep shrubbery trimmed away from entrances and walkways. It can be a hiding place for burglars.

Sheriff Hart adds these tips he has garnered from his years in law enforcement:

Install an alarm. "They can be silent, hooked to a phone, there are any number of systems. Locally we've got machine sheds with burglar alarms in them. You have to compare the value of your tools to the cost of an alarm. Same with your house. Is grandmother's heirloom worth it?"

Don't leave valuables in view. "One case we had, a couple of boys would go around the houses looking in windows. When they see a purse on a kitchen table inside a back door, one boy would go to the front and ring the doorbell. The other would run in the back door and grab the purse while the person was answering the door."

Know serial numbers and identifying marks of your property. "Write that serial number and put it in a bank box. Don't hide it in a dresser drawer where burglar will find it. They're not stupid... lawn furniture was stolen, heavy cast iron, and the love seat had a weld spot halfway down the leg. Later, some furniture was recovered and sure enough, there was that weld spot that identified it."

If a burglary occurs, don't disturb the scene. "Naturally, when you discover a break-in the first thing you want to do is walk right in and start looking in the drawers and closets to see what was taken. You just entirely messed up a crime scene. Even a burglar wearing gloves isn't out of the woods anymore. People don't realize the complexity of crime scene investigation. The technology is tremendous. There is no perfect criminal, and the less that scene is disturbed, the better."

MARCH 1996 • ILLINOIS COUNTRY LIVING 9