The Guthrie County Board of Supervisors voted yesterday to grant the Sheriff’s department funds for an additional deputy. The decision came after close to an hour of deliberation, which included removing funding for body cameras, and lowering the proposed raises of two sheriff’s department employees in order to make room for the deputy. Sheriff Marty Arganbright says he’ll do the best he can with the adjusted budget, but getting the deputy was his number one concern. “All that I can do is try, like we all do every year. I can’t tell you what the criminals are gonna do, and that’s not gotten better, that’s gotten worse. It’s our job to keep crime down, that’s why we are out there. If that’s [budget cuts] are what it takes to come to terms on another deputy, then I’ll do my best.”

The decision on the deputy comes just as the Board of Supervisors and the Guthrie Center City Council move forward on a committee to explore future options for law enforcement in the city, which could further grow the size of the Sheriff’s department.