County agrees to aid city, LISD with officers

By Kyle Mooty

LPR Editor

An interlocal agreement between Caldwell County and the City of Lockhart will allow sheriff’s deputies to assist the other parties with personnel while the city’s police department is understaffed.

The agreement will have deputies paid overtime while working for the city.

Lockhart Mayor Lew White and Lockhart ISD Superintendent Mark Estrada each visited last week’s special meeting of the Caldwell County Commissioner’s Court.

White introduced the new hired Interim Police Chief, Kevin Lunsford, the former police chief at Huntsville. Lunsford will also help the city find a replacement for recently retired chief Ernesto Pedraza.

“It’s an honor to be in this community,” Lunsford told the court. “We are headed in the right direction.”

Meanwhile, Lockhart’s understaffed police department also means staffing issues with LISD for security purposes.

While the School Resource Officer program will remain in place, Commissioner B.J. Westmoreland noted that Estrada was hoping to increase security presence, primarily at the elementary schools.

“We have three resource officers from the Lockhart Police Department,” Estrada said. “School security is very important, especially coming off the tragedies that we’ve had in Texas. We want to do everything possible to ensure that our kids and our staff are safe.”

The help will likely come from the Constable Precinct 4.

Caldwell County Sheriff Mike Lane noted there would be an Active shooter training with the department soon.

“I really think this is a great move by the city and the county to get together in protecting these kids,” Commissioner Joe Roland said. “I think it’s a terrible thing that somebody is running around, maybe to kill little kids before they know what life is all about. It’s pitiful.”

The agreement was unanimously approved.

Constable Precinct 4 will be increasing its pool of deputies.