Communication / Jail Division

Chief Inspector Eric Leppanen

Staff Support Services Commander

Email Chief Inspector Leppanen

Communications is a division of Staff Support Services commanded by Inspector Eric Leppanen. It is directly supervised by Captain Todd Halford, and is the first level of contact for the public. It is one of the busiest areas of the police department. They are responsible for handling incoming calls for service, not only for the police department, but also for fire and emergency medical services. The personnel assigned to this division are highly trained individuals, required to have successfully passed Basic Emergency Communicators courses (APCO), Emergency Medical Dispatch courses (EMD), Jail Corrections Certification, chemical defensive weapons course, and receive NCIC and CPR certification. All 911 calls come into this area, and the personnel must be able to handle citizens in crisis and maintain their composure to notify the proper units to answer the call. The personnel assigned to the communications section are also required to function as corrections officers manning the control board for the jail, and to fill in for the detention specialist when they are absent. 

The Jail division is likewise supervised by Captain Todd Halford, whose duties also include ensuring that the jail complies with all standards as set out by the Tennessee Corrections manual and Tennessee State Law as a Type I facility. The Bartlett Jail was upgraded to a Type I from a Type II facility, upon the move to our new Justice Complex in 1998, allowing the detention of inmates longer than the 72 hours.  These detention specialists likewise must be highly trained to process and handle detainees. They are responsible for the day to day welfare of the inmates, receiving and processing the inmates, including photographing, fingerprinting and classifying. Detention specialists handle and prepare the proper paperwork for inmate release, including taking bond money and bonds from surety companies. When the inmate has a court appearance, the detention specialist is responsible for ensuring that the proper inmate is taken to court, as well as their movement throughout the jail area. Detention specialists prepare and deliver the inmate meals.