The price of the toys

What's that old saying? "The only difference between men and boys is the price of the toys."

How does this apply to law enforcement in McHenry County?

The Northwest Herald reported on last Thursday's combined "sweep" by the McHenry County Sheriff's Department, the Illinois State Police, Lake County Sheriff’s Office, McHenry, Crystal Lake, Cary, Algonquin, Lake in the Hills, Huntley and Fox River Grove police departments, and the U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force.

In addition to collaring six persons with felony warrants, here's what they accomplished:

Traffic 11
Theft 4
Disorderly conduct 2
Domestic battery 1
Battery 3
Drugs 2
Trespass to land 1
Contempt 2

Compare the "awesome" manpower used to collar these dangerous individuals. How many of these wanted persons could have been picked up by a single patrol officer's going to the door and arresting the person?

When a person doesn't show up in court, a judge frequently issues a warrant for the no-show. On simple traffic no-shows, the court might first send a letter. I wonder, in how many cases would a letter and a 44¢ stamp result in the person's appearance at his next court date?

Sometimes there is a mix-up by the court. A person is told to appearance in one place or on a certain date, but the court expects him on a different date or in different courtroom; sometimes, even a different court location. When he's not there, the judge issues a warrant. Often the warrants are soon quashed. Are causes of no-shows ever evaluated?

Could an effective employee on the telephone and with a computer eliminate the costly overhead of a sweeps team like the one last week?

How many hundreds (thousands?) of unserved warrants are there in McHenry County? What is the cost of a "sweeps" team? What is the cost-benefit ratio? Does anyone bother to calculate that? Or is it "Hey, it's just taxpayer money. Who cares what the cost is?"