Madison County Sheriff’s Department gets new look after 30 years

By Devese “Dee” Ursery
[email protected]

After several decades, deputies for the Madison County Sheriff’s Department have not only changed their outdated uniforms for a more contemporary look and practicality but their vehicles are getting a new look as well.

The new look for the police vehicles began in January of this year, while deputies started wearing the new uniforms in July. All current deputies for Madison County have transitioned into the new uniforms. Although some squad cars have been re-striped there are still a few more that need to be done. 

Sheriff Jeff Connor, MCSD, explained another reason for the change in uniform.

“We wanted to allow our deputies the option of wearing an outer ballistic vest and at the same time change up the look. In doing so we took several things into consideration. Our old uniforms we’re getting harder and harder to find. Sometimes deputies would wait 6 to 9 months for a pair of pants, Connor said.

“What we did was take the same uniform that St. Louis county police are currently wearing because they have them in stock and a uniform shop in St. Louis is available for all of our needs. At the same time, the outer vest carrier distributes the weight of the uniform onto their shoulders, which in turn saves wear and tear on their backs and hips. They can re-allocate items like their walkie-talkie, handcuffs, and other items that are heavy and put them on the vest.”

Connor said the design came from a committee made up of representatives from each division within the department. That same committee also came up with the idea for the newly  redesigned MCSD patch, which gives a totally new look to the uniform. 

“We wanted  to make the patch stand out,” Connor said. ”The original patch had more of a state police look and the committee wanted to move toward more of a county police design.”

There are about 100 vehicles in the MCSD fleet at any time which include pickup trucks, multiple vans for transportation, administrative, and detective cars as well as patrol cars. According to Connor 20 vehicles have already been re-striped with a few left to go. He said the unmarked vehicles, transportation vans and administrative vehicles will not be re-striped. 

The low-mileage vehicles will get retrofitted, while new vehicles will get changed up as they are bought, according to Connor. He said the department buys new squad cars every 10 years.

“The new look has more reflective tape and also gives them more of a modern look,” Connor said. “The old squad cars had looked the same for about the last 30 years.”

Connor said the aim is to have all new vehicles in the department fleet so those purchases are in the County budget. The department requested and received a $100,000 allocation for the purchase of the new uniforms. These employees will then use their own allocated clothing allowance for any replacement from wear and tear of their uniforms.

Besides being outdated and impractical, Connor explained other reasons for the changes in the uniforms and squad cars.

“We wanted to rebrand our look by bringing the department up to modern times and help our officers with their wellness by providing optional load-bearing vests,” Connor said. “With a uniform store full of inventory, an officer can drive to St. Louis, and walk out of the store with a full uniform instead of waiting months to receive their old uniform. We also believe the look of the cars will give us better visibility in daytime and at night time with additional reflective tape.”

Deputy Jose Cerna, MCSD said he prefers the new load-bearing vest versus the older version of body armor  because of its functionality and comfort. 

“Well this load-bearing vest is good for taking all the weight of your waist and you can feel the difference,” Cerna said.  “At my old department that’s what I used to have and you can just feel it off your hips. I definitely prefer the newer versus than older one because of the functions and everything’s off your waist, so you’re not in pain anymore.”