People’s Alliance calls for Agreements on HEART Expansion and 911 system
consolidation prior to Durham County approving funding for the Sheriff’s Proposed New
Training Facility on Electra Road

At the January 6, 2025, work session, the Durham Board of County Commissioners will consider
a request from Sheriff Clarence Birkhead to approve a firing range upgrade and training facility
construction at Electra Road. This facility was previously considered and is included in the
County’s capital improvement plan, but to move forward, it requires an additional “yes” vote to
obligate the County to a limited obligation bond worth upwards of $16 million. The Sheriff
Office’s current facility was built in the 1980s, and the upgrade would include a
10,000-square-foot building with classrooms, bathrooms, and magazine storage.

The People’s Alliance believes in a holistic and collaborative approach to public safety. Our
Durham law enforcement officers face difficult, and at times, dangerous challenges in their work. We agree with the Sheriff that all of our law enforcement officers must be rigorously and conscientiously trained; certainly, all county staff, regardless of role, deserve appropriate bathroom facilities at their worksite. Armed response, however, is only one aspect of community safety. Many of Durham’s emergency calls do not require an armed response at all, but would be better served by unarmed mental health responders trained in de-escalation and care navigation. Surveys show a majority of armed law enforcement officers agree. The People’s Alliance is proud that the City of Durham is a national leader in holistic, empathic approaches to
nonviolent emergency response with the HEART program–a program that permits armed law enforcement to concentrate on situations that truly demand their unique skills.

The People’s Alliance is frustrated, however, that despite overwhelming support, the HEART
program has not yet been expanded to Durham County or Durham Public Schools. All five
County Commissioners expressed strong support for HEART expansion in their 2024 People’s
Alliance PAC questionnaires. One apparent reason for this delay has been the segregation of
911 call services between the City and the County. The Sheriff currently controls county 911
services. The City and County of Durham are one community. This segregation disadvantages
county residents who are denied access to HEART response teams. We all deserve a
collaborative approach to public safety. The People’s Alliance calls upon Sheriff Birkhead to
enter a Memorandum of Understanding with the City of Durham to expand HEART services
(administered by the same City leadership) to the County and the schools, and to merge and
integrate 911 call response. Until we have corrected this lapse, which impedes the appropriate
utilization of unarmed response teams in the County and schools, it would be premature to
invest yet more into armed response in the County.

People’s Alliance urges Sheriff Birkhead to engage City and County leadership and urges all parties to expedite within ninety days any and all intergovernmental agreements required to expand HEART and consolidate 911 services. Merging and consolidating emergency response systems will improve services, increase efficiency, and save money overall. Acting quickly will mitigate the risk of cost overruns and allow County Commissioners to consider the training
facility request in a context of collaboration that will improve public safety outcomes in Durham.