Liberty County Sheriff Steve Sikes was among the 115 sheriff’s from across the state who recently attended the Georgia Sheriff’s Association’s Summer Training Conference. The conference, which was held July 30 through Aug. 1 on Jekyll Island, reviewed the best practices and procedures in many aspects of law enforcement.

Sikes said sheriffs have many mandated responsibilities by state law and the conference offered ample opportunities to learn new law enforcement tactics.

Experts spoke on topics such as legislative and legal issues, the state’s opioid crisis and specific legislations to combat the problem, mental health issues and scams that target the elderly.

Sikes said they also heard from representatives of the Georgia Peace Officers Standard and Training Council, the Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities, Driver Services and the state board of pardon and paroles.

“During this important training event, sheriffs convened to identify viable solutions to complex and costly issues facing sheriffs’ offices and local taxpayers. Their participation is vital if we are to seek out the best practices in fulfilling these important responsibilities,” Terry Norris, Executive Director, Georgia Sheriffs’ Association said.