Adair County Sheriff's Dept
I, Eldon Grissom, was just elected to the Office of Sheriff of Adair County January 1, 2021. I received the traffic stop disparity index for Adair County from your office which reviews the years 2000 to 2020. Looking at the data, I know from my previous employment in law enforcement and being of the area, there were two companies who opened em- ployment opportunities world- wide. Kraft Foods in Kirksville, Mo. (Adair County) and Farmland (Pork Production) in Milan, Missouri, Sullivan County. The employment opportunities offered by these two companies alone summoned several diverse cultural groups to the Milan and Kirksville area. Due to a new environment, many of those who came seeking employment, were not versed on Missouri laws nor were they experienced drivers. The 2019 population counts are based off the previous Adair County census, which may not reflect a true and accurate count for all race cate- gories. The Adair County area has seen a large influx in minorities. The influx of out of country persons (minorities) brought more traffic traveling to and from Kirksville to Milan and vice versa. I know the history of this office, that not many traffic stops were conducted, so the stops made must have been at a very concerning level for the officers, eg; excessive speeding, careless driving, bad passing, etc. The severity of the violations observed were the primary basis for a contact being made.