Thursday was an unofficial “Complaint Day” for the Phelps County Commission as it investigated, deliberated —  and sometimes resolved — citizen complaints that included a report of animal cruelty, a flood repair permit and a property-tax penalty.

Phelps County resident and St. James City Councilman Jim White attended the session to advise the Commission of an injured deer incident he encountered on Wednesday and a perceived lack of response by the Phelps County Sheriff’s Department.

White said he was driving on Highway B, approximately five miles north of St. James when he spotted an injured deer on the side of the highway at approximately 6:30 a.m.

White pulled over, parked in a driveway, noted an address on a mailbox next to the injured deer and called the emergency dispatcher, who took his cell phone number and information on the location of the deer.

Twelve hours later, White was returning from work on the same route and noticed the injured deer still lying in the same location.

“This is the United States of America, and we’re supposed to be a compassionate nation,” White said.  “This really bugs me.”

White said after another call to the dispatcher, he was told that the deputy who was dispatched that morning to the scene couldn’t find the deer.

However, another phone call to the Sheriff’s Department by Presiding Commissioner Randy Verkamp revealed that the deputy originally reporting to the scene could not find the deer on the first pass, but found it on his second pass and shot it in the head with his 45-caliber pistol.

The deputy involved stated that he saw the deer’s head fall back, so he assumed it was dead.  Moreover, he did not file a follow-up report that stated he had found the deer and shot it.

The deer, however, was not dead, and when White made his second phone call, 12 hours later, a second deputy was dispatched to euthanize the animal, which the deputy accomplished by means of a 12-gauge shotgun.

Another citizen complaint involved receiving a late property tax bill, one-and-one-half weeks ago, with a late penalty added to the bill.

Resident Rodger Newton complained that the tax bill went to the wrong address, even though he had not changed addresses since receiving last year’s tax bill.

The Commission telephoned the assessor and collector and discovered that the address had been changed by Newton’s wife.

Verkamp explained that state regulations have to be followed, and that it is the taxpayer’s responsibility to notify the county of any address changes; hence, nothing could be done by the Commission to relieve the burden of the late penalty.

In an unrelated complaint, a Jerome resident objected to the necessity of acquiring a permit to repair his flood-damaged property.  He was concerned that applying for a permit would require the services of an engineer, when all that was needed was to replace 16 inches of drywall.

The Commission telephoned the Meramec Regional Planning Commission, which administers the county’s floodplain ordinance and discovered that a permit would be needed, but not the services of an engineer.

MRPC Floodplain Ordinance Administrator Lesley Bennish said since the resident did not sustain “substantial damages,” or damages exceeding 50 percent of the market value of the building, all that was required was a permit.

The permit did not cost money, and the only documentation the resident needed was a copy of his flood-elevation certificate, which could be readily attained from his insurance agent, Bennish said.

The Commission also reviewed the following items:

• Commissioner District 1 Larry Stratman informed the Phelps County Sheriff’s Department that he found an authorized service agent for the impaired Teletrol control device that regulates the heating, ventilation and air conditioning control (HVAC) systems at the Department’s building.
Stratman said an authorized service agent from Air Systems, of Columbia, would conduct a preliminary inspection of the equipment Thursday evening with PCSD Detective Mark Leathers.

• The Commission reviewed correspondence from Prosecuting Attorney Courtney George stating that she had appointed a new assistant prosecuting attorney.
Marcie Brower, the new assistant prosecutor, was sworn in by Carol Bennett on Tuesday.

• The Commission approved renewing the Lifescan equipment maintenance contract (the computerized fingerprint scanner) for the Sheriff’s Department for the period of April, 2009, through March, 2010 at a total cost of $7,822.

• Phelps County Road Supervisor Dale Winemiller apprised the Commission that the road crew would be expanding a one-lane bridge on County Road 2170 near the trash transfer station with a two-lane bridge on Sunday.
County Road 2170 will close from 7 a.m. through 1 or 2 p.m., Winemiller said.
Alternate routing while repairs are under way is Highway V to County Road 2180 and then right on County Road 2170.

• Jim Eyberg, of Eyberg Construction Inc., told the Commission that his company would be changing a water line from the north side of a road to the south side of a road within the new subdivision of Tuscan Hills.
After deliberations, the Commission agreed that no revision of the utility easement was required.

• Jan Boatwright, director of Senior Companions and acting director of RSVP, apprised the Commission that all RSVP mileage payments have been completed.
Boatwright also said she would post a notice on the RSVP office door that would direct visitors to her office at Senior Companions.