Cleveland County Sheriff Brad Young said five deputies have finished free ICE online training, opening the door to as much as $250,000 in first-year federal funding for the Rison-based department, Deltaplex News reported Friday.
How the funding works
- Initial stipend: $100,000 under the department’s memorandum of agreement with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
- Quarterly pay: $7,500 per eligible trained deputy with at least two years of service.
- With five deputies: $37,500 per quarter, or $150,000 a year, plus the initial stipend for a potential $250,000 first-year total.
- Uses: Young said the money can go toward vehicles, equipment and other law enforcement resources.
Young said he found the program while looking for deputy training that would improve equipment without shifting more cost onto Cleveland County taxpayers. The course covers how deputies handle encounters with people who entered the United States illegally.
Week of Oct. 3–9 activity
The weekly report listed one felony arrest: E.G. Wainwright of Rison on second-degree domestic battery, a Class D felony. Other arrests included Greg White of Rison for shoplifting and Joshua Pease of Pine Bluff for disorderly conduct. Deputies also served failure-to-appear warrants for Donovan Haywood of Pine Bluff and Constance Craig of Fordyce.
Call volume included 11 ambulance runs, three alarm calls, three disturbances, three fire calls and three accident investigations, plus theft, harassment, welfare-check and other complaints. Six citations were issued. Charges listed are allegations.
Weekend presence in Rison
Young said deputies plan to work public safety at Rison in the Fall on Saturday, Oct. 10. He also asked residents to keep the family and colleagues of Lincoln County Deputy Jeremy Simmons in their thoughts after Simmons’ death earlier this week. iSEARK.com previously reported the Highway 425 crash that killed the Star City school resource officer.
Sources
- Primary local: Cleveland County Sheriff Secures Federal Funding Through ICE Partnership and Reports Weekly Law Enforcement Activity, Deltaplex News (Haleigh Reichen), Oct. 9, 2026.
- Related iSEARK.com: Star City school resource officer Jeremy Simmons killed in Highway 425 crash.
Photo: Calvin Beale, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons (Cleveland County Courthouse, Rison).
