If ever there were a time to remind Sherburne County that there's a new sheriff in town, this was it.

Joel Brott, appointed sheriff on Jan. 31, 2009, had overseen a variety of changes within his department for seven months. But when a Big Lake man was fatally shot by sheriff's deputies during a confrontation on Oct. 2, Brott knew this was no time for subtleties.

Dana Dempsey, 47, was at the Sherburne County Courthouse that day, to be sentenced for making methamphetamine. He skipped his sentencing hearing and went into a parking lot where he fired at two deputies, who returned fire and killed him. A review by the state Bureau of Criminal Apprehension and Wright County found that the deputies acted properly.

Although Dempsey was not seen to have had a weapon in the government center, Brott was leaving nothing to chance. Concerned with security at a building that includes the courthouse, county attorney's office and Sheriff's Office, Brott formed a committee and stressed the importance of new security checks.

"The first two weeks, we took 25 knives off of people," Brott said last week. But as he and Assistant County Administrator Luci Botzek exchanged pleasantries near a courthouse entrance metal detector, Brott quickly added, "I certainly didn't do it all myself."

Following an icon

Brott, 38, was appointed unanimously by the County Board to succeed the bigger-than-life presence of Bruce Anderson, who retired as sheriff in mid-term last year.

"Bruce was an icon, but Joel's doing terrific things of his own," said County Commissioner Felix Schmiesing.

"Joel delegates authority well. He's got great administrative skills," Schmiesing said. "He's ready to take this department to another level. He's exceeded expectations."

Hand-picked by Anderson, Brott recently announced that he will run for sheriff this fall. He will face Bob Bushman, a Big Lake resident who spent 24 years with the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension and is now statewide gang and drug coordinator at the Minnesota Department of Public Safety.

New investigation team

Among the department changes instituted under Brott:

•Last year, the Sheriff's Office joined police departments in Elk River, Big Lake and Becker to create a countywide investigation team. This year, those departments and county fire departments will share a computer and record-management system.

•The contract to house Anoka County prisoners in the Sherburne County jail in Elk River has been expanded and could generate up to $500,000 in revenue annually for Sherburne County, Brott said. Sherburne County continues to house federal inmates, a policy begun under Anderson. The county receives $80 per day for the 400 federal inmates it houses on average. There is space for 667 inmates at the Elk River jail.

•Brott helped start the KIDS Choice program in the Becker, Big Lake and Clear Lake school districts. KIDS, which stands for Kindness Intelligence Decency Safety, includes a 12-week program for fifth-graders to learn about Internet safety, the dangers of drugs and alcohol, and how to deal with bullies. More than 500 students have graduated from the program, with another 500 expected to graduate this spring.

In addition, county schools were provided with 800 megahertz radios to provide emergency communication.

•The Sheriff's Office now sends out a bi-weekly newsletter and posts warrants and lists inmates online. Last week, the office created a Facebook file. Twitter also is used by the department to give users up-to-the-minute updates on road closures and accidents. Besides getting messages to the public sooner, the mostly paperless system will save the county about $100,000, Brott said.

• A new food-service contract at the jail will save the county $300,000 annually, Brott said.

Close to home

Brott, who grew up in St. Cloud and still lives there, had no visions of a career in public safety until meeting with a high school counselor, who recommended he visit Alexandria Technical College, where he earned a law enforcement degree in 1992.

"I love the outdoors and I like people," he said. "It was a good fit."

After working as a police officer in Minneota and Redwood Falls, Brott joined the Sherburne County Sheriff's Office 14 years ago as a patrol deputy. He worked his way through the department -- as an investigator and, ultimately, captain of investigations before his appointment as sheriff.

"I know people think, 'Boy, 38, that's young to be sheriff,' " he said. "But I'll be the same age Sheriff Anderson was when he was first elected."

Married and the father of three sons, Brott understands the need to keep up with technology.

"It's important to keep ourselves on the cutting edge," he said. "I think the Sheriff's Office is there."

He pointed to the tri-county forensic lab in Andover, shared with Anoka and Wright counties.

"It's amazing the trail of evidence that's left behind and opportunities we have through computer forensics," he said. "These are exciting times."

Paul Levy • 612-673-4419