LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Hardin County Sheriff's deputy Tim Thomas has spent more than 30 years in law enforcement, but on Monday, he begun a new challenge: school resource officer.
Thomas will be primarily be roaming the halls of James T. Alton Middle School in Vine Grove, but he'll also be roaming to nearby Rineyville Elementary and Vine Grove Elementary. Another deputy will be at West Hardin Middle School and roam to Lakewood Elementary and Cecilia Valley Elementary. The deputies began their new roles Monday.
"When I was with the Kentucky State Police, I was DARE coordinator for western Kentucky," Thomas said. "So I spent a lot of time in the schools, and this was a great opportunity for me to come back."
With those two additions, Hardin County Schools now has six law enforcement officers at various campuses around the county.
"We had some extra Safe Schools money that we got from the federal government," said John Wright, a spokesman for the school district. "So we really looked at what we could do to make our kids safer in the long term."Â
Last March Jesse Kilgus, 51, was shot in his van after he went to John Hardin High School to check his child out of school, according to a KSP spokesman. Kilgus had just shot and killed his wife, according to police.Â
"In that situation, we went into lockdown as that person, the alleged assailant, is walking into the doorway, and that school resource officer stopped them," Wright said. "We knew (school resource officers) were important beforehand, but that really sealed the deal."
The sheriff's office says during school breaks, the deputies will return to the streets for normal duty.Â
"Being a parent, I'm glad to see a law enforcement officer in the school in today's time," Sheriff John Ward said. "And we're going to work with the school system to make sure we provide the right deputy in the school."
Wright said the district plans to add three additional officers at three other middle schools "in the near future."Â
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