The Sheriff's Matron Experience - A Personal Story

Years ago I worked as a county temp doing anything from taking photos in the License Center to riding along on transports as a sheriff’s matron for our local Sheriff’s Department.

A sheriff’s matron acts as an escort while transporting women between prison, mental institutions, juvenile detention centers, hospitals and court. You name it, I’d seen it; juveniles, middle aged and even the elderly. I’d escorted frightened young women being taken to detention centers for the first time and had also escorted a woman who seriously thought she was Amelia Erhardt and told me how she’d seen the accompanying Deputy Sheriff walk out of the mirror in her bedroom.  Very seldom did I witness anything remotely funny while on the job, but every once in awhile a situation arose that made me smile.  The story below relates one of those incidents.

The call for transport came via a phone call from the SO on an early Spring morning. The regular matron was ill would I be available to help ASAP? Always anxious to make a few extra bucks I said, “Sure, ya betcha!”  Quickly brushing my hair, and throwing on my everyday clothes I left the house and headed for Court.

The beautiful, blond, thirty something woman, had been sentenced to 60 days in a chemical dependency unit in a facility 145 miles away.  This was the fifth time she had been incarcerated for alcohol addiction.  The ride was uneventful we talked of children, vegetable gardens, the latest fads and cosmetics.  The woman was beautiful, educated, very well dressed, her nails perfectly manicured. She looked like a million bucks!

It should be noted, the driver of the unmarked patrol car was the Chief Deputy for the county in which I worked.  He was also my late husband. My husband and the beautiful lady were childhood acquaintances, as such was the case for many of the people he transported, for the county in which we lived was small, numbering approximately 18,000 citizens.  Knowing her fifth time circumstance and her usual docile behavior when sober she was left without cuffs.

Upon entering the facility the three of us left the vehicle and headed up to the third floor via the elevator. Upon arrival we were met by the usual stern faced registration nurse asking for the woman’s court documents at which time my hubby obliged. The nurse carefully scrutinized the documents, glanced up, looked at me then at the beautiful woman. Without hesitation, she looked directly at me and stated,   

“Okay, ummmmm, you can come along with me.”

That was the last time I ever went to work in my everyday clothes!