MACHIAS, Maine — Last spring, an elderly man brought a live grenade to the Washington County Sheriff’s Office.
Paula Johnson-Rolfe, the office manager and deputy sheriff, saw the man pull into the lot and park. He got out and walked on unsteady legs toward the building while carrying something in his hands. She said she went out to help him.
“He has this grenade in his hand. He was cleaning out his father’s apartment, and he wanted to know if it was real,” she said.
Johnson-Rolfe instructed him to put the grenade back in the car.
“I had him come in here to wait for the bomb squad,” she said.
Police did determine the grenade was real and of World War II vintage. They took it and destroyed it, she said.
Sheriff Barry Curtis said Johnson-Rolfe quickly and calmly handled the situation and averted a potential disaster. When he nominated her for Maine Sheriffs’ Association “Employee of the Year,” he told the grenade story to show how well she does her job.
The nomination went before a panel of five people who selected Johnson-Rolfe over the other nominees from all 16 counties to receive the statewide award at a banquet March 24.
“I’m really happy about it,” said Johnson-Rolfe, who added she also is a little overwhelmed.
She began her career at the sheriff’s office in 1986 when Harold Prescott was in office. She served as the department’s administrative assistant after the position had been vacant for about six weeks, she said, and had to learn on the job.
“You had to muddle through because there was no one to call and ask,” she said. “Every day something new came along and you learned to do it.”
Johnson-Rolfe, who has a degree in business from the University of Maine, is now office manager, a position that involves working with members of the public who stop by the sheriff’s office, taking phone calls and handling all the office paperwork, including both criminal and civil cases. She also helps each year with the department budget and accounting systems.
She also became a deputy sheriff in 1999 because of the need for female law enforcement officers. At the time, there were no female deputies and no female Maine State Police officers in Washington County. Now there are two female state troopers and one other woman — who works full-time at the jail — among the sheriff department’s 13 full-time and 19 part-time officers, she said.
“There’s just a lot of [times] where you need a female officer,” she said.
If a woman needs to be strip-searched, a female officer must do the search, Johnson-Rolfe said.
“The kind of search I would do would be a complete strip-search. It’s not just a pat down,” she said.
In sexual assault cases, she is called to talk to the victim and get information. When deputies serve arrest warrants, she often goes along, especially in cases where women or children might be present.
“That’s why I don’t typically wear a uniform. It’s less intimidating,” said Johnson-Rolfe, who does carry a gun.
She has what is called a “reserve certification,” which is now called “pre-serve.” This means she did not complete the full police academy and cannot work full time in law enforcement. If she were to get a full-time job in law enforcement, she would have to get her full certification within one year, she said.
“I was never really interested in doing the regular patrol work,” she said.
Usually she works as a deputy at night or on weekends, though on occasion she is called during the office workday. If it is something important, she will leave the office, she said.
How often she is called to work as a deputy “runs in streaks,” she said. Sometimes she is called often while other times, she receives few calls.
“I love my work. I love my job. I can’t imagine doing anything else,” she said.
Curtis is glad to have her on the payroll.
“She’s so well-rounded. She understands all the aspects of the job,” he said. “She’s been here for 30 years. She knows the ins and outs of the office.”
Over the years, Johnson-Rolfe worked with several different sheriffs. Curtis said adapting to those different personalities requires skill.
Johnson-Rolfe said her work has made her passionate about seeing society’s attitudes change toward drug addicts and recovering addicts.
“Every life matters,” she said. “How can you ever expect change if we’ve already labeled them and told them what they are?”
People who have been in jail for drug use become stigmatized so that no one wants to hire them or rent to them when they get out and try to turn their lives around.
“They’re not bad people. They just made terrible choices,” she said.
Johnson-Rolfe said that, as a deputy in a drug case, she will often talk to the user to find out how and why the person ended up addicted. She has reached out to many to try to help them on the road to recovery.
“I’ve had girls call me at night and say, ‘I felt like I was going to use and needed to talk,’” she said. “I think it’s important because of the position I’m in that I didn’t judge.”
Curtis said he is grateful for her loyalty and knowledge.
“She’s very deserving of that award,” he said.