The Steuben County Sheriff’s Department SRT Team was started in 1996 with 8 entry officers. The SRT Team was trained by the Allen County SWAT team to serve search warrants and dangerous felony arrest warrants. In 1998 the SRT Team attended advance tactical training by the Fort Wayne Police Department EST Team. This training advanced the SRT Team’s capability into handling most SWAT type situations. In 1999 the Crisis Negotiations Unit, CNT, was developed to aid in hostage and barricaded situations.

The SRT Team averages 12 call-outs a year. Most of the operations that we deal with are Drug Raids. In the last year we have dealt with more active Methamphetamine Laboratories, which had created a set of issues with the hazardous materials use to manufacture Methamphetamine. Our Team has SCBAs and gas masks to assist us in these entries. In 2003 the SRT Team had a team member attend an instructor course from the DEA on Methamphetamine Laboratory Entry School.

Our Team is equipped with less lethal options along with having a sniper assigned to our team. We have one Commander, one Team Leader, nine entry officers, four tactical medics, four Negotiators, and three tactical dispatchers. The SRT Team has three vehicles assigned to the team: a raid van, a ballistic Hummer, and a RV, which is converted into a Command Post. In 2004 our entry team became a mutli-jurisdicatial team with the addition of two Angola City Police officers and one Hamilton Police officer. Our CNT Team also has two Angola City Police officers assigned to it.