Buchanan County Sheriff’s Office earns 2026 Missouri Blue Shield designation

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (KQTV) -- The Buchanan County Sheriff’s Office has earned the Missouri Blue Shield designation for 2026, marking its second time receiving the honor.

This honor recognizes Missouri communities for their commitment to improving public safety, supporting law enforcement and strengthening partnerships between officers and the communities they serve.

BCSO Sheriff Bill Puett said earning the honor is beneficial to the sheriff's office and the community because the grant money will help obtain additional equipment.

“It helps us gain valuable equipment without using tax dollars to get additional resources to serve and protect our community,” he said.

Puett said getting this honor is a team effort between the community, law enforcement and the commissioners.

“It’s a long process where you get letters of support, and you submit a large package back to the state,” he said. They evaluate everything and determine if the community is supportive of their law enforcement entities, and our community is very supportive and where every thankful for that. 

Puett said it’s essential to have a relationship with the community when receiving the Missouri Blue Shield.

“I can’t explain how great it is to have the community we have and the support we have. The support of our community is paramount on our success, so everything we do it’s a hand-in-glove situation,” he said. “Without the community, we can’t function on the highest level. We need the community, and the community needs us.”

Puett said the honor highlights the hard work of the sheriff’s office.

“They are very dedicated to serving the community. This is not about the sheriff. This is about the men and women of the sheriff’s office, or any other law enforcement agency, that go out and serve their community professionally and flawlessly every day,” he said. “Making sure people are served and protected, and we try to stop crime wherever we can.”

The BCSO is hoping to obtain a crime scanner with this round of funding.