Law Enforcement Services

Boulder County Sheriff's police cruiser.

How the Town of Superior provides law enforcement  

Superior residents are served 24 hours a day, seven days a week by deputies of the Boulder County Sheriff's Office. The Town has partnered with the Sheriff's Office for law enforcement since 1993 through an intergovernmental agreement. Superior is one of four Boulder County towns, with Lyons, Nederland and Ward, that contract with the Sheriff's Office for public safety services; the Sheriff's Office describes its role in these towns as acting, in effect, as their municipal police department.  

Deputies assigned to Superior work from the Superior Substation. They are Sheriff's Office employees who work under Sheriff's Office policies and are led locally by Sgt. David Salaman.  

Contact and reporting  

  • Emergency: 911  

  • Non-emergency dispatch: 303-441-4444  

  • Chat with the Chief: an informal Q&A with Sgt. Salaman hosted by the Superior Chamber of Commerce 

  • Questions about law enforcement in Superior: Sgt. David Salaman, Boulder County Sheriff's Office, 303-441-3643, dsalaman@bouldercounty.gov

 

By the numbers  

  • Partnership since: 1993  

  • Staffing under the agreement: one sergeant, eight patrol deputies, two detectives, one substation clerical position and one part-time (0.7) animal protection officer.   

Frequently asked questions

What does the Town get through the agreement?

Superior has access to the full Sheriff's Office, not just the deputies assigned here. The agreement provides patrol, dispatch, detectives, records and evidence, internal affairs, animal protection, the Drug Task Force, the Bomb Squad, the K-9 Unit and SWAT, along with deputy equipment and training.

How many deputies serve Superior?

The agreement funds one sergeant, eight patrol deputies and two detectives, plus a clerical position at the substation and a part-time animal protection officer. 

Who sets the policies deputies follow?

The Sheriff's Office. Deputies are county employees and work under Sheriff's Office policies. The Town's role is to decide what services it purchases and how many deputies it funds through the agreement. 

Does the Town fund anything beyond deputies?

Yes. Through a separate agreement with Boulder County Community Services, the Town funds a full-time behavioral health co-responder based at the Superior Sub Station. The co-responder works alongside Superior's deputies on calls that may involve mental health, substance use, the death of a loved one or another crisis, providing on-scene assessment and de-escalation, connection to services and follow-up afterward, including case management. The county provides monthly, quarterly and annual reports on the program's activity in Superior.

What do residents say about safety in Superior?

In the Town's 2023 National Community Survey, 90 percent of residents rated their overall feeling of safety in Superior as excellent or good, higher than the national benchmark, and 83 percent rated police and sheriff services as excellent or good. Ninety-six percent said they feel safe in their neighborhood during the day and 91 percent feel safe from violent crime. Eighty-three percent said safety is essential or very important for the community to focus on.

How does the Town decide whether to add deputies or services? 

Through the annual budget. The Town Manager proposes a budget, the Town Council reviews it in public meetings and adopts it in the fall. Changes to the agreement, including added positions, go through the annual budget process with Town Council approval and adoption.

What are the license plate reader cameras in Superior, and how are they used? 

Please see the following information provided by the Sheriff’s Office:

"The Boulder County Sheriff’s Office provides law enforcement services to the Town of Superior. In partnership the Sheriff’s Office and Town have requested that automatic license plate readers (ALPR) be used in town as a tool to locate vehicles associated with missing and endangered people as well as stolen vehicles and vehicles associated with criminal events. Flock Safety is the vendor the Sheriff’s Office works with. The Sheriff’s Office is aware of concerns with the use of ALPRs and has incorporated policy and procedures to ensure we operate within state law. Additionally, we have limited what agencies can access imagery from the cameras in town – allowing only law enforcement agencies within the state to access the imagery. The Sheriff’s Office has restricted the use of the systems for immigration enforcement, and we conduct audits on abnormal employee activity within the system. Flock cameras take a digital photograph of a vehicle and its license plate. The photo is electronically stamped with the date, time, and location of the vehicle. The electronic photographs can be searched by the vehicles license plate, color, make, or body style of the vehicle. Investigators can also search for all vehicles that passed a camera within a defined time, related to the time a crime occurred. The photos are automatically deleted after 30 days. The use of ALPR devices has helped us safely locate missing people, solve violent crimes, and identify suspects from wildfire arson to burglary cases. The ALPR system is never the sole reason for charging a person with a crime, there must be additional evidence to support an arrest. We are committed to transparency and ongoing dialogue with our community. As technology continues to evolve, we welcome public input."

What about e-bike enforcement?

Please visit the Town's e-bike page for Town specific e-bike enforcement information.

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