Cpl. Justin Rollins started Tuesday evening at about 5 p.m., meeting with other employees of the Cole County Sheriff's Department in a trailer at the Jaycees Fairground for a briefing on assignments for the evening.
After the briefing, Rollins and his partner head out in a four-wheeler to patrol the fairgrounds parking lots as crowds begin to arrive for the annual Jefferson City Jaycees Cole County Fair.
Rollins is one of many deputies who patrol the fair each night, ensuring the area stays as safe as possible. In his roughly seven years with the department, Rollins said he has worked the fair every year and has performed every possible assignment associated with it.
"Any role at the fair ... I have worked in my career," Rollins said.
Each assignment has its perks and its downsides, he said. For instance, the beer garden duty isn't bad, but it's a lot of standing around, which gets tiring while carrying a belt loaded with equipment. His favorite assignment is patrolling the midway, the main thoroughfare, because he gets to see the happy faces of young children and talk to parents as they walk around.
"They all kind of have their perks," Rollins said.
This year, his focus will be the parking lots where his main role is to keep an eye out for any intoxicated people or children separated from their guardians, as well as ensuring no one is breaking into the many vehicles parked on the grounds.
In all his years working security at the fair, Rollins said things usually run smoothly. He said the likelihood of an incident happening often depends on the band playing that night and the behavior of those in the beer garden, but having deputies out patrolling in full uniform is a good deterrent by itself.
"That keeps the crime problem down to a minimum," Rollins said.
His shift Tuesday would last until about 2 a.m., depending on how late the beer gardens stay open. On a hot day like Tuesday, Rollins said he'll feel the fatigue by the time his shift ends. And, at least for this year, Tuesday was his only night of fair duty.