How Well Do You Like Your Sheriff?

[JackBull]

A few years ago I had the need to ask a Sheriffs dept in South Carolina to perform a wellness check on a relative. Thing is I live in CT. The Sheriffs office politely gave me the instructions on what my town's police dept had to do. Its a small town PD, people are hired largely based on who you know. Well the local dispatcher was rude and refused to listen to what I was asking them to do. After explaining the instructions to an officer, they were able to make the request to the sheriffs office.

This lead me to wonder is this excellent service from the Sheriff was a result of their being elected to office, as opposed to the local PDs that are union and cannot be fired. So are you happy with the sheriff system in your town/state and would you prefer to a system like we have here in the Northeast?

 

[beentheredone]

Whether or not a Sheriff is good or not depends entirely on the populace of your county. If the electorate cares, pays attention to what the Sheriff is doing and lets him know what they think, and VOTES -- we get a good Sheriff. If they just don't give a hoot and vote along normal, stupid party lines, you get a crook and tyrant. In my county we went thru three absolutely horrible Sheriffs before we got the latest one, who is a gem.

 

[kmoore]

Union or not has nothing to do with determining a good or bad employee. Many SOs are union jobs at the deputy levels. Some at supervisor levels also.
All civil service employees can be fired. To say they can't be just fiction. Yeah, I have seen it, been there done that, seen it at every level, YES they can and do get fired.
All Sheriff's that I am aware of hold an elected position. The Sheriff is the boss all others that work for them are deputies or other SO employees. Many mistake the term Sheriff as in contacting with them when it's really one of his/ her deputies.
I worked 39 years mostly wearing a uniform and at 2 SOs. Both were union jobs.

 

[BearBiologist]

Our current county population is 79,296. It is a primarily agrarian county. Outside of farmers and a few ranchers, the major employers are Federal government (USFWS, USFS, USDA, BOR, BLM, Farm Bureau, USPS), State (WDFW, WASP, State Parks, etc.) and Local (sheriff, WPD, Fire). About 1/2 of the county are employed and 29% are college grads (big medical presence).

Interaction with police: Twenty plus years ago, there was a definite "Good Ol' Boy) factor. Now, much less so. Area is largely GOP and gun-owners (Most of our friends of both sexes carry). Police response to issues has been favorable, I would say the Sheriff's Office is comparable (mixture of incorporated and unincorporated area with the general city area). Permit time is "up to 60 days" but most are 10 days or less, at least in my case (I have had a Federal security clearance, clean record, uncommon name and been fingerprinted many times, so I may be an exception, but friends and my wife seem to be similar).

 

[Kevin]

I'm not sure I've ever seen a sheriff's car in Dallas. We have the local police whom I've called a few times with less than even acceptable answers.

Once it was a door to door salesman who I think was just casing the neighborhood for houses easy to break in later. I actually called 911 that time. They wouldn't even send a car through the neighborhood to check.

I always thought sheriffs are just for small towns?

 

[pawncop]

I'm a bit south of Dallas in a rural county. Our sheriff has a positive reputation overall. He communicates through articles and Facebook on a regular basis, keeping the public aware of their activities. He is up for reelection and he has my vote.

 

[Fox Mike]

I'm not sure I've ever seen a sheriff's car in Dallas. We have the local police whom I've called a few times with less than even acceptable answers.

Once it was a door to door salesman who I think was just casing the neighborhood for houses easy to break in later. I actually called 911 that time. They wouldn't even send a car through the neighborhood to check.

I always thought sheriffs are just for small towns?

Dallas Sheriff Department
Law Enforcement, Political Organization & Office
2123 French Settlement Rd, Dallas, TX · (214) 637-5374

 

[Kevin]

Dallas Sheriff Department
Law Enforcement, Political Organization & Office
2123 French Settlement Rd, Dallas, TX · (214) 637-5374

Thanks! I had no idea.

I had to look up where French Sertlement Road is. It's 20 miles from my house.

During Rush hour it could take over an hour from the sheriff's office to my house.

 

[Fox Mike]

Thanks! I had no idea.

I had to look up where French Sertlement Road is. It's 20 miles from my house.

During Rush hour it could take over an hour from the sheriff's office to my house.

I somehow doubt that all the sheriff's deputies are all sitting around the office. I would imagine that some are out and about.

 

[Slidboot]

Love mine. He is Mark Lamb of Pinal County, AZ. Great guy; very approachable. When the Covid crap started, he refused to enforce any of the lockdown stuff of mask BS.

 

[BearBiologist]

I have to make a "call-out" for the service I received from Multnomah Couty Sheriff Nicole Morrisey O'Donnell. I absolutely hate Portland and Seattle (I consider them Third World Societies with high crime rates, homeless camps, etc.). But Ms. O'Donnel was the only Sheriff in Oregon I contacted who would accept an application for a non-resident CCW license from me. Oregon law allows Sheriffs to issue non-resident permits IF THEY ADJOIN a neighboring state (only to residents of that adjoining state). None of the counties I contacted would accept my application (with a letter of justification). Multnomah County did and also issued me an Oregon Non-Resident CCW.

 

[Wyandot Jim]

Thanks! I had no idea.

I had to look up where French Sertlement Road is. It's 20 miles from my house.

During Rush hour it could take over an hour from the sheriff's office to my house.

Kevin.
You live in the City of Dallas therefore the Dallas Police is who you would contact. The Sheriff's Dept is responsible for calls that are outside of the city and are in the county limits.
Deputies do not just sit around at the Cop Shop they are out driving around on patrol. When I was with the Ft Bend Sheriff Dept. we would drive 250-300 miles on a 12 hour shift. At that time Ft Bend County was divided into 4 districts with each district having ONE Deputy assigned to a district. There was also a Patrol Sergeant on duty. The best patrol job was the one that my Partner and I had which was the Rover Patrol. We could go anywhere in the county and didn't have to make calls unless the District Deputy was to backed up. We also had an unmarked car so we couldn't do traffic stops but we could sneak around.
We did make wrecks when needed which was not a fun thing to do. But we would hand the wreck over to DPS/Highway Patrol it is their job to work the wreck in the county

 

[Mobuck]

Locally, the county Sheriff is an elected position. The job is so unpleasant that the current Sheriff ran unopposed. I know the guy fairly well. His Dad and mine were friends and I went to school with Mrs. Sheriff. I can honestly say he's a very poor choice and someone should have run against him for his own benefit. Last time I saw him, he had that "Joe Biden' look about him and his wife was guiding him through Walmart.

 

[Mike J]

Some counties are different than others. In the county I live in the Sheriff's office primarily runs the jail, provides security in the courts, etc. Each city has a city police department & there is a county police department. As for liking the guy, not really. I live in the Southeast corner of a county that is being overrun by Atlanta. The North end of the county is most populous although sadly we seem to be catching up. The North end of the county elects who they want for the most part whether those of us down here like it or not as they have the most people. Our counties Chief Deputy was caught speeding in a Sheriff's Office car a couple of years ago. If I recall correctly he was going 85 in a 35 or 40 m.p.h. speed zone on a 2 lane road. He still has a job. That is enough to make me not like the Sheriff.

 

[contender]

As noted,, it's basically about jurisdiction.
If you live within a city limit area,, it's usually a city LEO that handles things.
If you live in the County,, then the Sheriff Dept has the authority.
And of course,, on the state & federal highways,, it's the State Highway patrol.

Of course,, there are agreements ( read, monetary compensation) where a city may not have a police dept, or similar situations.
And depending upon what laws are broken,, it can bring in other LEO agencies.

As for where I live.
My property actually has the County line running through it. So, I'm on the edge. Plus,, a city Dept is actually the closest LEO agency to my home. As such,, I keep up with (2) County Sheriff's, and a City Chief of Police. Overall,, I'm pretty well satisfied with all of them. If we need something,, they have all be very good about responding.
But if it were a very serious thing,, all 3 would likely show up.

And my youngest son is LEO in a neighboring County. I keep up with many from his Dept. He has a good Sheriff & lots of good deputies.

Then, another nearby County,, well, the Sheriff is not very good at all. And the main city in that County,, just as bad. The City has gone through several Chiefs in a very short period of time. Lots of problems with the local politics, local attitudes towards LEO's, and such. Many of the patrol officers try really hard,, but struggle sometimes due to the lack of support from the politicians, and others.
That County? Buncombe. the City? Asheville NC.

Sadly,, long ago,, Buncombe County suffered from a very corrupt Sheriff. Once he was ousted,, the next Sheriff took on a severe crap-storm. Yet,, he not only turned everything around,, it became a shining example of how a professional Sheriff Dept should be run. That gentleman did one heck of a job. Once he retired,, things went downhill again. Not quite to the level it had been prior to the GOOD Sheriff,, but it's bad currently.

But that top level, excellent Sheriff is trying to get on the local ballot for the upcoming election, as a County Commissioner. A LOT of us are hoping he can get elected. He was at my FoNRA event last Friday night,, and just the same great guy he's always been. I wish I could vote in his County.

But in general,, we do have a pretty good bunch of Sheriff Dept's all around our area,, and I'm very happy for that. Would I change how they are elected, or wish for a union? HECK NO!!!!!!

 

[kmoore]

I'm not sure I've ever seen a sheriff's car in Dallas. We have the local police whom I've called a few times with less than even acceptable answers.

Once it was a door to door salesman who I think was just casing the neighborhood for houses easy to break in later. I actually called 911 that time. They wouldn't even send a car through the neighborhood to check.

I always thought sheriffs are just for small towns?

Sheriff's just in/for small towns. No that's TV western stuff. Sheriff's Department normal required duty is JAIL and CIVIL process. As a plus they may have a budget to provide patrol and investigation services outside of cities in their county. Some provide patrol services inside a city on a contract basis. Meaning the city can't afford a PD or is too small to have one.

 

[cwweld]

Love mine. He is Mark Lamb of Pinal County, AZ. Great guy; very approachable. When the Covid crap started, he refused to enforce any of the lockdown stuff of mask BS.

Isn't he on television a lot ?

 

[Mega Twin]

Isn't he on television a lot ?

His deputy has a you tube channel called Fridays With Frank and Sheriff Lamb has appeared on it also.

 

[Enigma]

Our county sheriff feels that concealed carry is a 'privilege' to be granted, rather than a right. Fortunately, he is coming up for reelection next month, and I will most certainly vote for someone else!

 

[Gopher]

Our current sheriff is retiring at the end of his term. His Chief Deputy is running to replace him. The Chief is ex-local PD, ex-Texas DPS, and ex-Texas Ranger so he has the experience. He is straight-laced and by the book. It will be interesting to see what changes he makes to the department in a rapidly growing county. They have too few deputies and too much area to cover. Despite the growth, their number one call is still for loose livestock. Currently, the policy is to attempt to put them up and repeat offenders get a finger-wagging. I have a feeling that policy will quickly change and people will be asking themselves what's cheaper, county fines or barbed wire and fence post.