The contest to decide who will be sheriff has been regrettably sidetracked by issues and allegations that are fundamentally irrelevant and largely distorted. Without all that, what is before the voters is a simple question: Who can best lead the La Plata County Sheriff’s Office for the next four years?
Put that way, and with the choices before us, the answer is Sean Smith.
Smith will bring to the job a well-rounded résumé and the desire to move the Sheriff’s Office forward. He would put a greater emphasis on community policing, more use of technology and greater cooperation with other agencies to improve service and control costs.
First, though, everyone needs to get past the noise. The voters are being asked to pick the county’s top cop – no more, no less. And while that is an important decision, it need not be and should not be loaded down with unnecessary political and cultural baggage.
This election is not a referendum on Duke Schirard’s legacy. It is not a plebiscite to decide whether La Plata County will descend into gun-hating, pot-loving socialism. It has absolutely nothing to do with the Second Amendment. And it does not turn on anyone’s notion of the constitutional role of the sheriff.
Nor is this about ancient allegations of domestic violence. The idea that Schirard beat his wife came up when he first ran for sheriff 20 years ago. No proof was produced then to back up that allegation, and no proof has surfaced since. And in the meantime, the voters have five times waved off those allegations and elected him.
Schirard’s response to those stories resurfacing is pertinent. The sheriff went to the Durango Police Department and threatened to issue a summons to a DPD sergeant Schirard said was spreading lies about him. He did so citing an obscure state law that has never resulted in a conviction.
Almost every contested election involves accusations of lying, and in threatening prosecution over it, the sheriff exceeded his authority. It was an abuse of power and made Schirard look as if he feels he is above being questioned or challenged.
The Sheriff’s Office works. The jail has a good safety record and the department has a number of top-notch people, something particularly apparent in its higher ranks. The sheriff himself has been accessible and open about his office’s workings.
But that something works, even works well, is not to say it cannot be improved. And in this campaign, Schirard has come across as focused on the past, while Smith talks more about what can be done to make things better.
Smith would focus on involving the Sheriff’s Office in the community with efforts such as neighborhood watches. He correctly says residents are law enforcement’s best resource and that information from the public can help in keeping the community safe. He stresses the importance of having deputies visible in schools as a chance to build relationships with kids.
His time with the Department of Justice in Oklahoma gave him additional experience with relevance here, including cases involving tribal members and working with tribal leadership.
Smith also talks of the need for using more and better technology, an area in which he says he has been a leader. District Attorney Todd Risberg (Letters, Herald, Oct. 12) says Schirard has failed to pursue new technology and has not used a state-of-the-art evidence management system already purchased.
Duke Schirard has been a good sheriff. But it is 2014, and the Sheriff’s Office should reflect that.
Vote for Sean Smith.
