Sheriff's department is in serious disarray

The Daily Bee rushed to endorse the current sheriff prior to her election, reluctant to blame her for any of the negative issues effecting the department, even though she was running the place in Jarvis' absence. On the contrary, they gave her a free pass and expressed that she had just gotten caught up in a poor administration.

It is most likely those points that are keeping them from now reporting the "truth" about the dire straits the sheriffs department is in. The fact that several jailers and road deputies have resigned to take their services to greener pastures needs to be reported. The deputies can find better pay and less internal politics elsewhere, so they're going for it, and we the citizens are losing out. We have lost a lot of fine patrolman and jailers, and it may shock the public to know their safety is in jeopardy as well. On May 17, there were only four deputies on the road, to cover the entire county. This is unsafe for the cops and the public!

It just re-enforces the points that I have tried to make all along, which are these (1) better morale and professional training along with increased pay would decrease the current turn over rate , and (2) validating employees opinions by giving them a voice, and turning the department from a dictatorship to a "collective think tank" of positive ideas and change, is the only way we are going to have the professional sheriff's department we deserve.

James "Bean" Johnston

Sandpoint