03/13/22
This is the third in the series of candidates comparison. I am highlighting the issues and which of your candidates have comments on or made a plan to address. Today’s issue has to do with manpower. If the post was a plan or a comment is is listed. A reminder that these were researched only using the campaign Facebook pages.
Election Issue: Patrol Coverage/Manpower
Date/General idea of posting
10/26/21: “Task patrol Sergeants with ensuring deputies are out patrolling the rural areas.
11/10/21: Will interview all personnel 30 days prior to being sworn in. Will decide on who stays then.
(Full disclosure: He has stated in the past he will establish an aggressive narcotics unit and a highway interdiction unit.)
(He has said in at least one post he will return to county commissioners to get more money when he runs out.)
Date/General idea of posting
11/20/21: Vowed to implement extra bike patrol on Greenway.
Wants to add security cameras to Wesley Park.
Will continue to enforce motor vehicle laws.
12/10/21: “I am the best candidate for Sheriff to serve the needs of the Nantahala Community because I’ve taken great pride in knowing the people, the roads and building relationships in Nantahala.”
09/04/21: Will do business checks.
Will do community patrol.
Retention and support.
Create a positive work culture.
Build rapport with staff.
Support families.
Will encourage deputies to attend “Heart for Families.”
Will offer incentives to Deputies who attend conferences that make a positive impact on families. No plan. (no information on what the incentives are nor what conferences.)
Exit Surveys.
SRO’s continue to serve school.
Continue to pay for Deputies lunch to visit kids at schools.
07/15/21: DARE
Positive interactions with student and youth.
LEO Sponsored events. Stay engaged.
Positive social media presence.
Date/General idea of posting
01/23/22: Wants everyone to have the same level of coverage as the people in Franklin. (Highlands and Nantahala). No plan.
Can’t be done without adequate manpower.
It is up to the County Commissioners/County Manager.
Sheriff does a good job and will continue with them. (status quo)
12/07/21: Nantahala deserves same coverage as Franklin.
10/24/21: Expand on K-9, depending on manpower.
09/13/21: Nantahala and others deserve same coverage as Franklin.
Promises to work with Otto and Nantahala (etc) to “improve the quality of life.”
01/30/22: Talk about arrests with other agencies. Inter-agency cooperation.
01/30/22: Questions: Will you turn Franklin SRO over to Franklin PD?
Answer: Going to leave them where they are. “So they will have armed Deputies there. (Franklin Officers are actually armed)
Likes how it is currently being done.
Feels the issue will be between the Sheriff and the Chief of Police.
Feels that because MCSO has more personnel than Franklin PD, MCSO would be in a better position to fill in when there is a vacancy due to vacation or sickness. (Status Quo)
01/23/22: Question: Will you move the SROs in Franklin over to Franklin PD?
Answer: He needs to expand his knowledge on this.
11/14/21: Worked with other agencies
Training dogs for five other agencies.
10/24/21: Recruiting.
Incentive pay.
We have recruiter who is actually working at SCC/PSTC.
Question: What will you do about Officers not showing up for court?
Answer: We have implemented a court schedule for each squad. It is a work in progress.
10/03/21: As soon as pay study is done. (Actually there was no pay study.)
Question: How many K-9s do you currently have?
Answer: We have 4 with MCSO 2 more are contracted.
Three are full patrol dogs
Want to get all K-9 training in full patrol.
Will do everything in power to make K-9 successful. The program will only grow.
Date/General idea of posting
01/23/22: Coverage in rural area.
01/12/22: All have been promised coverage from other candidates (and prior administrations). None have done it.
Need to change status quo.
01/07/22: Coverage in Nantahala/Topton will start to see patrol cars in those locations.
12/13/22: Will work with Franklin PD Police Chief to move SROs from in Franklin schools to their responsibility.
Put K-9 back into patrol shifts.
Review court house manning levels.
12/09/22: Rural area coverage.
11/19/21: Detractors say rural coverage won’t happen and may not be best use of manpower. I advised they should ask residents in that area.
11/13/21: County-wide Coverage.
05/24/21: Patrol coverage:
Primary reason – short manpower.
No coverage in Nantahala.
No need for 24/7 due to calls for service.
Plan was put on back burner by prior administration.
Move SRO in Franklin to Franklin PD control.
11/09/21: Question: How to make deputies shifts stay under 24 hours.
Answer: Recruiting
Will work on reducing overtime through full staffing.
Too much causes fatigue and health issues.
10/04/21: Recruiting
Will meet every BLET class at beginning middle and end.
Will be there on graduation day.
Develop relationships with other academies. (already doing that to some degree).
07/26/21: Retention of employees.
Take care of them. Don’t let admin be the problem.
Make sure they know they can count on the chain of command.
Salary
Recruiting
Not working them to death
02/20/22
Too often crimes to the Hispanic community go unreported. Many times it is because they are afraid to deal with the police. They may be afraid of being deported if they are not here legally or it may be that sometimes they feel they can’t trust Law Enforcement. That emboldens criminals to prey upon them. I have spoken on this in past postings.
As your Sheriff I will work to recruit some Hispanic officers to establish a Hispanic liaison officer. This officer will be utilized to meet with members of that community and will be used to act as interpreters in matters of criminal investigations. Our Hispanic community is growing and we need to be able to ensure when they are victims of a crime, we are ready to help.
This week we will revisit the issue of manpower. The Macon County Sheriff’s Office is down several personnel in Detention as well as a few on patrol. This presents a potentially hazardous situation for those officers who report to work every day.
The first thing I will do is to make recruiting a top priority. That means when the Southwestern Community College, Public Safety Training Center begins each new Basic Law Enforcement Training/Detention Officer Certification recruit class, I or my Chief Deputy will be there to meet them. We will inform them what career opportunities we have to offer them. We will ensure they know all of the reasons why they should consider a career with the great Deputies of the Macon County Sheriff’s Office. We will then check with the class at intervals to see if they need anything. We will also encourage them to make applications as soon as possible, as the process could take some time to complete.
We will be there on graduation day to congratulate them on their accomplishment and chat with their families regarding what they can expect next.
While the SCC/PSTC is in our backyard and would therefore be our primary recruiting location, there are other academies in Western North Carolina. We will develop a relationship with those organizations and ensure we are there to speak to their recruits at least once, if not more, before they graduate.
Only when our Sheriff’s Office is fully staffed can we begin to correct the manpower management issues that our citizens frequently bring up. Only with a fully staffed Office can we begin to address the Officer to citizen ratios and ensure that we have the proper number of officers we need. I want to make sure every area of our county has some coverage, at the very least during peak call hours for that area. You all pay taxes. You pay for that service and deserve to at least see a deputy roll through once in awhile.
It is this type of tested leadership that is born from proven experience that will move Macon County forward!
12/01/21
I found myself in agreement with Ms. Betty Wallace on a few points she made on another site today. She said management of personnel should be a priority.
As I don't think I have addressed this much, let me lay out a little more of my experiences.
When I was a Chief on my last ship, I was the senior E7 onboard. As such i had the responsibility of mentoring junior officers as well as junior sailors and other Chiefs. I was a section leader where I was responsible to ensuring the safety and security of a Navy Warship every three or four days. My duty section consisted of anywhere between 50 and 70 men. That is nearly the size of the Macon County Sheriff's Office. I was tasked with training. Ensuring each watch was manned. Additionally, I was responsible daily for a repair locker. That means I had a team of different sailors who together were responsible for stopping and making emergency repairs to the forward third of that ship. That required me to ensure they were qualified, trained and able to respond under very difficult circumstances.
Between my time in the Navy and graduation from the Police Academy, I worked for a grocery chain by the name of Publix. My responsibility there was to oversee the customer service of the stores. That entailed ensuring that customers were happy with the service we were providing. If a customer was unhappy, I was the first line of those who were responsible to resolve the issue. They taught me a lot about customer service! I made sure the lines moved smoothly and even stepped in to do the checkouts myself if they were extremely busy. The number of personnel varied from time to time, but you only need to go into the Ingels on Georgia Road and you get the idea of how many customer service personnel I kept track of.
So, while most of my supervision was as an administrator, I also had to know the job. I had to know what made it more efficient and what made us more effective. I also had to be responsive to those I provided a service for. I am extremely qualified to fill this position.
Thank you Ms. Wallace for the inspiration!
10/04/21
This week we will revisit the issue of manpower. The Macon County Sheriff’s Office is down several personnel in Detention as well as a few on patrol. This presents a potentially hazardous situation for those officers who report to work every day.
The first thing I will do is to make recruiting a top priority. That means when the Southwestern Community College, Public Safety Training Center begins each new Basic Law Enforcement Training/Detention Officer Certification recruit class, I or my Chief Deputy will be there to meet them. We will inform them what career opportunities we have to offer them. We will ensure they know all of the reasons why they should consider a career with the great Deputies of the Macon County Sheriff’s Office. We will then check with the class at intervals to see if they need anything. We will also encourage them to make applications as soon as possible, as the process could take some time to complete.
We will be there on graduation day to congratulate them on their accomplishment and chat with their families regarding what they can expect next.
While the SCC/PSTC is in our backyard and would therefore be our primary recruiting location, there are other academies in Western North Carolina. We will develop a relationship with those organizations and ensure we are there to speak to their recruits at least once, if not more, before they graduate.
Only when our Sheriff’s Office is fully staffed can we begin to correct the manpower management issues that our citizens frequently bring up. Only with a fully staffed Office can we begin to address the Officer to citizen ratios and ensure that we have the proper number of officers we need. I want to make sure every area of our county has some coverage, at the very least during peak call hours for that area. You all pay taxes. You pay for that service and deserve to at least see a deputy roll through once in awhile.
It is this type of tested leadership that is born from proven experience that will move Macon County forward!
08/16/21
This a great example of how a partnership with federal authorities can benefit the citizens of Macon county. I have conducted many OCDEFT cases with great success. The program adds manpower, money and assets to our Sheriff's Office. Additionally, any and all assets that are seized will be split amongst the participants
Joint Law Enforcement Investigation Leads To The Indictment Of 25 Defendants On Federal Drug And Gun Charges
Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office Western District of North Carolina FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Monday, August 16, 2021 Joint Law Enforcement Investigation Leads To The Indictment Of 25 Defendants On Federal Drug And Gun Charges The Multi-Agency Operation Targeted Drug Trafficking and Illega...
07/26/21
I was recently asked by Darren Womack how I would address the retention of employees. It is a great question and deserve attention.
Years ago, while standing at the podium in my retirement ceremony at the end of my Naval career, I had the opportunity to say pretty much what I felt. In front of me were standing the young sailors that had worked for me and to my left were my fellow Chief Petty Officers. I said the usual “sad to leave, excited for the future, blah…blah…blah.” Towards the end of my speech, I turned to my fellow Chiefs and told them that they need to take care of these people (pointing to my young sailors). “Because if you don’t they will take care of you. You just won’t like how they do it.”
My point of that story is that you must take care of the most valuable asset to any organization and that is those who work for and with you. That alone is one of the greatest reasons people leave. They do not want to deal with an extremely stressful job and have to worry about where the administration is coming from or what the crisis of the day is.
In my administration I will hold leadership responsible for how they interact with their subordinates. I will not tolerate screaming or cussing at them. They need to be able to count on their chain of command to function the way it is supposed to. They need to know we care about them and their needs. I have had the work with some great leaders and some not so great leaders. I have learned to deal with people through that prism.
One thing that we need to do aside from taking care of them and treating them right is to ensure they can make a decent living. That they can afford health care. So pay and benefits is important to retention.
While the County Commissioners are in control of approving the MCSO budget, I believe they have been a bit short sighted when it comes to the pay and benefits portion of our Sheriff’s Department. We are currently down between 6 and 10 deputies. Providing them a decent pay raise would increase our budget a bit. But let’s take a look at what it costs. A Deputy takes only minutes to resign for whatever reason he or she feels is necessary. To replace that same deputy who was qualified and working to protect us, takes 4 1/2 months to get through the Basic Law Enforcement Training. He goes through it in a non pay status and is usually sponsored by one of the local departments. Once that recruit has graduated, it takes a few more months to do a complete background check, medical and polygraphs. Then once they are hired, there is a 3 1/2 month field training program. Only after that can they be placed on independent patrol. Some of the equipment that the seasoned deputy turns in cannot be used for another incoming deputy. So, we need uniforms, weapons, ammo, bullet resistant set, maybe a radio and maybe a car etc., etc. All the while the deputy is going through this phase, there is no one patrolling in his place unless we pay a lot of overtime. So, is it cheaper to keep them happy or to hire new ones? The market for new officers is extremely competitive and in order to attract the best we can get, we have to offer them something.
Finally, we need to make sure they are not worked to death. The department is currently down a high number of officer, much like other departments in the country. We need to get better at recruiting. In the past two and a half years, the Macon County Sheriff’s Office has rarely recruited for more officers at the police academy that is in their own back yard. That will change. I will be there and speak to every class. A full complement of officers makes everyone else’s life much easier.
Through tested leadership and proven experience I will make recruitment and retention a priority.
Thank you Mr. Womack for the great question!
07/12/21
his week I would like to address the pay and benefits for the MCSO. Several months ago, before I had even decided to run, I stood in front of the County Commissioners and spoke in support of pay raises for the members of the Sheriff’s department. While there is a pay scale for each level of the Sheriff’s office, it is my understanding that even though the range has a top end rate of pay for each level, it is rare that a Deputy reaches it. The average pay for a Deputy in North Carolina is approximately $40,000.00. The average pay for Sheriff’s across the state is approximately $105,000.00. The Sheriff in Macon County makes nearly the average, according to
Salary.com. The average pay for Deputies in Macon County is approximately $33,000.00 a year. A Deputy in Macon County will start at around 15.51 an hour. At that rate of pay, they are starting at around $30,000 a year.
My purpose for providing this information is to reinforce the idea that if we are to attract highly educated and qualified police applicants, we need to provide them an incentive to apply. The Sheriff has been the Sheriff about 20 years and certainly deserves to be at the top of his pay scale for this area. However there are Deputies who cannot afford to pay for the health insurance after paying their living expenses. This must change. I also believe that many if not all Deputies will soon receive a pay raise as a result of a pay study that was completed. That will help a lot. We should not have a single Deputy with a family on Medicaid because they can not afford the health insurance that is provided by the County.
If elected, I will fight hard to get our deputies a decent wage. I will review the pay study to ensure we are in line with the results of the study. With a starting salary at least at the state average, we may be able to attract the additional applicants that we so desperately need. There is a lot of competition for new applicants not only in our area, but all across the state. We should have affordable health care. When these Deputies were hired, they were provided with a pay range they could expect to reach if they remained employed with us for the long term. However, that high end of the scale is rarely if ever reached. If we do not have the intent that anyone reaches that peak salary, why are they told it is a possibility?
Finally, the NC state statute states that the incoming Sheriff will be paid the same rate as the outgoing Sheriff, UNLESS the County Commissioners pass a resolution to reduce the new Sheriff’s pay. I will challenge the County Commissioners to pass that resolution to the lowest end of the range for the Sheriff. The only caveat is that I believe the Sheriff pay should be no more than 15% above the Chief Deputy pay. (Conversely, I believe that there should be a 10% difference between pay levels.) In order to maintain our budget at the same level I would ask that the difference in pay between the old and new Sheriff be divided amongst the Deputies with the rank of Sergeant and below. This would further improve their pay to a point that is competitive with other departments in the area. Additionally, I am going on record stating that if elected, I do not want a single pay raise during my tenure as the Sheriff. Any monies that are available for pay should be given to the members of the Department.
I have reviewed the salaries as they were reported on
govsalaries.com (as of 2019). There is a huge disparity between the deputies at the bottom and those at the top. I assume that the majority of the difference is due to overtime payments, some of which are quite large. Though some may be due to special compensation from separate contracts with the county and those will be addressed at some point also. This brings up far more questions than it answers if it is accurate. The problem with those at the top who may be getting a large amount of overtime as compared to those at the bottom is that it skews the average rate of pay to all deputies and therefore it gives the impression those at the bottom make more than they actually do. Any compensation from any contractual obligations with the county should be separate from their pay and therefore reported on a 1099 or W2 separate from their service with the MCSO.
I also want to be fair. I am pretty sure that Sheriff Holland tried to get the commissioners to provide pay raises to the Deputies and I respect that. I will just try harder.
I have no problem with having to use overtime when and where it is needed. Until we start to recruit and retain, that may still be in use for some time to come. It is certainly not the most efficient use of taxpayers money. It becomes a catch 22 situation though. We don’t have enough to hire new recruits because we don’t have the money to pay them. We don’t have enough new recruits because we are not competitive.
The greatest asset we have in this county are our employees. When I was a leader in the military I prided myself on taking care of those who worked for and with me. I will take this same philosophy to the Macon County Sheriff’s Office. Raising their morale alone will increase the quality of service to the citizens in Macon County. I am willing to lead by example to ensure our Deputies are paid a wage that makes others want to come here and work. That is what proven leadership is.
GovSalaries: salaries database, government employees, government salaries
I would like to continue with the information concerning the efficiency of the Sheriff’s Department. The MCSO currently has a number of K-9 officers who do not answer calls. This is a poor use of their manpower. When the department is between six and ten officers down on patrol, having a number of officers who do not transport prisoners nor answer calls for service (as a general rule) is an indication of poor management by those in leadership. These officers can be assigned to shifts during peak hours that can overlap shifts. This would add an extra deputy to the busiest shifts which will make it safer for those on patrol and the citizens they protect. Additionally, as I noted in a previous musing, reassigning those deputies from SRO positions that can be assumed by Franklin PD would also add deputies to the street. These deputies would be assigned areas that would enable them to respond to underserved areas like Nantahala and Otto during peak times within a reasonable amount of time. Manpower will be reviewed on a weekly basis and revisions made as they are deemed necessary to address issues that arise.
I was asked once already if me putting my ideas out like this could possible result in some or all of them being implemented prior to the election. I am not concerned about that. If the department is moved toward more transparency and efficiency and therefore making it a more responsive agency, isn’t that what we all want? It will go a long way towards showing who is better suited to lead the Macon County Sheriff’s Department. The choice is clear. The voters can do what they have done for the past twenty plus years and vote the same old system in, or they can vote for someone who comes from outside that department and brings fresh ideas and direction. I have been leadership tested and experience proven. I can be that leader.
05/24/21
Today’s issue will address the efficiency of the department. I believe that if the department runs with the highest efficiency possible, it will show the citizens of Macon County that we are good stewards of their money. This one could take a number of different Monday Musings. We will start with patrol coverage.
I have studied this particular issue. It is one of the most important issues that affects us as citizens of Macon County. We all pay for coverage and the simple fact is we don’t all get it. The primary reason given is the deficit of manpower within the Sheriff’s Office. There have been a number of Deputies who have resigned and moved to other departments for higher pay and some have moved just because of management style by the leadership within the department, still others have chosen to retire because they have had enough of the daily stress that comes with the job.
There are portions of this county that see very little patrol activity. Nantahala is one of those areas. I have heard Nantahala described in a number of ways from the “Wild West” of Macon County to just plain remote. The patrol activities in that particular area of the county tend to be reactive instead of proactive. That needs to change. Will it be 100% around the clock? I would have to look at the calls for service. I believe if we can get an Officer out there at least during average peak times it will improve the responses to that area dramatically. My understanding is the County Commissioners at one time funded positions with the intent of manning the Nantahala area around the clock. That appears to have been put on a back burner. I will work with the County Commissioners to bring those positions back.
Do you know that as citizens of Macon County, we pay three deputies to perform SRO duties inside the city limits of Franklin? Franklin PD has a minimal manpower deficit and they enjoy a higher rate of pay. That being said, I will work with Chief Harrell of the Franklin PD to transfer the duties of those SROs to his department which in turn will add three Deputies for the road. I have been told that one reason they are supplying the SROs for those schools within Franklin city limits may be because they are county owned buildings. I have also been told by some within the department that “that is the way we have always done it.” That is not an answer, just an excuse. After looking at other city police departments, it appears there are a number of city Police Departments who supply SROs which negates that argument. Those three deputies would go a long way in providing some coverage in areas like Nantahala.
The purpose of providing these musings are to make sure all know what I stand for. I do not believe in complaining without providing at least an idea of a solution. A reorganization would increase the efficiency of this department which makes better use of those scarce tax dollars the citizens of Macon County provide. Ensuring the department is efficient and solutions are given, reassures the great citizens of this county that a vote for me gives them someone who is leadership tested and experience proven!
