Sheriff Dickerson's commentary on issues affecting the Sheriff's Office. For the Sheriff's archived comments from previous years, click on the associated year below.
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Sheriff's Office is Ready and Prepared to Embrace the Future
Ten years ago I began this journey hoping to build an organization that would grow to be an outstanding public safety organization and would continue to be strong long after I was gone. My goal was to get the ball rolling well in the right direction. Before me was a blank canvas, framed only by the campaign promises I had made in seeking my first political office – the Office of Sheriff of Columbia County.
Gaining the trust of a majority of the voters to lead this office was (and is) one of the most humbling moments of my life.
Now, standing on the other side of that canvas, I look back at those years and see the tremendous accomplishments down through the years, tempered with some challenges. On one hand, I believe we have built a professional law enforcement organization that has grown to have a positive influence in our community.
The Sheriff’s Office holds the trust of our partners and stakeholders to do the job right: solving crimes, arresting criminals, and effectively addressing community problems; completely revamping our civil processes; and keeping a jail running on “rubber bands and bubblegum” until we gained the confidence of voters to make our jail a robust partner in the criminal justice system in our county!
I couldn’t be more proud of the efforts of our band of brothers and sisters who tirelessly put forth the effort to do the job the taxpayers are paying them to do.
On the other hand, we have been challenged in the past year with the leaking of confidential personnel investigation information. Disgruntled former staff members have taken it upon themselves to stir up controversy through public disclosures designed to drag the reputation of this office through the mud. Some of the conduct complaints are close to two years old or more, and were never brought up until after these “tipsters” had departed from the organization.
Nevertheless, these disclosures demonstrate that just as we have always taken personnel complaints seriously, we also took these complaints seriously when we learned of them, investigating them for the purpose of correcting improper actions. We have always addressed sustained allegations decisively—whether the associated misconduct occurred at the lower echelons of this organization or near the top. Personnel actions like the ones we have taken over the years occur with any employer—including every law enforcement employer, but our personnel actions of late seemed to make more news with the local papers. I have attributed it to the fact that, unlike other law enforcement agencies, ours is much more steeped in a political climate.
Someone once said that: “Faults readily accepted in a private capacity are seldom permitted in a public one.” I can attest to the truth of that maxim. So, when I’m on record announcing my intent to retire—and then an opinion from a local media person is published, citing recent examples of staff failures and agreeing that it is time for me to go—I will take my lumps, just like I’ve asked any of our employees to do.
I fully accept the reality that with my administration, the “buck stops” at my desk. I knew that fact was part of the deal when I signed up for it, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.
But, after almost 30 years of service in law enforcement in Oregon, I am retiring from my role as sheriff. It has been an awesome experience, and one I will always cherish—not only because of the honor it has been to serve, but also because of the devotion to duty of the people with whom I have served.
For, I am not departing the Sheriff’s Office without leaving an outstanding management team still running the day-to-day operations of this office. The depth of experience and competence I now have throughout the organization—especially at the top—gives me tremendous confidence in asking the Board of Commissioners to affirm my choice in passing the baton to a senior member of my command staff.
In most counties in Oregon where the sitting sheriff retires before the end of his or her term, the board looks to their sheriff to name his or her replacement. About half of our current sheriffs in Oregon first got their chance to show their worth in this way.
The reason this works so often is because of the institutional knowledge that is passed on through the chain of command. The command structure we have in place today is far deeper than what it was when I first took office, and you can be confident that the talent is there to insure that what has been built over the past 10 years will continue.
You should be so proud of the work of this team. They are solving serious crimes in this county. They are working around the clock—putting their own lives and relationships on the line to make our county a safe place to live, work and recreate. It has been my honor to lead them.
It has also been my honor to serve the citizens of Columbia County. And when I leave, it will be with a heart full of gratitude for the opportunity.
Sincerely,
Jeff Dickerson