I have been following the current (Allegany County) Sheriff's Race w/ much interest the last few months – First let me say I have known both Walt Mackney and Rick Whitney personally and professionally for over 30 years.
I am a 34 plus year veteran of the Sheriff’s Office,
Semi-Retired having worked for 4 Sheriffs – Many of you know me having served
over 25 yrs. as a Union Official of the Deputy Sheriffs Union including over a
decade as Union President. Contrary to
some of the letters I have read – I am not disgruntled or angry, in fact I have
managed to have a very rewarding career achieving many of my career goals and
was proud to be of service to the citizens of Allegany County.
That said I feel it is important to talk about some of the
serious issues concerning the upcoming election.
First, let me state – PERSONALLY- I have always felt that
the Sheriff’s Office will never be properly overseen until someone from within
the Department finally becomes Sheriff – Someone who has spent their entire
career working there. Only then would a person have the FULL knowledge of the
department, its personnel and responsibilities required to oversee its
operations in the best interest of the public. We haven’t had that at the
Sheriff’s Office since Larry Scholes retired over 20 some yrs. ago.
Let’s face it – The
Sheriff is a PART TIME position – it could literally change every 4 years! The
real core and backbone of the office is the hard working, dedicated corrections
officers and deputy sheriffs that commit themselves to their jobs every day,
for 25 years or more and receive very little if any accolades for their work
(maintaining jail certifications, accreditation’s, high praise from COC
inspections etc.….) Seems all the glory and recognition are given to the
administration for these achievements, when in fact it’s the backbone that I
speak of that should be recognized.
For the past 3 Sheriffs Administrations – One issue has
plagued the department for decades – Exorbitant overtime cost at the Jail- It
is an issue that has always been front and center of every campaign,
legislative outcry and public scrutiny. Can it be fixed or at a minimum be
drastically curved? ABSOLUTLY!
Keep I mind that when the new county jail was opened, the
NYS Commission of Corrections (the state department responsible for setting the
standards, staffing and general rules for local jails) made a staffing
recommendation for the jail. Since then not ONE Sheriff has asked for a
re-evaluation of the staffing levels at the jail – It doesn’t take into
consideration the day to day functions that occur at the facility and lacks the
necessary manpower needed to operate the facility in the best interest of the
employees and more importantly the taxpaying public. This issue alone has led to a large portion
of overtime expenditures within the Sheriffs Budget. The other huge issue is the lack of
maintaining adequate part time staff, this issue alone leads to massive
overtime expenditures, both volunteer and mandated overtime – You may have
heard there are over 30 some part time employees at the Sheriff’s Office, but
this is in fact a ruse, there are about 12 part-time dedicated employees
willing to consistently work at the jail – keep in mind the current union
contract dictates the use of part- time employees and distribution of overtime.
The Sheriff has the right to use part-time employees to cover all Vacation,
Personal and Comp Time leaves – over 80% of Full Time leaves for time off, the
only requirement for Overtime expenditures outlined in the contract is for Sick
Leave days and Extra Manpower needs.
Both past and current administrations have failed the public in
maintaining and overseeing the expense of overtime by not demanding the C.O.C.
to update its staffing analysis and failing to properly maintain adequate part-
time personnel at the department – it’s not rocket science - Lets find a
Sheriff that will properly address this issue! It’s always been one core issue-
inadequate staffing, staffing, staffing!
Another Issue that has come up during this campaign is the
war on drugs in our county. Our county has been plagued by this scourge for far
too long. Presently the Sheriff’s Office
has 2 deputies assigned to its narcotics division – the previous administration
withdrew our department from the Southern Tier Regional Drug Task Force – Huge
mistake! I know the 2 officers currently and those previously assigned to the
narcotics division. They are all eager, hardworking individuals – however they
presently lack the necessary resources to do an effective job in the war on
drugs. Every person reading this letter pretty much knows “who the dealers and
abusers are in their communities” and more than likely are frustrated that
nothing is being done. One just needs to
read the local news to see how the war against drugs is a priority in Steuben
County. Likewise, they see the numerous arrest of Allegany County people in
Livingston County transporting drugs along interstate I 390 back to our
communities. The Sheriff’s Office hasn’t
participated in any Drug Sweeps in our area for a very long time! WHY??? It’s time to move Sheriffs personnel back
to the S.T.R.D.T.F. where they have the proper resources to effectively take up
the war on drugs in Allegany County. The
public deserves a real effort to rid its citizens of this scourge.
On the issue of SRO’s (School Resource Officers) – It is
appalling to think that recently the Sheriff’s Office and County fathers took a
stand to abstain from “getting involved” in the SRO issue. It is beyond me how
any Politician, Sheriff or Law Enforcement official could literally stand up
and state they “Don’t Care about the Safety of our children!” – That it is too
much liability- blah, blah, blah…are you kidding me? We need a Sheriff and
Legislative Leaders that are willing to explore EVERY avenue to achieve this
important much needed program for our children. I can only reflect on the
recent knowledge that a local school district recently budgeted over $80,000
for a SRO at their school and was seeking to do so thru the County and
Sheriff’s Office Personnel – After several meetings with county officials and
the Sheriff, legislative leaders along with the Sheriff stated it would be too
much of a liability – well I’ve got news for you – every day a Sheriff's
employee shows up for work there is a chance for county liability! Our schools
and children deserve to be protected!
As for the other minor issues – the Garden and Pheasant
Program - It makes no difference who the Sheriff is – these programs will continue
until such time they are deemed too expensive to operate or no longer needed.
In summary – I implore you to do your research, Review the
qualifications and Vote your conscience – but do vote on Primary Day Thursday
Sept 13th. The choice is pretty simple.
You can vote for the
status quo……. or,
Like me, you say “next batter up” and support the candidate
that I believe can make the positive changes necessary to curb overtime
expenditures, lead the war on drugs, advance the department, and seek every avenue
available to providing the proper protection for our children all while being
fiscally accountable to the citizens of our fine county – That candidate in my
opinion is Walter Mackney.
Clark Brown
