Democratic sheriff candidates answer questions

Pottawatomie County voters who are registered as Democrats will choose between four sheriff candidates in the primary election Tuesday. An elected nominee will advance to the November general election.
Democratic candidates are:
• Mike Booth, 52, McLoud, a former sheriff’s deputy and Navy officer who is now a district attorney’s investigator;
• Jay Hoyt Davis, 53, Shawnee, a retired Shawnee police officer;
• Gary D. Roe, 46, who lives in the Tecumseh/Bethel area and is the police chief in McLoud;
• Incumbent Kurt Carlsen Shirey, 56, Tecumseh, a retired Shawnee police officer who has been sheriff for six years.
The candidates answered the following questions.
Q: Why do you want to serve as Pottawatomie County sheriff?
Booth: I have committed the major portion of my life to serving my country and my community. I see the current decline at the sheriff’s office and know that many people who come to the district attorney’s office for help are needless victims of preventable crimes. I see suspects who are never brought to trial because of a lack of response or proper investigation by the current sheriff’s office. I like my current job, my boss and the professionals I work with every day at the district attorney’s office, but I cannot stand by any longer to see the many injustices that go unanswered.
Davis: I’ve been in this county all of my life. I have friends and family on both ends of the county and I have a great concern for their health and welfare. I believe that with my caring and concern, I can make a difference.
Roe: I want to serve as sheriff in order to serve and give back to the citizens of the county where I was born and raised. I am proud to be from this county and call it my home. I want to change the way many citizens of this county look at law enforcement. I want everyone who has contact with the sheriff’s department to be treated with dignity and respect. I want the citizens to know that when they need us, we will be there for them as soon as is humanly possible, and that we will be compassionate and attentive to their needs, regardless of which part of the county they live in. I would like to be given the chance to prove this is possible.
Shirey: Service to the public, through law enforcement, has been my chosen vocation for the past 31 years. It has been my objective to keep the public and their property safe — that is something that I achieve great personal satisfaction from doing. I revel over cases that are cleared and languish over those that are not. It is difficult to explain to someone outside of law enforcement the great personal satisfaction one attains solving a case and taking a culprit out of society for a while, making this world a better place to live. Bottom line is to keep the citizenry and their property as safe as possible and to remove the undesirable elements from our society.
Q: What do you see as the county’s biggest crime problem and how would you address it?
Booth: Burglaries and thefts. Address by: 1) Reinstating an active reserve force; 2) Helping to re-establish a neighborhood watch program; 3) Split the county back into patrol areas for better response time; 4) Have a reserve unit dedicated to burglary and theft investigations; 5) Coordinating with surrounding counties and exchange burglary suspect and vehicle information, as well as other law enforcement agencies within the county.
Davis: I don’t have all the statistics, but I believe burglaries and theft are the biggest problems. I would try to utilize all resources available — deputies in assigned districts, reserves where possible and tribal police when available to help. I also think it would be wise to have neighborhood watches — many eyes are better than a few.
Roe: I see burglaries and property theft of trailers, tractors, ATVs, tools, guns and equipment as some of the biggest crime problems. We need to educate citizens about maintaining good records, including recording serial numbers and marking belongings that don’t have them. After reporting and investigation, all stolen items with serial numbers must be entered into NCIC (National Crime Information Center) so any item checked by law enforcement will show as stolen. There is an online program that tracks stolen items in pawn shops nationwide; we need this program. We need to form a multi-jurisdictional property crime squad, communicating and sharing information to solve crimes countywide. This group would meet monthly to discuss crimes affecting citizens. Many property crimes are related to drug use/sales. The sheriff’s department needs to aggressively go after drug users and dealers and form a multi-jurisdictional drug task force.
Shirey: There are so many diverse crimes with which the sheriff’s office must deal, but I feel the total eradication of illegal narcotics is the major issue we must continue to address. There are many peripheral crimes that stem from illegal narcotics use, from all types of thefts and selling of stolen property taken in those thefts, to drug-related homicides, with thefts done to support the drug addicts’ habits and the homicide and other crimes being committed due to the altered state of mind of the addict. Most narcotic violations are worked by the District Attorney’s Drug and Major Crimes Task Force with the assistance of several agencies. At this time, the sheriff’s office is unable to devote a deputy to the task force full time but assist when we can. The drug problem has decreased a great deal in Oklahoma because of legislation on the sale of pseudoephedrine. Certainly there continues to be a problem with illegal narcotics sales and usage, but we are making headway.
Q:  What goals would you like to achieve at the sheriff’s office in the first year of taking office?
Booth: 1) Re-establish an active reserve force; 2) Help re-establish neighborhood watch groups; 3) Re-establish the juvenile officer position; 4) Complete a comprehensive training program focusing on domestic violence, basic crime scene investigation (collecting evidence, latent prints, etc.) and forgery and fraud detection; 5) Establishing reserve units specifically dedicated to burglary/theft, sex offenders and patrol.
Davis: I have many goals in mind. I’m not sure yet how many I can accomplish, not knowing what the budget will be like. But I definitely want better patrol to be one of the goals accomplished.
Roe: One of my first goals will be to achieve shorter response times. We will be changing the department from reactive to proactive. Proactive law enforcement involves being attentive to the needs of citizens on a regular basis, not just reacting when an incident occurs. This includes having open lines of communication between the sheriff’s department and the citizens. The department needs to become community-based, using community-based policing practices, increasing visibility countywide and patrolling all areas.
Shirey: I first set goals for the PCSO when I became sheriff more than six years ago. Of course, the No. 1 goal was to curb all criminal activity and successfully prosecute those individuals who commit crime. This is still our objective. First, we began a proactive deterrent procedure by starting 24 hours a day, seven days a week, patrol service and have since added more patrol and investigation deputies. Within the first year, we saw a 20 percent decrease in property crimes and similar decreases in other criminal activity. We maintain case clearance averages above that of the state and strive to improve each day.
Q:  What challenges do you see in operating the office and what are your plans to overcome them?
Booth: 1) Maintaining a proactive force with the rising cost of fuel and other resources, so it is essential to have the county split up for smaller patrol area; 2) Maintain flexibility to address new challenges; 3) Contacting and cooperating with other agencies that have procured additional resources to assist us in doing the same, such as grants, patrol vehicles, etc.
Davis: The No. 1 challenge I see will definitely be not enough money. I will plan on seeking a bigger budget, grants where possible and trying to utilize every resource available.
Roe: One of the challenges in operating the office will be finding the money it will take to implement programs to accomplish the aforementioned goals. However, I believe by using all of the resources available and closely scrutinizing and trimming “fat” from the budget, along with developing a strong work ethic among the staff, we can accomplish my goals for the sheriff’s department with existing funds. 
Shirey: One the greatest challenges is being able to hire and keep quality deputies with the salary we are able to pay. The citizens and I have been very fortunate to maintain a very competent and dedicated staff, including a good number of reserve deputies. Acquiring and maintaining equipment is another challenge, but we are again receiving a portion of the 1-cent county sales tax, which will help to ensure the future procurement of necessary equipment, including vehicles. New communications equipment is also going online in August, improving communications countywide. We have applied for a grant enabling us to receive 25 new mobile and 25 new handheld 800 megahertz radios; this grant could come through at any time, which will improve communications further. Finance is always a challenge, but we always have and always will live within our means and strive to give the citizens our very best.
Q: What is the most urgent need for the sheriff’s office and how would you work to fulfill it?
Booth: The lack of proper response/action by the sheriff’s office has resulted in many crimes that have gone undocumented, many innocent people needlessly becoming victims and many suspects still roaming the streets. I have not only seen this while at the district attorney’s office, I personally know victims and families of victims who have had little or no action. Plan to: 1) Split the county into areas for faster response, better rapport with citizens and greater awareness of local problems in that part of the county; 2) Proper training so all personnel, full time and reserve, know how to properly handle each situation; 3) Every victim will be treated with compassion, understanding and professionalism; 4) Cooperation with all law enforcement agencies for assistance in response, investigation and training; 5) Establish specialized reserve units.
Davis: I feel there are three urgent needs in the sheriff’s office —not enough deputies, not enough patrol units for the deputies and not enough money to finance either. I’m not sure yet what resources are available and probably won’t know until taking office. Time will tell.
Roe: The sheriff’s department has an urgent need for improved equipment, vehicles and radios, as well as more manpower on the streets. By the first part of 2009, some of the dollars from the 1-cent sales tax that have been going elsewhere will become available again to the sheriff’s department. This money should enable an upgrade of equipment and an increase of manpower. An active and well-managed reserve squad will benefit the department and the citizens by helping with the manpower issues.
Shirey: I feel this question is much like the preceding. However, and I know people get tired of hearing this because we all are in the same boat, but the more funds with which you have to operate, the more you can accomplish. I believe we do the very well with what we are allotted. So is the need for increase operating capital urgent? Probably not, but it sure would help.
Q: Any closing comments?
Booth: There is not a candidate running who has as much diversified experience as I do in law enforcement, from military to civilian. I have more supervisory experience of more personnel than any candidate. There is not a law enforcement agency existing that will say they have all of the money they need, but I have given solutions that only require a lot more effort, not a lot more money. I am the only candidate that has consistently stood on my own ideas.
Davis: I simply want the public to know I am a Christian. My family and myself are active at Hilltop Baptist Church in Shawnee. I have always loved this county — it is my home. But as I have grown closer to the Lord, I have grown closer to people. I have learned about compassion and about the love Jesus Christ had for the people. I hope that, if elected, I can be a positive influence on those that I work with and around. I am looking forward to serving the good people of this county as sheriff.
Roe: To accomplish the goals that I have set forth requires rolling up your sleeves and going to work. I believe in leading by example. As I have said many times, enthusiasm, passion, commitment and dedication are contagious. I would be greatly honored to serve as sheriff. Through dedicated law enforcement, I would welcome the challenge of making this county a better place for all of us — a place we can certainly be proud to call home. 
Shirey: In the past six years, the PCSO has experienced many successes, which are to be credited to the entire staff. With my years of experience, training in law enforcement and several years as your sheriff, I feel I am best qualified to continue to oversee and carry out the duties of sheriff. The stature of the PCSO has and will continue to increase under the present administration. Even in the face of many negative and degrading comments made about my family, my staff and me, I am very proud of the positive campaign I have conducted and hope to be elected to a third term on my own merits and record.
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To learn more about the candidates, their Web sites and contact information are listed below.
Booth: http://www.booth4sheriff08.com/
Davis:  No Web site; phone, 275-0191.
Roe: http://www.voteroe4sheriff.com/
Shirey: http://www.keepshireysheriff.com/