2023: A Year in Sheriffs

January 2, 2024

As we start a new year it’s worth looking back at the last, which featured some remarkable reporting on sheriffs. While much of it is grim, I am choosing to take heart at how media outlets are striving to report on local officials in an environment where local news is cratering. Below, a few highlights worth a read.

Mississippi

The New York Times’s local reporting initiative spent the year investigating and writing about Mississippi sheriffs. In the course of their work, they uncovered a host of abuses by sheriffs and how they get away with such corrupt, inhumane, and abusive behavior. Ilyssa Daly and Jerry Mitchell dove headlong into investigating Clay County sheriff Eddie Scott, a man accused of egregious abuses, including sexually assaulting women using promises to help them get out of jail sooner. One story includes the most remarkable (if terrible) statement from a sheriff I have seen in print:

“What she didn’t tell was, she was coming up to the office with her tits hanging out,” he said. “I never put myself in that position anymore.”

Scott was re-elected despite these horrendous accusations.

I want to take a moment to point out that Scott has faced no consequences for his behavior and one of the women who came forward to accuse him has had to leave town because of harassment. A note on this story – many of the texts Scott sent to women are available as part of various lawsuits. I have reviewed them, and they only get worse. Most were too shocking for the gentle readers of the New York Times. So think about that.

I cannot talk about Mississippi without also mentioning the Rankin County “Goon Squad,” a group of deputies who tortured people. Sheriff Bryan Bailey said he was “stunned,” even though, as the New York Times points out, the violence was “neither confined to a small group of deputies nor hidden from department leaders.”

It’s frustrating to read about these incidents and learn that there’s no accountability. But, bear in mind, justice can take a long time. It’s hard to unseat a sheriff the first time he faces a challenger. And, these stories are a gentle reminder that the so-called “constitutional sheriff” movement isn’t the only danger out there.

Washington State

What can we do about Sheriff Bob Songer of Klickitat County? The man is a proud board member of the Constitutional Sheriffs and Peace Officers Association. (He also helped revamp the CSPOA training PowerPoint which, I can assure you, is not better for his work.) He barely won his last election. And he has a thing about hunting cougars and wolves. Gold star to journalist Dawn Stover who has been keeping up with Songer’s war on apex predators for years.

New York State

This flew a little under the radar, but I wanted to point out this excellent piece by North County Public Radio about Lewis County Sheriff Mike Carpinelli who won his fourth term this year. Richard Mack loves this guy and had him on his “Posse Webinar” for a victory lap.

This is the kind of story I am glad to see. Look, Carpinelli had made no secret about how far-right he is. He’s in upstate New York, so he gets less attention than some of the Western sheriffs. But that shouldn’t be the case; sheriffs in the northern U.S. are fanning the flames about the alleged crisis at the northern border. Remember this car crash? As soon as the (literal) flames were visible, far-right sheriffs claimed it was related to an immigration crisis. Watch for sheriffs like Carpinelli to continue to make this an issue.