Benton County has a new sheriff.
That, sadly, is news county residents have needed to hear for at least a couple of years. Despite all the hyperbolic, self-important claims of persecution by former Sheriff Kelley Cradduck, the bottom line argument for Cradduck's replacement was his own behavior and lack of performance in a vital public office. Benton County voters elected him once, then gave him a second chance with another two-year term. Sooner or later, though, the public demands more from its public officials than Cradduck was capable or willing to deliver.
What’s the point?
With a new sheriff in Benton County, residents can reasonably have hope that the county’s law enforcement agency can establish a more professional footing through better management and leadership.
On Friday, Cradduck pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor tampering charge in a plea agreement that got him out from under a felony accusation. He received six months of probation and a $500 fine. He rushed away from the courthouse without a comment. As far as the outcome for his infractions, Cradduck got his money's worth out of his defense attorney. And yet again, through a no contest plea that acknowledges no guilt, Benton County voters witnessed Cradduck refusing to accept any of the responsibility for the situation he and the sheriff's office are in.
Over the last couple of years, the most public-minded contribution Cradduck made was his offer of resignation -- except that he demanded the Benton County Quorum Court pay him the remainder of his 2016 salary before he would take that step. That the often tight-fisted justices of the peace, some of them former supporters of Cradduck, were so eager to shell out $80,000 or so to be rid of him is an indication of just how damaging his presence -- and often the lack thereof -- had become.
Now, he's gone, creating an opportunity to establish new faith in the Benton County Sheriff's Office. And now, there's a new sheriff in town, and his name is Meyer Gilbert.
"I have already been to the sheriff's office today," Gilbert told justices of the peace Thursday evening after he was sworn into the county's top law enforcement post. "There are a lot of good men and women out there. ... The Benton County Sheriff's Office is going to be back where it should be in the eyes of the public."
And suddenly, there's hope.
First, there's hope in the acknowledgement by the appointed sheriff that all is not well within the agency. It's refreshing to know the one in charge has a grasp of what should have been obvious for his predecessor. The problems with the agency are something to act on, not fodder for a persecution complex. Secondly, we see hope in the simple recognition that there's much work to do before the agency's reputation with the public can recover.
Let's be realistic, though. Sheriff Gilbert has eight months in office before the next sheriff takes over. In November, former sheriff's Maj. Shawn Holloway, a Republican, will face independent Glenn Latham, a former detective who is now a senior Walmart systems administrator.
Gilbert has a relatively short time to make a difference in an agency with 224 employees -- around 34 percent of the county's overall workforce and its largest single agency -- a few of whom have contributed to the agency's reputational downfall. But many county officials and potential candidates for the interim appointment have said most of those employees are hard-working people who were as victimized by the lack of direction and focus over the last few years as the public was.
Still, eight months is enough time to get the agency repositioned toward a brighter future of morale, ethical decision-making, conscientious law enforcement and effective operation of jail facilities. The new sheriff also must be working to set the stage for a transition period in November and December in which Holloway or Latham will be deeply involved.
The new sheriff will need feedback, from the public and from other law enforcement and public officials who can contribute their concerns and ideas about reforms within the sheriff's office. That got off to a start before the Quorum Court had even made its selection last week.
The mayors and police chiefs in Bentonville and Rogers last week submitted an extraordinary letter to the county. Over the last several months, they said, the sheriff's office has been involved in a "series of events directly contrary to public safety." They go on to detail several instances they called "unsafe vehicle operations" and "mismanaged and poorly communicated operations."
Speaking of deputies' emergency responses, these public officials offer a alarming evaluation: "These instances are chilling, and, if this behavior continues, it is not a matter of if, but rather when a citizen is killed as a consequence."
It's a message that desperately needed to be shared, and it's to the credit of mayors Greg Hines and Bob McCaslin, along with police chiefs Hayes Minor and Jon Simpson, that they spoke up in a direct way that arms Gilbert and the next sheriff with knowledge. At the same time, the letter is long overdue. These concerns should have been outlined for the public during the primary campaign for sheriff, when voters were preparing to make informed choices about the future of the sheriff's office. But it's hard to be informed when public officials hold back, perhaps out of a misguided notion of professional courtesy and a desire to not be perceived as interfering. Thank goodness no tragedy came along to draw attention to the issue while the city officials pondered.
Ultimately, though, they have performed a service to the county and the people of their cities by detailing sheriff's office behaviors that are not conducive to public safety and interagency cooperation. And now, the new sheriff can tackle the issue with some morale authority, knowing he's backed up by important leaders in the county's two largest cities.
It will be up to Gilbert to decide how to deal with such a formidable task, but the No. 1 priority within the sheriff's office must be setting standards of conduct and expectations for performance, then following through to make sure the deputies, jailers and staff adhere to them. To the extent the staff is committed to promoting professionalism, the sheriff should have great resources to work with. Yet if anyone wants to stand in the way of the advancement of the agency, well, let's just say the new sheriff has his marching orders.
With so many amazing things happening within the confines of Benton County, it's a shame Cradduck wasn't the sheriff to lead a professional organization deserving of praise. The residents of Benton County deserve an outstanding sheriff's office and jail operation. Hopefully, it's now on the path toward rehabilitation.
Commentary on 05/01/2016