Wednesday, August 27, 2003
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Wednesday, August 27, 2003 |
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Commissioners agree with Dunn, want to discuss dispute with sheriff By JOHN THOMPSON
"I wish Randall had called somebody. This is just ridiculous." That's the assessment of Fayette County Commissioner Herb Frady over the public squabble between the Sheriff's Department, led by Sheriff Randall Johnson, and the Marshal's Office, which falls under the county's control. Letters have flown back and forth between the Johnson and the County Commission, with both sides using strong language to make their points. The latest letter from the county now refers to the marshals as the county's police department. When asked if he agreed with the assessments in the letter, Frady is quite clear. "There's no argument. That's just a fact," Frady said. In July, 1983, the County Commission led by Chairman Jerry Barronton, vice-chairman Mike Reid, Dennis Berkelbaugh, Steve Black and Tom Harris created the position of county marshal. The original responsibilities were to enforce zoning ordinances, environmental ordinances, business licenses and other county ordinances. According to the ordinance creating the position, the future marshal would need a good understanding of county ordinances, a knowledge of county roads and be a certified law enforcement officer. Frady said Commissioner A.G. VanLandingham had gotten wind that something was occurring between the two departments and headed to Johnson's office to discuss it. "When he was talking to Randall, (Lt. Col.) Bruce Jordan handed the sheriff a letter. Randall signed it and handed it to Van," Frady said. Frady is not quite sure how this controversy started. "I don't know why Bruce Jordan is involved. I thought he was an investigator. I didn't know they needed him to do administrative work." In 1989, the County Commission led by Chairman George Patton further strengthened the marshal's office by adopting a resolution that granted the county marshal police power, including the power of arrest. "The County Marshal shall have the power to make arrests and to execute and return criminal warrants and processes in Fayette County, and all the powers of the Sheriff as peace officers in Fayette County," read the resolution. Riverdale City Administrator Billy Beckett was Fayette County's chief administrator in 1989. Beckett started working for the county in 1985 and left in 2000. Beckett recalls the resolution and makes clear its intentions. "It was never my intent to create a de-facto police department. The resolution was merely meant to give the marshals the authorization they needed to do their jobs," he said. Beckett said the primary functions of the marshal's office was to enforce county ordinances, investigate accidents involving county equipment and property, and also to function as a game warden capacity. While Beckett was not around when the office was created, he does remembering authorizing marshals to carry firearms as a part of their job. Commissioner Frady hopes the fight is not over the re-patching of the uniforms. "We just consolidated out departments into six divisions. The patch says public safety, and I guess somebody got upset over that," he said. He hopes the Sheriff's Department is not serious about threatening not to accept any prisoners the marshals have arrested. "We just don't need to get to that point." Commissioner A.G. VanLandingham said he has reassured Johnson the county has no plan to take over any functions of the sheriff's department. "This was just done to promote a sense of unity," he said. VanLandingham said the marshal's office is operating the same way it has for 20 years, and there is no plan to add any more duties. Commissioner Peter Pfeifer said he's tried to find out how this whole situation started, and has come up with nothing substantial. "I heard that there was dissension about the badges, but I just dismissed that," he said. Pfeifer said he's talked to past commissioners, who indicated they have always looked upon the marshals as the county's police force. He hopes Johnson is not serious about turning away prisoners, and wants somebody to show him if the commissioners have done something wrong. "If we've done something wrong, I'll try and fix it."
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