I had hoped that we could run this race about the issues and the future of Walton County and without mudslinging and dirty politics. Today we found that is not going to be the case. When I opened my mailbox today I found a slanderous, untrue and immoral attack piece about me that went so far as to call me “dangerous.” So, since they chose to lie about me, let me share the facts with you.
FACT: This hit piece is the product of a shady out-of-county group called Voter’s Response. This is a group of lawyers and big money speculators who want to continue making millions at the expense of you the citizens of Walton County.
FACT: In 2006 I was hired by the Board of Commissioners to lead the new county Department of Corrections as it’s first director. The Sheriff had given the jail back to the Board and I had one month to organize an entirely new department from the ground up. We accomplished that and took over from the Sheriff January 1, 2007.
FACT: We opened the new jail north of DeFuniak Springs which I had overseen construction of, both under the Sheriff and the Board. We greatly increased the number of inmate work crews which saved the taxpayers thousands and made the original contract with the State DOC to start a garden and save the taxpayers more dollars. We started GED programs for inmates and had a strict hiring policy based on ability, education and experience instead of politics.
FACT: In 2010 the Walton County Department of Corrections, under my leadership, became the first criminal justice organization in Walton County history to be accredited by the state.
FACT: I retired from the county in June of 2010. I had no ethics charges ever filed against me during my tenure as Correction’s Director.
Did we have incidents with inmate misbehavior? Yes. Every jail and prison has inmates who try to escape, introduce contraband and commit other wrong acts. Were the inmates involved punished? Yes. Did we have an officer make sexual contact with an inmate? Yes, but as the attack rag itself noted, we fired the individual. As far as not notifying the county, anyone familiar with how the county operates knows that Human Resources and the administration knew about what was being done.
As far as not arresting inmates for offenses committed in jail, I made that decision and I would do it again. Jail offenses, both in state prison and county jails, are normally handled by a discipline review process and administrative penalties are imposed. Criminal charges cause a backlog in the courts, tie up officers who must be paid overtime and cause inmates that would otherwise be moved to the state system to be forced to remain in county jail. Ultimately, this is a waste of the taxpayer’s dollars. I have always jealously guarded tax dollars and make no apology for that. If elected to county commissioner I will continue to jealously guard the taxpayer’s money.
I am proud of what we accomplished at the county jail with the help of a dedicated staff working for you.
As far as this race, what is incompetent is being a commissioner for 8 of the last 10 years and doing nothing to bring quality jobs to our citizens. What is dangerous for Walton County is to continue to approve development after development that does not meet the code and brings lawsuit after lawsuit against us while overtaxing our infrastructure and decreasing the quality of life for our citizens. Or working to close beach accesses while professing to be for public beaches.
If you are tired of dirty politics and out-of-county big wigs controlling Walton County, then change comes August 28 by rejecting this garbage and voting for Danny Glidewell for District 2.
FACT: This hit piece is the product of a shady out-of-county group called Voter’s Response. This is a group of lawyers and big money speculators who want to continue making millions at the expense of you the citizens of Walton County.
FACT: In 2006 I was hired by the Board of Commissioners to lead the new county Department of Corrections as it’s first director. The Sheriff had given the jail back to the Board and I had one month to organize an entirely new department from the ground up. We accomplished that and took over from the Sheriff January 1, 2007.
FACT: We opened the new jail north of DeFuniak Springs which I had overseen construction of, both under the Sheriff and the Board. We greatly increased the number of inmate work crews which saved the taxpayers thousands and made the original contract with the State DOC to start a garden and save the taxpayers more dollars. We started GED programs for inmates and had a strict hiring policy based on ability, education and experience instead of politics.
FACT: In 2010 the Walton County Department of Corrections, under my leadership, became the first criminal justice organization in Walton County history to be accredited by the state.
FACT: I retired from the county in June of 2010. I had no ethics charges ever filed against me during my tenure as Correction’s Director.
Did we have incidents with inmate misbehavior? Yes. Every jail and prison has inmates who try to escape, introduce contraband and commit other wrong acts. Were the inmates involved punished? Yes. Did we have an officer make sexual contact with an inmate? Yes, but as the attack rag itself noted, we fired the individual. As far as not notifying the county, anyone familiar with how the county operates knows that Human Resources and the administration knew about what was being done.
As far as not arresting inmates for offenses committed in jail, I made that decision and I would do it again. Jail offenses, both in state prison and county jails, are normally handled by a discipline review process and administrative penalties are imposed. Criminal charges cause a backlog in the courts, tie up officers who must be paid overtime and cause inmates that would otherwise be moved to the state system to be forced to remain in county jail. Ultimately, this is a waste of the taxpayer’s dollars. I have always jealously guarded tax dollars and make no apology for that. If elected to county commissioner I will continue to jealously guard the taxpayer’s money.
I am proud of what we accomplished at the county jail with the help of a dedicated staff working for you.
As far as this race, what is incompetent is being a commissioner for 8 of the last 10 years and doing nothing to bring quality jobs to our citizens. What is dangerous for Walton County is to continue to approve development after development that does not meet the code and brings lawsuit after lawsuit against us while overtaxing our infrastructure and decreasing the quality of life for our citizens. Or working to close beach accesses while professing to be for public beaches.
If you are tired of dirty politics and out-of-county big wigs controlling Walton County, then change comes August 28 by rejecting this garbage and voting for Danny Glidewell for District 2.
