Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
DAVENPORT—Election Day is coming up Tuesday, Nov. 8 and Lincoln County voters will have two choices for the office of Sheriff: Brian Telford and Gabe Gants. The candidates submitted the following information and answered two identical questions to help voters get to know them better.
Candidates for commissioner and treasurer will receive similar coverage in the weeks leading up to the general election, as will information about the capital levy running in the Reardan-Edwall School District.
BRIAN TELFORD
Age: 56
Hometown: Davenport
Experience: Military police, Army Reserve, corrections officer at Whatcom County Jail, Lincoln County deputy, Lincoln County Chief Criminal Deputy
Occupation: Maintenance employee at Davenport School District
Education:
Graduate of Davenport HS, 1984
US Army, Military Police Training/Supply Secondary Training
Corrections Officer Technical Institute
Basic Corrections Officer Academy
Basic Law Enforcement Academy
Crime Scene Preservation
First Level Supervision
Mid-Level Supervision
FEMA IS 95 (Emergency Management)
FEMA IS 195 (Emergency Management)
FEMA ICS 300 (Emergency Management)
FEMA ICS 700 (Intro to Emergency Management)
Level 1 and 2 Defensive Tactics
Highway Drug Intervention for Patrol
Drug Investigation
Emergency Vehicle Operation
DUI and Standardized Field Test
Access Level 1
CPR/First Aid/Blood Borne Pathogens
Criminal Investigations
Failures in Criminal Investigations
Staged Crime Scene Investigations
Child Abuse and Interviewing Techniques/refreshers
Effective Team Child Interviewing Techniques
Sudden Infant Death Syndrome
Crises Intervention
Field Training Officer (FTO)
Basic Homicide Investigation
Arson Investigation for Patrol
Basic Fusion Center Liaison Officer
Kinesics Interview and Interrogation
Pipeline Response Emergencies
Below 100 Officer Survival Training
Naloxone Administration
Active Shooter Training in Schools
Over 1400 hours of training not including basic academies.
Family: Married with five children
GABE GANTS
Age: 41
Hometown: Davenport
Experience: Interim Lincoln County Sheriff, Lincoln County Sergeant, Lincoln County patrol deputy, Lincoln County school resource officer
Occupation: Interim Lincoln County Sheriff
Education:
-Graduate WSCJTC Corrections academy
-Graduate WSCJTC Basic Law Enforcement Academy
-Certified in emergency medical dispatch
-Certified ACCESS level 1 and 2
-Certified forensic child interviewer
-Graduate of Field Training Officer academy
-Trained 911 Public Education Coordinator
-Certified marine law enforcement
-Certified for DUI and BUI investigations
-Certified in advanced roadside impairment driving enforcement
-Advanced DV and sexual assault training
-Trained in national traffic incident management
-Emergency Management/Incident Command training ICS 100, and 700
-Trained in homicide investigations
-Graduate of Washington State school security officer academy
-Trained at the national school resource officer academy
-Certified 40 hours crisis intervention team
NOTE: all certified law enforcement officers in Washington state must maintain 24 hours of training per year. In addition to the highlights above I have received certificates in numerous trainings over the past 18 years to include but not limited to: child abuse investigations, domestic violence, combat medical training, the most recent up to date patrol tactics, emergency vehicle operations, emotional survival, search and seizure, street crimes, cell phone and internet
investigations, defensive tactics, interview and interrogations, electronic evidence collection, firearms, taser, pepper spray, pepper ball projectiles, use of force, active shooter, and many more.
Family: Married with three children
Questions
1. Costs of retaining employees are only going up statewide, but especially in small counties like Lincoln County. Costs of medical insurance, risk insurance and training have increased for both the employer and employee. In light of this fact, how do you plan to both attract new employees and keep them in Lincoln County, knowing you likely can't pay them a salary comparable to larger counties?
TELFORD: I have 100 words for each question, this is not enough to explain these important questions. Visit Electtelfordforsheriff.com to get an in-depth answer to these two questions in the news section.
First, we need to get back to local advertising our civil service testing! I believe we can have local civil service testing and Public Safety Testing. We need to tap into our local resources.
Retaining employees begins with the Sheriff. A Sheriff must be in touch with all employees. This is accomplished by listening to our employees in person and often. Getting into their environment day or night is just another way to show leadership transparency.
Wages and benefits are negotiated by the Commissioners and each union. The budget of the Sheriff’s Office encompasses the salaries. My obligation is to work with the commissioners within the budget boundaries.
GANTS: The only way we can compete with other agencies is to showcase the quality of life that exists in Lincoln County. We have begun to recruit locally at events like the fair and have already started receiving local applicants. In addition, I have personally met with the commissioners and expressed the opinion that they must offer comparable insurance benefits to keep and maintain employees. We have to continue thinking outside of the box and offer schedules and a work culture that breeds success. Employees will stay where they are happy, and Lincoln County has a lot to offer a family.
2. What is your stance on traffic enforcement? Would your deputies have a quota of how many tickets to write each month or year? How do you plan to keep the county roads safe with a low staff and some of the most road miles for a county in the state?
TELFORD: I’m against ticket quotas, which I have previously discussed on my website. I do believe in traffic policing because it saves lives! I believe in the presence of a patrol vehicle first, then stopping a violator second, then issuing an infraction at the deputy’s discretion. I don’t believe in writing an infraction ticket for 5 miles over the speed limit to generate revenue. I believe in listening to the taxpayers when they have a traffic complaint in their neighborhood and respond accordingly.
We have over 1 million visitors to this county, traffic policing is important to our local commuters. If not enforced, well then, another life will be taken….it’s a matter of time!
GANTS: Traffic enforcement is an essential part of our job, but we will not write tickets just to write tickets and quotas are illegal. Patrolling county roads will be a priority when calls for service allow. We will utilize all resources to include deployment of radar trailers to assist with education and enforcement of traffic laws. This will include using supervisory staff for patrol, as well as working with WSP and other agencies to ensure we are efficiently covering as much of the county as we can. Often times visibility alone will deter criminal acts and we must be visible!
Drew Lawson is the editor of the Davenport Times. He is a graduate of Eastern Washington University.
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