Sometimes, people ask me if I miss being sheriff, and I can say “no” pretty quickly.
The reason could be my age, at least partially, but it’s mostly just the foolish politicians and their constant interference making law enforcement work more difficult than it should be. That, and many of the same officials making cooperation with federal agencies — especially ICE and the deportations of illegal aliens — illegal, even if the individuals in question are criminals.
This foolishness has leaked into legitimate tools such as the Flock Safety cameras.
Some agencies in Washington are turning them off. I admit not knowing much about the system itself, but they are not located inside our houses. They are in public areas where, as a retired lawyer put it, a cop could stand and write down descriptions and license plates on every street corner, just not very efficiently.
And for those who worry about their privacy — as I do — don’t carry a phone or go outside pretty much anywhere, because Ring cameras and security cameras are everywhere. Even your car computer in some cases can rat you out.
But in the event a serious crime happened, I’d bet the victim would want every tool possible to catch the suspect.
Unfortunately, it looks like this tool won’t be used in many places anymore, though Centralia has indicated it will persevere with its cameras in line with new restrictions approved by our genius state Legislature.
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I wasn’t able to attend the Lewis County sheriff candidate forum held by The Chronicle recently. I was disappointed, too, because this was a good way to meet and ask questions in person. I don’t think there have been this many candidates since I ran the first time in 1994, and I’m sure there will be more opportunities.
One of the more disturbing things that I started hearing about around that time, though, was a report that one of the candidates, Tracy Murphy, was possibly on administrative leave pending an investigation by the Washington State Criminal Justice Commission. Murphy and the police chief have declined to comment, but the investigation in question appears to be one initiated by an anonymous source.
Anonymous sources in politics should raise concern because they can say anything, and it’s hard to defend yourself.
Whoever made the report anonymously should have at least been identified to the commission so they know who it is and can weigh its validity. The allegations seem outrageous on the surface, and I’m not suggesting they shouldn’t be looked into, but not if the accuser is unknown.
You could say things like this are just politics as usual. You could — but it doesn’t have to be.
I hope this is resolved quickly.
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I sometimes don’t agree with fellow Chronicle columnist Julie McDonald, but I agree with her recent commentary on the two members of the Timberland Regional Library Board of Trustees — Brian Mittge and Hal Blanton — being willing to be in the hot seat and try to answer questions about the state of the library system. It was a tough spot to be in, and a thankless one for unpaid volunteers.
It's hard to know exactly what happened over time, although I can surmise it was spending too much when the former Director Cheryl Heywood knew they were headed here. As Julie also reflected, we all have budgets, and we all know if we overspend, it doesn’t end well.
I was surprised to learn what she was paid — well over $200,000 a year — and that she will get $17,232 per month until the end of June, although that may well be contractual.
I guess the TRL board has received a number of applications to become the acting director to serve up to a year. For the salary it offers, I’m not surprised. But it will be a tough job because there is no money, and changes will have to be made, so there will be lots of unhappy patrons no matter what.
I don’t use the library much, although I do have a library card, but, frankly, with internet access, I don’t really need to. But some people do, I suppose, and finding a balance between needs and wants going forward will be the challenge.
And there is a difference.
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John McCroskey was Lewis County sheriff from 1995 to 2005. He lives outside Chehalis and can be contacted at musingsonthemiddlefork@gmail.com.
