“Letter To The CCO Editor”

A Stark Contrast

I am Jeff Hales, your Republican candidate for Vanderburgh County Sheriff, and I would appreciate your vote in November. 

First, a little bit about myself. I am a ten-year Navy veteran, a five-year veteran of the Vanderburgh County Sheriff’s Office in the role of a corrections officer, and a 20-year retired veteran of the Evansville Police Department. I am trained in many areas of policing including crime prevention and investigations. I have served my country and community for 35 years, and I am not done yet. 

As a conservative Republican, I have the values and motivation to best protect you and your family. I am pro- 2^nd Amendment for law-abiding citizens while being tough on gun crime by collaborating with the Prosecutor to pursue the strictest penalties under law for those that commit crimes while armed. I will be fiscally responsible for your money. And I will NEVER take a “defund the police” stance. I will not pick and choose what laws the Sheriff’s Office will enforce. You elect your legislators to pass the laws, and so long as those laws are deemed constitutional by our courts, I will enforce those laws. 

I will seek out innovative ideas to address issues that plague our community, such as the jail overcrowding, and the drug, and mental health crisis. I will partner with the mental health community and providers and truly listen to ideas instead of continuing down the same road of the status quo. I would ensure that our community mental health partners have access to working with inmates to provide resources that can reduce criminal recidivism, and improve their mental health, and ability to maintain sobriety.

I have said before, that the men and women of the Sheriff’s Office perform their duties on a daily basis, almost flawlessly. The Vanderburgh County Sheriff’s Office is a 200-plus-year-old agency with over 170 men and women that do their job every day professionally, and I do not intend on reinventing the wheel, but after 40 years of democratic leadership, those wheels need to explore a different path. 

So, what does the Vanderburgh County Sheriff’s Office need? They need a Sheriff with 35 years of experience in service to our county and community. A Sheriff that understands the day-to-day hurdles of policing the streets, and fully remembers what being a corrections officer is about. I have performed both duties and understand the everyday trials of both. Vanderburgh County needs a Sheriff who does not just make promises during election season but has a proven record of working to ensure officer safety, public safety, and a record of honesty and integrity.

Members of the Sheriff’s Office need a Sheriff that recognizes that everyone within the agency is a leader within their own duties. They need a leader that will support them in the most dangerous, split-second decision-making job, both on the streets and in the jail. They need to know that I, as the Sheriff, will protect them from the attacks on law enforcement from the leftist, “defund the police” democrats. I will protect the protectors. If I protect the protectors, they can do a better job of keeping our streets and schools safe.

Finally, since the Primary Election night, I have had numerous members of the Sheriff’s Office reach out to me, expressing their support. After 40 years of democrat leadership at the helm of the Sheriff’s Office, it is time to explore other paths and ideas. It is time for a partnership with the community. It is time to produce new ideas and better funding for a better, safer community. It is time to listen to the community as a whole and not just a few. This November, it is time to vote to make Vanderburgh County a better place to live… for everyone. 

I am humbled and honored to be the Republican candidate for Sheriff. As a Navy Veteran, former police and corrections officer, father, husband, and son, I know that your expectation for the Sheriff of Vanderburgh County is to keep your family safe, as well as send the law enforcement officers protecting our community home safely to their families at the end of their shift. I will mobilize all my efforts towards fulfilling those expectations and can assure you that your safety and the safety of law enforcement officers have been my focus for many years, not just a convenient campaign promise. Recent events have shown the necessity for us to all work together harder than ever to ensure we have a safe community to live in and raise our children.  I am the person who has the proven experience and integrity to get those things done, and I would appreciate your vote in the November election.

FOOTNOTE: The City-County Observer posted this letter without bias or editing.