So, Mr. [Quentin] Miller, the Democratic candidate for sheriff, has 11 years as an MP and 25 years as a police officer. A fine record, but it won’t make a lot of difference or matter how many bad guys have been arrested in the past. When the sheriff steps into his office, he becomes an administrator of the most important office in Buncombe County.
The sheriff has 430 employees working for him and 604 inmates in the detention center and jail, and their well-being and safety all rest on the sheriff’s shoulders. He must maintain a working relationship with the schools superintendent, county manager and commissioners, with the top priority of keeping our children safe. He makes sure the schools’ resource officers are among the best. He also has the responsibility of court security, providing officers for this daily task. It is important that he maintains a cordial and respectful relationship with the judges and district attorney, too.
The Sheriff’s Department has a budget of over $38 million. He needs to have knowledge of how a budget works, and he again must work with the county manager and commissioners in preparing it every year, for it is a very important aspect of the sheriff’s job. I am barely touching on the work ahead required for the sheriff to run the department. The good news is he will have a well-trained and smart group of retiring Sheriff Van Duncan’s officers to work with.
Now, I need to tell you about Shad Higgins, the Republican candidate for sheriff. He is a well-respected, successful business owner and has been for a big part of his life. Over the years, he has given many people jobs, and he enjoys working with them. He knows how budgets work and says they don’t scare him. He knows the hard work required in running a business. He is a Christian and has no criminal record. He is comfortable being a public relations man for the department. Shad will make a great sheriff because he has the qualifications the county needs. He would appreciate your vote.
— Peggy T. Bennett
Leicester
Editor’s note: Bennett reports that she has helped Higgins with his campaign by hosting a meet-and-greet event for him in Leicester.
Higgins on how to combat opiods: “I would like to see us go after the small street level dealers instead of trying to get to the big guy. If we take all the small fish out of a pond, the small fish reflecting as the street level dealers, then the big fish will end up starving.”
http://www.bpr.org/post/buncombe-county-sheriffs-election-features-candidates-very-different-views
This should be enough to tell you that he would have no idea what he’s doing in law enforcement.
I agree – it is like he’s never noticed the failed War on Drugs which tried this approach for years! Take out the “small fish” and new ones will crop up immediately. On top of this, he has no qualifications whatsoever for this role – owning a tire business does not make you qualified for a public service role.
No street sense, arrest one street corner dealer another will be in his spot before law enforcement get out of sight. Let mr. carl mumpower tell you how it works. It
is called stopping open air drug markets, not catching some small fish in a pond. You must stop the addict from using, if there is no demand the supply and flow of drugs.
will began to disappear. Basic economics Supply and demand.
“He is a Christian. Why does she feel this matters?”
As a candidate for sheriff, Shad Miller is a good tire store owner.
and as a candidate for Sheriff, allegiance with the APD is detrimental for the good of the county … we need a conservative sheriff not a liberal progressive…we’re overrun with them already.
If you want a conservative sheriff, find a more qualified candidate than a guy who runs a tire store.
Exactly…thank you.
No what we’re run over with is Republicans acting on their on best interests. Enough of that already. VOTE DEM ACROSS THE BOARD. Stop the insanity.
Shad would make an excellent sheriff. He understands that the Sheriff’s role is to lead the department, manage the budget, and insure that the laws, as written, are upheld. The Sheriff’s role is not a platform to legislate or to drive your personal agenda. His opponents have already stated that they will use their role to drive causes that they believe in like abolishing ICE and supporting amnesty for illegal aliens. These are not the laws of our community and the Sheriff’s role is not to drive legislation, but to support existing laws.
“These are not the laws of our community and the Sheriff’s role is not to drive legislation, but to support existing laws.”
State law mandates safe tires:
https://www.ncleg.net/EnactedLegislation/Statutes/PDF/BySection/Chapter_20/GS_20-122.1.pdf
Should the sheriff’s department set up checkpoints and hand out tire violation notices? I’m being facetious to make a point. Laws are selectively enforced all the time. The question is how to use resources most effectively.
Mr Higgins seems to think of law enforcement in terms of cracking down on Them as opposed to protecting Us. It’s telling that his supporters focus on “managing a budget” or “being a public relations man for the department” to divert attention from his own personal agenda and complete lack of experience in public safety. It’s also telling that down in Henderson County, the incumbent sheriff who persuaded commissioners to spend $20 million on a police training facility was beaten in his primary by a candidate who wanted to restore focus on the needs of the county.
25 plus years of law enforcement and 11 years military experience versus the guy who owns a tire store? I am surprised this is even a contest. Were Shad Higgins not a “good old boy” and Quentin Miller not “one of them” (as I have seen him described by his opponents) this wouldn’t even be close.
I’m equally concerned about Higgins’ idiotic and dangerous “deescalation is a failed social experiment” comment. Great, just what we need, a sheriff with a “bust heads and ask questions later” mentality.
Yes James. I said as much here https://mountainx.com/opinion/letter-miller-has-right-qualifications-for-sheriff/#comment-3163825
Yeah…you lost me at “he is a Christian.” Probably one reason he lost…the biggest reason he lost is that he has no experience in law enforcement. The most important thing about his loss is that it means one less dirty Republican in charge.