Candidate Statement - Daryl Wheeler
Running for Bonner County Sheriff (Rep., incumbent)
Two words describe the difference between me and my opponent: Experience and Leadership.
First the experience. I hold all Idaho POST training certificates: Basic, Intermediate, Advanced, Supervisor, Management and Executive. All of my education is tied to real life experience. My certificates are tied to multiple years of on-the-job practice. I have 26 years of law enforcement experience under my belt. My opponent has some experience as a reserve, a few years as a deputy and an online degree. Theory without practice does not hold up in the real world.
Under my leadership as your sheriff for the last four years, I have successfully managed a $5 million dollar budget, increased first responder critical skills training, prioritized successful investigations of major crimes, reorganized the work spaces to make them safer and more effective, and reduced the number of positions at the top, in order to put more deputies on the streets where they are needed. I did all this while managing to be accessible and responsive to the community.
To increase transparency, my office produces a quarterly, online newsletter and an annual report which can be viewed by the people I serve at SOBonner.org. This was not attempted by previous administrations.
I am valued by my peers. I currently serve as the President of the Idaho Sheriff’s Association and successfully passed two important pieces of legislation which help protect the public. This spring I was a speaker at the Western States Sheriff’s Association and addressed the issues of the 10th Amendment, Interposition and how to be a Coordinating Agency.
While travelling down south to oversee a meeting for the Idaho Sheriffs, I noticed something very interesting. In each county a similar type of sign was posted. “Remove the Corruption, vote for “--.” These signs appear to be a boiler-plate theme to remove incumbent sheriffs. My opponent uses similar rhetoric in his literature.
On the subject of decision making, my answer is the same as it was in 2008. “Under my leadership, all members of the Bonner County Sheriff’s Office will focus on doing the right thing at all times — today and in the future. We will consult and plan before we act and decide.”
- Courtesy River Journal