New interim Benton County sheriff announces election bid
Undersheriff Jerry Hatcher announced his bid to run for Benton County sheriff on Tuesday, the same day he was appointed the interim sheriff by the county commissioners.
He gave a speech outlining his plans if he is successful in succeeding retiring Sheriff Steve Keane.
The interim sheriff position is a temporary assignment until the commissioners pick a permanent replacement for Keane on April 11.
Hatcher, Detective Sgt. Bob Brockman and Kennewick police Sgt. Ken Lattin are seeking to be the next sheriff through the Republican Party, who will rank the candidates and present them to the commissioners.
Hatcher has served the sheriff’s office since 1988 in all ranks. He is currently in charge of supervising 210 employees and overseeing the $61 million biennium budget.
He is proud of his work and the accomplishments of the agency.
“The Benton County Sheriff’s Office has an excellent reputation,” he said. “We have built this reputation by understanding our community’s needs, values and expectation for its law enforcement services.”
He cited programs like the Citizens Academy, jail tours and citizens riding along with deputies. The transparency with the public cultivated 110 citizen volunteers working for the sheriff’s office, he said.
Hatcher has plans to make the sheriff’s office communicate even better with a Facebook page to help keep the public informed.
A top focus for him as sheriff is to continue a strong focus on gang activity, from enforcement to helping kids at risk of becoming gang members.
“I will be expanding our current gang team … to enhance our ability to disrupt gang activity and combat gang-related crimes,” Hatcher said.
He wants to enhance the special investigation units through collaboration with other law enforcement agencies. He wants to add a deputy to the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force led by the Richland police, add a second deputy to the METRO Drug Task Force led by the Kennewick police and continue working with the DEA and FBI task forces.
“I will continue to champion the mental health issues facing the jail,” he said. “I started these efforts back in 2013 by first bringing mental health professionals into the jail to work with our inmates suffering from mental health issues.”
In 2014, Hatcher created the Mental Health Multidisciplinary Team using a staff of mental health professionals, medical personnel, chaplains, corrections officers and representatives from the National Alliance on Mental Illness.
“This program has quickly become a model program within the state,” Hatcher said. “Since its inception, this team has worked with (more than) 1,000 mental health cases within the Benton County jail.”
Hatcher said he plans to run for sheriff even if he is not selected by the commissioners to follow Keane.
“I am very proud to have worked my entire law enforcement career for the Benton County Sheriff’s Office,” he said. “I have worked hard to gain the command-level knowledge and experience needed to be your next sheriff and I am asking for your support.”