For the first time in what is becoming a hard-fought campaign for sheriff, the four men vying for the job faced off in a debate Wednesday night in Solvang.
During the two-hour forum, incumbent Sheriff Jim Anderson juggled criticism from his three challengers, former Sheriff Jim Thomas, Lompoc Police Chief Bill Brown and Sheriff’s Lt. Ugo “Butch” Arnoldi.
The face-off was most important for the three challengers, who are fighting an uphill battle to unseat Sheriff Anderson, the first-term incumbent who recently received the endorsement of the powerful union representing the rank-and-file deputies.
Sheriff Anderson’s challengers wasted little time faulting him for what they’ve called missteps and examples of poor leadership. When given the opportunity to ask a single question of one of the candidates, each of the three challengers directed his question at the sheriff.
For his part, Sheriff Anderson, enjoying the afterglow of the union endorsement, pounded away on his message that during his four years in office “arrests are up and crime is down.” He pointed to his efforts at securing better benefits and pay for deputies, which helped to stop the drain of trained deputies to agencies that pay better.
“Over the past four years, I have had the honor to serve you as sheriff,” he said. “The facts speak for themselves. Most of you feel safer now than you did four years ago.”
The sheriff also went on a counteroffensive, calling the controversy surrounding the nonprofit Sheriff’s Council a politically motivated attack on his administration.
“There’s been mudslinging and baseless accusations in this campaign,” Sheriff Anderson said, trying to emphasize what he called his successes during the last four years.
The debate, sponsored by the groups Preservation of Los Olivos and Preservation of Santa Ynez, was moderated by Eric Burrows, a San Marcos High School teacher and the coach of the school’s champion mock trial team. Mr. Burrows posed questions to each candidate and then, toward the end of the forum, he allowed about a dozen questions from the audience.
The debate attracted about 150 valley residents. Most of their questions focused on the Chumash Casino and whether the tribe should pay for more deputies to patrol the area in and around the gaming facility.
The four candidates, all Republicans, all career lawmen, did their best to distinguish themselves from the pack. But the candidates agreed on broader policy issues faced by the 700-plus-member department with an $85 million budget that patrols the unincorporated portions of the county as well as the cities of Carpinteria, Goleta, Buellton and Solvang.
Sheriff Anderson faced some tough questions concerning his decisions to disassociate himself from the embattled Sheriff’s Council. Other alleged missteps include almost placing Chumash Casino stickers on sheriff’s patrol cars after the gaming tribe contributed $125,000 to the department, and giving realistic-looking badges to Sheriff’s Council members who donated $10,000 or more to the charity.
Chief Brown singled out Sheriff Anderson’s decision to cut his ties with the Sheriff’s Council, saying it was an example of poor leadership.
“When they needed him most, he just walked away,” he said.
But the sheriff wasn’t the only one forced to defend his record. Several questioners drew on Mr. Thomas’ 12 years at the head of the department.
He explained why he was coming out of retirement after four years.
“When I retired, I didn’t retire from civic responsibility,” he said. “I put in 30 years to this department and I’m not going to abandon them when they need my help.”
The two other candidates -- Chief Brown and Lt. Arnoldi -- did their best to convince the audience that they were outsiders who could come in with a fresh approach to leading the force.
Chief Brown said the race should be about leadership and the fresh perspective that an outsider would bring. He has won the endorsement of the union representing Lompoc police officers and has been endorsed by the California Police Chiefs Association and both the local and state Teamsters union units.
Lt. Arnoldi, who is a night watch commander and the former head of the Isla Vista Foot Patrol, said morale within the department is at its lowest ebb since he became a deputy 30 years ago. He said Mr. Thomas had his shot at heading the department and someone new was needed, with fresh ideas.
Although a recent poll found as many people thought he was doing a good or excellent job as those who thought he was doing a fair or poor job, Sheriff Anderson’s campaign has picked up momentum from the union endorsement.
But about 60 deputies have signed a grievance about how the Deputy Sheriffs’ Association made that endorsement. Tonight, members of the union are meeting and are expected to discuss the endorsement flap.
Election Day is June 6. If no candidate gets more than 50 percent of the vote, the top two finishers will face off in November.
e-mail: shadly@newspress.com.
