Sheriff Jim Whalen Q&A

Wednesday, January 21, 2009

By Henry Sweets

Jackson Hole, Wyo.-After 10 years as the captain of operations under former Sheriff Bob Zimmer, Jim Whalen was selected by Teton County Commissioners as the new sheriff last Thursday. He was sworn in Friday morning.

Planet JH caught up with him for a few questions that might be on the minds of Teton County residents.

PJH: What are your thoughts on the possible consolidation of the Teton County Sheriff’s office and the Jackson Hole Police?

JW: It’s worthy of discussion, but I think we need to identify a model that we are going to go after, and at least put it to paper in terms of a research document.
Essentially two models exist. One of the models, and the easiest model, is for the Sheriff’s office to contract with the City of Jackson to provide police services for the City of Jackson. We would have to hire more deputies that would come from the police department and essentially meld in to this organization.

The other model has more barriers. And those barriers are essentially legal ones. There has to be a legislative process in order to allow consolidation of Town and County services, and I think that would be a lengthy project.

PJH: And would it be beneficial to the County and Town, if the right model could be found?

JW: The overarching reason to do it would be to save money. Whether it would save money, I don’t know because we haven’t conducted the research.

Let’s say the town wanted to contract for services. How many more deputy sheriff’s would that require? Would it take all the police officers? Because we don’t want people losing their jobs.

PJH: And what about the new justice center? It was defeated during the last S.P.E.T. elections...

JW: Resoundingly.

PJH: So what message did you get from that, and what is the next step?

JW: I see maybe a jail first, before I see a justice center. The community saw the justice center as being just a huge thing, and wondered whether or not we need that kind of thing. Especially with dual offices, you know. On one end of the hall you have the sheriff, on the other end of the hall you have the chief of police. So it was this redundancy factor that people just couldn’t wrap their arms around, and frankly I don’t blame them, especially when we are also talking about consolidated organizations.

There will be a time when we need a new jail, and perhaps a new justice center, but [last year’s $50 million proposal] might have been a little before its time, because it was a very ambitious project. Right now, we’re down to 35 inmates, but in the last couple of months, there was a period of time when we had over 50 inmates at the jail, and we’re a 45-bed facility. So there are some overcrowding issues. But is it constant? No.

The jail is over 20 years old, and I would just posit that building a jail, leaving it within the framework of a jail and then maybe adding on later, in terms of offices and things, would be the way to go if we’re going to resurrect any type of a project for a new building.

PJH: For the average John or Jane Q. Citizen of Teton County, what is his or her relationship to the sheriff, anyway? And how might your new leadership affect the citizenry of Teton County?

JW: Historically, law enforcement organizations seem to, for whatever reason, evolve or devolve into this closed system so the community, any Joe Citizen person, doesn’t believe that they really have an in. I would like to see us be more open. If the community believes that they have a voice with the sheriff’s office, they are more inclined to call us, whether it be, “Hey, I saw this guy the other day that seemed suspicious,” or, “Hey, I saw one of your guys speeding through town and I think he was going too fast.”

I just want to be more open to those kinds of things, not to say that Bob Zimmer wasn’t, but I want it to be out there to John Q. Citizen, as you say, that they can give us a call.

PJH: Are you going to grow a mustache?

JW: I grow a lousy mustache. And, I think, if you can’t grow a good one you shouldn’t try. So, for now the mustache thing will have to go by the wayside. PJH
PERMALINK:
Sheriff Jim Whalen Q&A | Planet JH News Article: County News

Leave a Comment