Editorial: Keller’s legacy will be tough to match

Wednesday, Oct. 24, 2001 | 8:58 a.m.

Sheriff Jerry Keller stunned everyone with his announcement Monday that he would not seek a third term in 2002. If the sheriff had decided to run for re-election, there was no serious challenger on the horizon. The reason for Keller's popularity is his on-the-job performance. Crime in many categories has dropped during his tenure, quite a testament to him, considering how fast the city has grown in that same period. And the roughly 1 million residents who make up the residential population that the agency must patrol is deceiving. There also are 30 million tourists who visit Las Vegas each year, a situation that stretches the limits of the police.

Keller rose up through the ranks in his long career as a police officer and earned the respect of fellow officers. As sheriff, he also acknowledged the need to punish those who bent the rules and, when necessary, vigorously supported the prosecution of officers charged with breaking the law. The sheriff understood that he was elected by the people, not the police force, and that his first responsibility was to protect the public from harm -- even if that came from his own police officers.

The election is still more than a year away, and there is plenty of time for potential candidates to decide if they want this tough job. Some of those hopefuls may come from within Metro itself, and Keller has done a nice job of grooming possible successors. Whoever wins the sheriff's race will be fortunate to inherit a department that is in good shape, thanks in very large part to Jerry Keller.