Sheriff’s race an in-house face-off

David Kihara

Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2006 | 12:34 p.m.

The race for Clark County sheriff has an internecine quality this year that will twist relations in Metro Police.

The reason: Metro Lt. Ron Williams is challenging his boss, Sheriff Bill Young. The two men have to work together at the department during the campaign, and after it.

For now, Williams is trying to be diplomatic. "I'm not running against Bill Young - I'm running for sheriff," said Williams, a 14-year veteran of Metro, who is currently assigned to the northeast area command.

"I have nothing against the current sheriff whatsoever."

But Williams' gentle language couldn't mask the reality that if he is to unseat the popular incumbent, he needs to criticize the department run by his boss. Williams knows that. His campaign literature says he wants to "do away with the 'top heavy top down' ineffective bureaucracy that is Metro today."

The situation like that is fraught with peril, says Randy Oaks, who ran for sheriff twice while working in the department - in 1994 against Jerry Keller and again in 2002 against Young.

The campaign is very divisive to the department," Oaks said. "It's almost a shame the department has to go through that every four years."

Officers in the department are torn, he said.

"You have two people working side to side who support different candidates, and sometimes that affects their working relationships."

Oaks, now police chief in Prescott, Ariz., lost both times. Before Oaks lost to Keller, he said, he was a rising star within the department. He was commander of special operations, in charge of the airport, rural officers and air support.

After the election, he was transferred to the civil bureau - a lower profile bureau overseeing civil matters.

Asked if he thought his transfer was retribution for running against Keller, he replied, "You could draw that conclusion." Keller could not be reached for comment.

But the aftermath of the 2002 was entirely different. After Oaks lost to Young, the sheriff approached him and gave him a choice of any assignment he wanted.

"That's how a professional handles it," Oaks said. "I have to give Bill the credit for putting aside politics and doing the best for the department.

"During the campaign, I said he was a Jerry Keller clone and he just wanted the status quo. I accused him of that and I was wrong."

Young could not be reached for comment Monday.

The collision of politics and workplace are relatively common in races for sheriff around the United States, but not in jurisdictions where the top position is appointed.

In those cases, a department's leader faces no public threat from within. On the other hand, when top police officials are appointed, they often run into conflicts with city councils or mayors who want to control them, said Felipe Ortiz, national president of the National Latino Peace Officers Association.

"The appointment process does not seem to work out," said Ortiz, a 21-year law enforcement veteran. "The trust factor is lost because voters don't have the ability" to choose the law enforcement official.

David Kihara can be reached at 259-2330 or at davidk@lasvegassun.com.