Published: November 03, 2009 09:24 pm      

It’s time to reclaim our right to self-rule

In my commentary, (“They’ve eliminated checks and balances,” Oct. 16 Times-News), I argued that the Allegany County Commissioners violated fundamental American principles when they effectively redefined the Sheriff’s office; stripping that office of essential equipment, material, officers, etc … I called for the sheriff to step aside if he was unable or unwilling to hold the commissioners responsible for their actions.

Jeffrey Davis responded with his own point of view, (“Issues involving road patrols should be addressed,” Oct. 25). Davis said the road patrol was not “necessarily a Sheriff’s Department function.” In addition, he said it was “obvious” the commissioners did not remove any “constitutional powers” from the sheriff’s office.

Davis did a nice job in describing the county home rule laws that seemed to empower and to legitimize the commissioners’ actions.

I am more concerned about protecting the constitutional rights of our people. And I think many citizens are concerned about the protecting the integrity of our democratic institutions. Folks have the right to participate in our democracy and to have the confident expectation that their vote counts.

The problem with county home rule law (as it has been applied in this case) is that it deprives the people who live in this county the right to rule from their own homes. The commissioners, by relying on this device, have effectively made our election results invalid.

The fact of the matter is clear: When the electorate went to the polls, they had a reasonably expectation as to what the sheriff’s duties and responsibilities were. In all fairness, voters had a great deal of historical evidence and empirical data to support their expectation.

It is reasonable to assume that the sheriff’s office handles the responsibilities of the sheriff’s office; at that time the sheriff was responsible for more than the constitutional mandates of his department. Certainly, the sheriff took care of detention center and court responsibilities. But, he was also responsible for ensuring public safety (road patrols), deputies made arrests, and coordinated and assisted other agencies in all matters related to law enforcement.

A sheriff was elected. The election was certified; the results were legitimate … so we thought.

Do we need constitutional tutorial the next time we cast a ballot? Or, can we trust our democratic process and have the reasonable expectation that our votes matter? How fair and honest is it to win an election and then have your office “radically altered”; stripped of equipment, responsibilities, funding etc…? What’s the point of having an election?

The county Board of Elections needs to address this issue and restore trust to this institution; protect our elections and our democratic process. This also needs to be the message at the annual “Pre-season Public Meeting” Nov. 17 at Allegany College. The people of Allegany County need to make it clear to our legislators and public leaders that we need to trust our democracy; elections need to count.

Much of the rhetoric of this polarizing issue has centered on the commissioners’ decision to form an additional policing agency. Some folks, like Davis, believe that Sheriff Goad’s behavior precipitated this act. These are legitimate points of view and they certainly have their merit and deserve our careful scrutiny.

However, all of this scrutiny is worthless if we do not have the right to choose our leaders and to address community concerns more directly by vote.

Crafty enactments of county home rule laws, political/financial doubletalk, and other agents of corruption have relieved the people of their right to self-rule. The time has come reclaim those rights and to restore that sacred trust.

Thomas Mogle

Cumberland