Deputy: “We are ready for a leader, not a manager”

Dear Editor,

My name is Micah Abbott, and I’m writing this letter because I believe certain falsities should be brought to light, and I don’t foresee any of the current candidates for Sheriff of Hamilton County engaging the subject due to running positive campaigns. In this letter I will show instances where the Quakenbush for Sheriff Campaign is either bending the truth or misleading potential voters.

No one has asked me to do this nor have any of the candidates reached out to me. I have known and worked with each candidate for the past 10 years.

Before I begin I should state that I support Bill Clifford for Sheriff. This conclusion may be drawn by most readers, but I feel it is important to state so there is some perspective throughout the letter.

Despite my view point, this letter is not designed to show ill will towards Quakenbush. I write because I love the Sheriff’s Office and what it stands for. I have been friends with Quakenbush since before either of us worked together. This letter also isn’t a laundry list of why to vote for Clifford, but rather to enlighten the public on things they may have heard that are misleading and a misrepresentation of the truth. The following topics will be discussed throughout the letter:

• Years of service as a Merit Deputy (sworn police officer)
• Timeframe and average for arrest statistics vs. the other candidates
• Claiming sole responsibility for an increase of the arrests at the Sheriff’s Office
• Boasts of “leading” the Patrol Division of 60 plus individuals
• Rumors of being supported by former Sheriff Doug Carter
• Being the only qualified candidate due to his educational background

Little mistruths here and there are one thing. I have seen and ignored them, but not anymore. These issues stem from a variety of places – The Quakenbush for Sheriff Facebook page, public debates and forums, letters, statements and word of mouth from supporters. Now I understand Quakenbush cannot contain what others say in support of him. But in one instance a spreadsheet was created by a supporter that was so slanted it primarily included categories that only Quakenbush could put a check mark next to. It left out many accomplishments the other candidates had and even omitted check marks that should have been there for other candidates. Once posted online, one would think Quakenbush would either address the inaccuracies with it or simply just ignore it. In this case he chose to validate it by posting it to his official Facebook page.

Dennis Quakenbush claims to have been in law enforcement for 16 years. This timeline is echoed by current Sheriff Mark Bowen in a video interview supporting Quakenbush for Sheriff. In that interview it is said that Quakenbush has served Bowen faithfully for 16 years leading the common outsider to think Quakenbush has been in a leadership role as a Deputy for his entire career.

This simply isn’t true and is mathematically impossible.

Quakenbush was originally a dispatcher at the Sheriff’s Office back when Dispatch was governed by the Sheriff’s Office. He was hired as a Merit Deputy in late November 2003. So more accurately when Quakenbush publicly announced his candidacy for Sheriff he had been a Deputy for just over 14 years.

Recently all four candidates spoke at the Public Forum hosted by the Fiscal Conservatives of Hamilton County. When Quakenbush gave his final remarks he went into some arrest numbers relating it to leading by example. Quakenbush went on to inform everyone that the three candidates sitting next to him have averaged 16 arrests combined per year since 1995. He proclaimed triumphantly he has averaged 69 arrests over the duration of his time in the Patrol Division. This time frame and content is just ridiculous. First impressions from that declaration is the other candidates have been averaging just over five arrest individually for the past 23 years, which seems to implicate they aren’t very good at their job or perhaps just lazy. In contrast it would lead someone unfamiliar with the Sheriff’s Office to believe Quakenbush has averaged 69 arrests for, you guessed it, 16 years. Quakenbush indicates he was in the Patrol Division at the time of those arrests which would limit that window to about seven and a half years (2004-2011).

So much is left out of this blanket statement which completely bends the numbers. What about the arrests all three candidates made prior to 1995? Each of them were hired well before then.

Typically in this profession officers have higher arrest numbers when they are new. This was a quick gotcha stat that maybe if looked at sideways and through a narrow opening with binoculars might reflect some truth. But it is not an accurate depiction of Quakenbush’s stats, or those of the other candidates, especially when looking through the lens of leading by example.

Besides the obvious omission of data prior to 1995, you were led to believe the other candidates were simply Patrol Deputies for the past 23 years, which couldn’t be further from the truth.

Mitch Russell’s resume is quite vast and spans multiple police agencies and service in many supervisory roles from Sergeant to Captain and even Town Marshal. It also includes being the head of Investigations where he tackled the evils of child abuse and neglect cases. Russell currently manages security at Riverview Hospital and is one of the most approachable guys I have ever met.

Eddie Moore has spent time as the Jail Commander, Public Information Officer, and Training Coordinator for the Sheriff’s Office over the years. Making arrests was not part of the job description during that time. When Moore came back to the Patrol Division, he did so in a supervisory role as a Lieutenant on night shift. Moore spends more time training and grooming the men and women working for him than he does trying to improve his personal stats. This is his calling, and his squad represents those qualities well and are better equipped to serve the citizens of Hamilton County because of it.

Bill Clifford is in the same boat as Russell and Moore. He was a Police Officer well before 1995 and over the duration of his career he has spent time outside of the Patrol Division. Clifford started in Patrol and then spent time in the Drug Task Force unit. He then spent time in the Investigations Division where he investigated serious offenses such as rape, sexual battery, child molestation and homicide. These aren’t the two to three hour cases that can be closed quickly with an arrest. No, this took a special interest and skill set to accomplish. Clifford brought justice, closure and a sense of retribution to many individuals without a voice. Clifford then came back to Patrol in a supervisory role as a Sergeant.

At the same Public Forum, Quakenbush points out that he is the current Patrol Commander and informs the audience that he “leads” over 60 men and woman at the Sheriff’s Office. This number appears to be a combination of the 38 full-time Patrol Deputies and 23 Reserve Deputies. He claims responsibility for an increase of 31 percent in arrests during his time as Patrol Commander. This sounds impressive for sure, but again here is the message – more arrests must dictate how good of a leader you are. But I challenge you to factor in the incredible and unfortunate increase of drug related problems this county is having. It’s fair to at least credit some of the increased arrests on the increase in criminal activity. There are also a handful of Deputies who have found their forte, one in particular, in arresting drunk drivers. This is truly a great thing and Deputies who work with that individual have been motivated and also maintain impressive arrest stats. This increase is based more on peer influence and not motivation from the person in charge sitting behind a desk.

It is very rare to see Captain Quakenbush out in the field. Even rarer would be appearances at our roll call sessions or other functions where Patrol might see him. If Quakenbush truly motivated us to that 31 percent arrest increase there would be some evidence of it.

I have never been motivated to be more aggressive or statistically productive from Quakenbush. I have felt criticized and micromanaged, but never motivated. This feeling is shared by many Patrol Deputies unfortunately.

While on the subject of stats, the most telling statistic of all is the fact that out of the 60 plus Deputies that Quakenbush commands, just over 1 percent (one deputy) support his candidacy for Sheriff. Quakenbush has held one staff meeting in his tenure as Patrol Commander… ONE! I’ll point out that seven years ago when Quakenbush was first appointed to Captain, a lot of us were on board with a future Sheriff Quakenbush and that percentage would have been significantly higher. Unfortunately and fortunately time has a way of revealing things.

I’ll be brief on this next point, but I feel it is important to bring up. On the Quakenbush for Sheriff Facebook page there are pictures from a public event he attended with other political candidates. Former Sheriff and current Indiana State Police Superintendent Doug Carter attended as well. A Quakenbush photographer captured a photo of Carter and Quakenbush laughing, and it was posted to Facebook along with a photo of Carter addressing the audience. Now nowhere does Quakenbush say that he is endorsed by Carter, but several times throughout his posts he name drops Carter. What is concerning is being approached by a stranger who asks who I support, and then they tell me they support Quakenbush because they have heard Carter endorsed him. This has happened several times to multiple people to the point where I suspect those innocent photos coupled with the right political verbiage by Quakenbush supporters has given the wrong impression. I can positively squash that rumor and say with 100 percent certainty that Doug Carter DOES NOT endorse Quakenbush.

Quakenbush boasts an impressive educational background, especially in business. He is to be congratulated for that. He claims he is the only candidate with the unique qualification to run an agency with a multi-million dollar budget. But many former Hamilton County Sheriffs did not have MBAs or multiple degrees – Bowen, Carter, Stevens and Cook didn’t. I don’t believe those men would have taken kindly to being written off due to their inferior level of education in a campaign against Quakenbush. Quakenbush runs on a ticket of being a fiscal conservative. I typically vote for a fiscal conservative as I am all about not wasting our tax dollars! What I don’t consider waste is money spend properly to make Public Safety better. When this doesn’t occur, resources and training suffer and new applicants aren’t incentivized to seek employment. You get what is left over from the surrounding agencies who invest heavily in their officers. I’m not sure what else Quakenbush thinks he can cut out of our budget, but running on that platform given where we currently are is concerning. As a resident of the county I want the first responders around me to be well trained, well outfitted and selected from a large pool of qualified candidates. I don’t think any of the other three candidates would spend money recklessly, and regardless, the budgets are already in place. The new Sheriff isn’t reinventing the wheel, and furthermore the next Sheriff, even if it is Quakenbush, wouldn’t be putting a tax refund check in anyone’s mailbox.

Quakenbush claimed victory in the Fiscal Conservatives of Hamilton County event last week which I attended. He later posted this on his Facebook page: “I’ve heard you loud and clear. You aren’t interested in change. You aren’t interested in a different direction. You aren’t interested in a candidate who doesn’t have the interest of the taxpayers first and foremost. You are interested in a leader who will fight for the whole county.”

Captain Quakenbush, with all due respect, I can assure you that we are interested in change. We are most definitely ready for a new direction. While all the candidates have the ability and desire to fight for this county, Quakenbush would lead the public to think he is the only candidate who can keep their families safe and keep Hamilton County the great place it is to live and work. Let me be clear, regardless of who wins this election, the safety and security of the citizens is not in jeopardy. The men and women of the Sheriff’s Office are dedicated to serving regardless of who is in charge. We don’t put this uniform on and go out and risk taking a bullet just for a paycheck. We do it because we love this job and what it represents. We are ready for a candidate who does not have the support of the current and recently removed Command Staff. That is a huge part of the change we so desperately desire and do not foresee under Quakenbush as apparent by his endorsements. John Maxwell sums it up, “Leadership is not about titles, positions, or flowcharts. It is about one life influencing another.” We are ready for a new chapter; we are desperate to bring honor and integrity back to our creed. We are more than a soulless number on a spreadsheet or a shade of color on a pie chart. We are ready for a leader, not a manager, who is in touch with us, respects us, and someone who will erase the tarnish our badge has accrued. We are ready to be emboldened, renewed and released from the distractions that have plagued us in recent years.

Thank you for your time. Please join me on May 8 to make the Sheriff’s Office great again.

Micah Abbott

Fishers