Questions submitted by the Citizens of Oconee and Amanda Tinsley’s Answers:
1. What is going to be your way of reducing the drugs and crime in the county? Would like to hear a plan for crime reduction as this is the core purpose of the sheriffs department is to keep our communities safe. I have been following your campaign and have heard a lot about the internal working of the sheriffs department but would not about the problems with crime in our county.
The reason you have heard me speak about changing the internal culture at the Sheriff’s office to focus on people and purpose is because I know that when your employees (team members) are treated with respect and dignity, the way you would want to be treated, and are given autonomy and the freedom and encouragement to come forward and speak openly with innovative and creative ideas, the more productive they are. So, if the environment on the inside of the Sheriff’s office turns toward focusing on the people on the inside (team members), reminding them frequently that we work for THE PEOPLE and serve THE PEOPLE of the County, we will solve more cases, therefore reducing crime. When cases go uninvestigated, no one is held responsible, therefore, the suspect walks free to commit more crime with no accountability. Instead of being the type of leader who is so self-absorbed that I ignore the intelligence and experience of my team, I will choose to discuss with my team what their ideas are to make us more efficient and effective in the many functions of the Sheriff’s office. Although I have helped our Narcotics division on several occasions, they are the experts in the best ways to investigate drug cases. Since I have never served the varying types of civil papers our team members in our Civil division have, they are the experts I would choose to converse with to find out how we can streamline what they do. My point is, I can tell you I would like to do weekly heavy saturations of different areas of our County with multiple officers, including our K-9 officers, to address the illegal and prescription drug problem, as well as to put pressure on our thieves in those areas. I can tell you I plan to add additional positions inside our Investigations and Narcotics division that are temporary positions which rotate every year or two, until the officer rotates back to road patrol, diversifying our officers experience and knowledge as well as adding help to the Investigations division and Narcotics division with investigating cases. I plan to invest in software programs which will streamline our investigative techniques, speeding up our timeline, making us more efficient, therefore enabling us to investigate more cases, instead of cases falling between the cracks due to mass amount of cases one Investigator is given. I plan to create a Special Victims Unit. A TEAM of people to investigate child abuse, vulnerable adult, sexual assaults, CDV, and missing persons cases. The truth is, I know I am not all knowing, and I respect the people I work with greatly. They are intelligent capable people, who if encouraged to brainstorm ideas to reduce the sale of illegal and prescription drugs and crime, will come up with better ideas than mine. I believe in being the leader of a TEAM, not the supervisor or “boss” of employees.
2. As a Christian and someone running for sheriff, my questions are how do you intend to help repeat offender's with drug addiction and mental conditions ?
A few years ago I was asked to speak to members of NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness). In preparing for that speech, I asked our dispatch to help me determine what percentage of people who were described as having a mental illness by complainants (people who called the Sheriffs office) went to jail when the Sheriff’s Office was called. 5 % of the time, Deputies had to take someone to jail. 95% of the time, Deputies resolved the call by attempting to get the person help. In the 5 % of the cases, the person had committed a crime and the Deputies had little choice but take the person to jail. So to answer your question, we help people when we can the majority of the time. The statistics prove it. At least they did several years ago when I spoke with the NAMI members. According to NAMI, 1 in 4 Americans have a mental illness. Many Law Enforcement officers have members of our family who have mental illness. So, the key is encouraging Deputies to treat others as they would like to be treated if in the same situation or how they would want their family members treated.
As far as drug addiction, our detention officers do attempt to offer options to those who have addictions as possibilities to help them overcome addiction. The truth is, the Sheriff’s office does not have the resources to offer a rehab facility or services, and rehab works for those who are ready to for a change of lifestyle. Court ordered drug rehab doesn’t tend to work unless the individual is ready for the change. I would love to offer more, but the Sheriff’s office and Law Enforcement cannot fix every problem in our society. I have asked a friend who does private counseling for troubled women to help me come up with ideas that we can actually implement. One idea she suggested is having scholarships to help with the expense of rehab available for inmates who show they are truly ready for change.
3. As a Christian how do you intend to act on circumstantial evidence in cases, and your take on deputies who charge people for a crime, driving, or other that they did not see personally but arrest up on assumption.
As far as evidence that Deputies use to base a warrant, they cannot just take someone to jail without probable cause that the person committed a crime. Most of those arrest must be presented to a Judge to establish if enough evidence exists for a charge to be made. The mass majority of Law Enforcement officers would never want to take a person to jail if they had any doubt of the person’s guilt. Personally, it would kill me to think I arrested an innocent person. Removing someone’s freedom is not something I take lightly, nor do I think most Law Enforcement officers do.
4. Do you intend to help all people in public including drug addicts, non-violent criminals as well as us non criminals?
I am in this profession to attempt to help everyone in the community – and I meaneveryone. I hope you watch my videos and read the supporting documentation I provide on my website as evidence that I truly hope to help as many people possible.
5. How do you intend to keep your officers under control, they kicked my door in with guns on my special needs adult son looking for nephew run away with out a warrant and never replace the damage and he now fears going to sleep unless I'm home.
No one should have kicked in your door without a warrant for your address unless an emergency circumstance existed. I think that problem needs to be taken to the current Sheriff, since I cannot address those actions at the moment. I would never support unlawful actions by officers.
6. Could you please let me know what is your position on Second Amendment /Gun control and Sanctuary counties for gun owners?
Amendment II : "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed."
I believe our forefathers believed so strongly in the laws they wrote into The Constitution that they were willing to fight and die so that all of us would have those rights preserved. My husband and I are gun owners and enjoy the same rights, freedoms and protection of beliefs as you do. I would never infringe up those rights.
7. Amanda, will you let your deputies lead a funeral possession unlike Mike Crenshaw?
I would love to but am not certain the best way to get it accomplished. Maybe, if there are not enough paid Deputy positions available that we can remove from responding to calls for service, we could work it out where retired Deputies/Law Enforcement or Reserve Deputies would be willing to contribute to our community by doing this. I used to love when officers did this too. It helps the family feel like their loved one is being honored in a special way. Just makes you as a family member feel better. It's hard to explain, but I miss it too.
8.Back in 2005 the governor Mark Sanford, then the Governor of South Carolina, issued Executive order 2005-12 on June 3, 2005, directing the adoption of the National Incident Management System (NIMS) as the standard for incident management in the state. Local jurisdictions are encouraged to adopt NIMS for emergency management and incident response. Even though that was way back in 2005 the police have failed to comply with the executive order like other South Carolina police agencies and use Plain Talk as mandated by NIMS. Do you plan to fix that so Oconee is compliant?
Well, from what you have written, the executive order said it “encouraged” agencies do use plain talk, and we would use plain talk if a situation arose where we were having to communicate with other agencies who do not share our code system. Police codes were first developed to limit talk time due to limited air space on the radio, and I will say, most of our officers still use only one radio channel, so the more words used may interfere with another officer's ability to be heard if a dangerous situation arose. I am not against plain talk, and officers have the choice to use plain talk if needed; but out of respect for our Dispatchers, the people who keep our communication center running, and the road officers, I would have a conversation and discussion with them before making a decision that would greatly impact their jobs. Too often, leadership make changes without speaking with the people who are the workers in that particular area (which is arrogant and rude). I think additional research would be needed before making a final decision.
9. Amanda, is this the kind of services & policing we can expect from you if elected as Sheriff? If so, you will definitely have my vote! (Referring to how the Sheriff from Brevard, FL chose to publicly video him stating his officers would target a particular residence due to the crime the residents cause). I'm sick and tired of dealing with thieving drug addicts & drug dealers at my employment & my place of residency. Everytime a complaint is made, they turn a deaf ear to the complaint or if an arrest is made they turn the perp into a narc & nothing more comes from it!
I think conducting surveillance and saturating the area with officers to help cut down the crime is great. Airing a video in front of the house saying they are targeting it publicly...probably not the path I would take. I think I would communicate with the Solicitors office and Judges (who decide and control what potential penalty the bad guys will acutally face) the info he shared about responding there 100 times (types of calls, etc.), reinforcing the idea that the repeat offenders are career criminals and need to be sent to prison to protect society and that neighborhood. My point is that there are ways to accomplish what he wants to accomplish without the video in front of the home. Not that I feel sorry for the adults committing crimes, but everyone has family. Many drug addicts and dealers have children who attend our public schools. It’s clear this Sheriff is emotional about his plan, and I applaud him for caring, even if I would have handled it differently.
10.Why did you wait to report the “so called” wrong doings of the current Sheriff and report it when you decide you want to be sheriff? YOU are the one that was in the wrong for not saying something when the alleged incidents happened. If he didn't do his job, neither did you by sitting back and doing NOTHING. I'd like an answer.
How can you read those documents and not see that I had reported incidents beforehand, and it was his lack of action to acknowledge, investigate, or correct anything I told him, his apathetic, dismissive attitude which caused me to run for Sheriff. Look at the dates...it was these SERIES of events which motivated my candidacy. I did not bring those things up because I’m running for Sheriff. Knowing that nothing was going to change to help my co-workers or the citizens of this County unless I stepped out in faith to run for Sheriff is my motivation. Why are you not asking Crenshaw why he didn’t do his JOB as the leader of Law Enforcement? (Which he still, as I write this, has done NOTHING about anything I reported to him...NOTHING has been investigated or corrected!) The ONE person who can make sure there is justice on the inside as well as outside of the Sheriff’s Office. I vow to listen to the voices of the employees and citizens and right wrongs when I discover them.
11. What happened to the wrongfully charged lawsuit related to a rape investigation that you did?
The lawsuit you have asked me about was dismissed. I provided proof that I did not do what I was accused. If I had, I could have been fired and my certification removed.
I am from Oconee County, with my mother’s side of the family having roots here for over 180 years and my father’s side of the family having Cherokee ancestry originating in Oconee. I have two sisters and six nieces. I am married and have helped raise two of my nieces, one of which currently lives with me. My family and I attended Earle’s Grove Baptist church throughout my childhood. I went to Oakway Elementary and Middle school and graduated from West-Oak High School in 1996.
2. Why did you choose to run?
I believe and know God has called me to run for Sheriff of Oconee County. I have chosen to run because I know the internal culture at the Sheriff’s office must change. Being an employee, I have been privy to information, that I cannot ignore in good conscious. I will be releasing information on my website informing the citizens of the County about the series of events that God has allowed me to experience that have convinced me to run.
3. If elected, what will your main focus be?
I plan to lead the internal culture of the Sheriff’s Office toward focusing on people and purpose. It is time for modern, Christ centered leadership that demonstrates true servant leadership.
4. What are the top three issues present right now that you’d like to do differently in the next four years?
There is a desperate need for the internal culture of the Sheriff’s office to change. We will focus on serving the people of the community with our hearts. We will care about the quality of work we produce, not just documenting the basic facts. Every Deputy will desire to be an active participant in resolving a call or investigation for the people involved. The people of Oconee are our family and we need to be the kind of servants who treat people as though what has happened to them has happened to one of our family members.
We will also focus on supporting each other. Our fellow officers in blue at our department and those at other Law Enforcement agencies. We will work as a unified department, not a department divided against itself. We need to act as a team if we are to provide the best quality of service to the citizens of the community.
We will focus on fulfilling the multitude of purposes for which we were created. Those of us who have been called to serve people were not created for one purpose. We were created for a multitude of purposes. We will remind ourselves why we serve and who we serve first.
5. What do you think the most important issue facing the council/law enforcement is right now?
The top issue that the citizens of Oconee are facing which the Sheriff's Office can address is improving our quality of service. We need to focus on people and purpose. We will care about the quality of work we produce, not just documenting the basic facts. Every Deputy will desire to be an active participant in resolving a call or investigation for the people involved. The people of Oconee are our family and we need to be the kind of servants who treat people as though what has happened to them has happened to one of our family members.
6. What do you see as some of the biggest challenges the county will have to overcome in the next four years?
As far as Law Enforcement is concerned, the biggest challenge we face is the retention of and attraction of good employees, people who have true servant hearts. Although it will be challenging, with changing the internal culture of the Sheriff’s office, we will make our Sheriff’s office the standard toward which other Law Enforcement agencies across the State look to as the model to mimic to cause a great revival within this profession.
7. What's the one major project/goal you'd like to see council accomplish during your tenure?
I plan to retain and attract good employees by marketing how rewarding it is to serve others. One major project I would like to see created is a Special Victim’s Unit. I also plan to restructure the Sheriff’s Office so that more cases can be successfully worked to completion.
8. Point blank, why should Oconee County residents vote for you instead of the competition?
I am offering the citizens of this County the opportunity to be a part of true change at the Sheriff’s Office. “We the People” do not have to accept the same old cookie-cutter, mediocre quality of service. I am offering dedication to improving the quality of service to the citizens of the County and supporting the employees of the Sheriff’s Office by being a servant leader. People will be treated fairly, no matter what they look like on the outside. I will listen to the voices of the employees and the people. Under my watch, wrongs will be righted. I promise to do these things to the best of my ability with a true servant’s heart.
9. How do you intend to recruit and retain qualified officers?
I plan to retain and attract good employees by treating them as I would like to be treated. I hope to market our Law Enforcement agency by appealing to the ideals which draw a person into this profession. Although I am not afraid to reinvent the wheel if necessary, I will seek advice from professionals in private industry and those at progressive, successful Law Enforcement agencies to learn what is working elsewhere. We will then take these ideas and use them to help stimulate creative and innovative concepts that help develop constantly evolving recruiting and retention practices.
10. How would ending the cash-bail system affect the criminal justice system in general and the affected detainee in particular?
I have experienced poverty on a personal level. I believe ending the cash-bail system would be bad for the law-abiding citizens of this country. I have witnessed the Judges in Oconee weigh the seriousness of an offender’s crime and his criminal history before considering his bond, or cash-bail option. I do not feel like our Judges use the cash-bail system too heavy handedly. If a person does not want to worry about paying a cash-bail, that person should not commit crimes.
11. There is a growing argument that appointment of a sheriff as opposed to election would insulate the sheriff from the political process and help to ensure law enforcement decisions are not politically motivated. What is your opinion on this?
By personal experience as a Law Enforcement officer employed by elected officials, removing the Sheriff as an elected official would ABSOLUTELY NOT insulate the position of Sheriff from the political process. An appointed Sheriff would be appointed by politicians, many of whom have special or personal interest in mind. This would not insulate the position of Sheriff. As a matter of fact, it would ensure the Sheriff’s job would be at the mercy of the politicians who appointed him/her, weakening the ability of the Sheriff to make truly independent decisions on behalf of the people of the community. It is good for the Sheriff to be elected by the people who live in the community where he/she enforces the law. It’s good for the Sheriff to have to answer to the people, not politicians, or special interests.
12. If resources were available, what new program would you propose and how would it benefit the county?
I plan to restructure the Sheriff’s office so more investigations can be worked through to completion. Although I need to do more research, I would like to see our agency have additional positions within our specialty divisions, like Investigations and Narcotics, which would be rotating positions. These rotating positions would allow an officer to rotate from working on road patrol, into Investigations for a couple of years, then into Narcotics for a couple of years and then back to road patrol. If successful in these specialty areas, these officers would gain rank and pay for their hard work and willingness to constantly expand their knowledge as Law Enforcement officers. This experience and training would help put officers who have the trained eyes of Investigators in direct contact with the public and be among the first to respond to calls for service. I believe this would make us a more diverse team of Law Enforcement officers.
13. What is the most challenging aspect of the job of sheriff and how would you deal with it?
I think the most challenging aspect of any leadership position is the management of and interacting with people. I will gain and keep the loyalty of my employees (team members) because I vow to treat them as I would like to be treated. I will consistently say what I mean and mean what I say. My actions will be consistent with my words. I will deal with problems, not ignore them. I will strive to maintain unity among my team members by repeatedly sharing the dreams of what kind of department we can have, our vision statement and mission statement, and what our goals are with my team. Our team will consistently and respectfully communicate with each other to help everyone have shared purposes and goals. I recognize how important people are to the success of any agency. I will be a servant, entre-leader.
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On Tuesday, June 9th, 2020 vote for Amanda Tinsley for Sheriff!
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