Douglas County Commissioner Lora Thomas is a third Republican candidate for sheriff. She said in an interview that some COVID-19 precautions amounted to government overreach during the pandemic. She made the motion last summer to withdraw the county from the regional Tri-County Health Department over complaints about the health orders.<\/p>\n
But to \u201csay that the sheriff has ultimate power over everything\u201d is a bridge too far, she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s just not correct,\u201d she said. \u201cThere is separation of powers for a reason.\u201d<\/p>\n
Candidates running to be sheriff of El Paso County, which includes Colorado Springs, have been similarly divided on when and whether they will enforce all laws.<\/p>\n
Sheriff candidate Todd Watkins, who served in the U.S. Border Patrol for 24 years, opposes \u201carbitrary magazine capacity restrictions, so-called \u2018assault weapons\u2019 bans\u201d and other gun restrictions passed by state lawmakers, according to an endorsement from Rocky Mountain Gun Owners\u2019 political action committee.<\/p>\n
Greg Maxwell, director of security for the Broadmoor Hotel, says if he is elected sheriff he \u201cwill make sure everyone\u2019s constitutional rights are never violated\u201d but \u201cwill not enforce mandates, which are not laws, such as masks and vaccine mandates.\u201d<\/p>\n
El Paso County Undersheriff Joe Roybal, the third Republican candidate for sheriff, says his views don\u2019t differ much from his opponents. He will prioritize defending the Second Amendment and combating \u201cassaults on our constitutional rights,\u201d according to his campaign materials and social media accounts.<\/p>\n
But he characterized the constitutional sheriff branding as a \u201ccatchphrase.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019re doing that simply to catch the attention of people and, in my opinion, confuse them,\u201d said Roybal, a 26-year veteran of the sheriff\u2019s office who is seen as the frontrunner in the race.<\/p>\n
There needs to be some kind of cooperation between local, state and federal officials, he said. \u201cThe folks who have endorsed me, they understand that it\u2019s not as simple as saying \u2018I\u2019m a constitutional sheriff and if it\u2019s not constitutional, don\u2019t enforce it.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
The strong anti-government sentiments and opposition to gun restrictions and coronavirus precautions have alarmed some experts in law enforcement and radicalism, who say it reflects growing unrest and a strain of right-wing extremism that has permeated law enforcement offices across the country.<\/p>\n
Other local offices, from county clerks to municipal boards that once flew under the radar, have also become hyperpartisan in recent years. A woman vying to be El Paso County coroner is running as a \u201cfreedom doctor.\u201d Once-sleepy school board races have become caustic battlegrounds.<\/p>\n
The rise of Trumpism may have prompted some sheriffs and politicians to \u201cread the way the political winds seem to be blowing,\u201d and give lip service to ideas animating the Trumpist base, said Mark Pitcavage, senior research fellow at the Anti-Defamation League\u2019s Center on Extremism. That might be due to genuine affinity with the positions or a calculation that it would be helpful politically.<\/p>\n
The fights often pit a more militant, conspiratorial wing against traditional Republicans, reflecting a fight over the future direction of the GOP, he said.<\/p>\n But sheriffs\u2019 races differ from other political campaigns, given the unique powers of the office, some experts said.<\/p>\n It\u2019s one of the only elected law enforcement positions, said Holman, the Tulane political science professor. Sheriffs wield wide discretion and have broad authority.<\/p>\n \u201cThey have the ability to arrest people or not arrest people. They have the ability to really damage somebody\u2019s life if they so choose,\u201d Holman said. There are \u201cfew checks on what sheriffs do.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIn many ways, (it\u2019s) a very dangerous office to have somebody that is unwilling to cooperate with basic functions,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Refusing to enforce gun-related laws is one area where the \u201cconstitutional sheriff\u201d ideology can have a tangible impact on constituents\u2019 lives, said Robert Tsai, a Boston University law professor who has researched constitutional sheriffs.<\/p>\n \u201cIf they refuse to go and pick somebody up because of a violation of gun laws, they refuse to go disarm somebody, refuse to respond to someone who is armed. That\u2019s really where the rubber meets the road,\u201d Tsai said.<\/p>\n Sheriffs in the past have clashed with other branches of government, from refusing to help enforce federal immigration laws, to spurring anti-immigrant sentiment in defiance of a court order, as in the case of Joe Arpaio, the 24-year sheriff of Maricopa County, Arizona, who became nationally known for his hard line against immigrants living in the U.S. without permission.<\/p>\n Several sheriff candidates this year have promoted partisan causes in their campaigns, such as galvanizing residents to vote out judges they consider soft on crime or questioning the legitimacy of the 2020 presidential election.<\/p>\n In Mesa County, for example, sheriff candidate Bob Dalley says he will \u201creestablish voter integrity\u201d and \u201cuphold the constitution as written\u201d on his campaign website.<\/p>\n Asked about \u201cmajor problems during the 2020 election,\u201d including voter fraud and ballot dumping, Dalley said he was disappointed more wasn\u2019t done to \u201cfind out what went on last time.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIf anything is brought to me as sheriff then absolutely we\u2019re going to investigate it just like any other crime,\u201d said Dalley, who has worked for the Palisade police and is now chief marshal for the town of De Beque. He did not respond to a request for comment.<\/p>\n Wayne Bryant, a write-in candidate in Archuleta County, where two Republicans are already on the primary ballot for sheriff, has campaigned on claims of election fraud.<\/p>\n \u201cVote out using the Dominion (Voting) machines,\u201d he said in one Facebook post, referencing a company that\u2019s been at the center of conspiracies pushed by those who allege the 2020 election was stolen from former President Donald Trump. Dominion has filed defamation lawsuits and the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency has said there\u2019s no indication software vulnerabilities in the voting equipment were used to alter election results.<\/p>\n On his campaign website, Bryant has called for deputizing all citizens in the county of 13,500 residents and called on them to be poll watchers. He also said mail-in balloting systems are \u201ctotally corrupt.\u201d He did not respond to a request for comment.<\/p>\n Watkins, the El Paso County sheriff candidate, has expressed support for state Rep. Ron Hanks and Mesa County Clerk Tina Peters, two of the loudest voices in Colorado claiming the 2020 presidential election was stolen. Hanks is running for U.S. Senate. Peters, who is a candidate for Secretary of State, has been indicted on 10 charges related to a security breach of Mesa County\u2019s election system in 2021.<\/p>\n Watkins says he would work with county clerks to look into allegations of election fraud. If there\u2019s reasonable suspicion that a crime occurred, it\u2019s law enforcement\u2019s job to investigate, he said.<\/p>\n \u201cDoesn\u2019t mean that anybody is guilty,\u201d he said. \u201cYou follow evidence to where it leads and if it leads you to \u2018nothing happened here,\u2019 then guess what? Nothing happened here.\u201d<\/p>\n Resistance to enforcing the red flag gun law passed by Colorado lawmakers in 2019 is another common campaign plank. The law has proved broadly unpopular outside the state\u2019s urban areas.<\/p>\n Around half the state\u2019s counties declared themselves Second Amendment sanctuaries where the 2019 red flag law won\u2019t be enforced. GOP lawmakers and Rocky Mountain Gun Owners have unsuccessfully tried to overturn the law in court.<\/p>\n Roybal, the El Paso County frontrunner, believes the red flag law is an overreach, and a violation of the Fourth Amendment, barring illegal search and seizure. He would not enforce the red flag law, saying he would only seize weapons if there is probable cause that a crime has been committed. The county sheriff has never acted on the law. Mental health is the bigger issue, he said.<\/p>\n Candidates running on constitutional-sheriff rhetoric, Roybal said, are \u201cmaking a big deal out of something we don\u2019t do.\u201d<\/p>\n Sheriffs have discretion in how they choose to enforce the red flag gun law in Colorado, conservative commentator and former Arapahoe district attorney George Brauchler said. But the country\u2019s governance system is not set up to allow elected officials to independently decide what isn\u2019t and is unconstitutional, he said.<\/p>\n \u201cI know some of these people personally and professionally, and I\u2019m a big fan,\u201d Brauchler said of sheriffs who won\u2019t enforce the red flag law. \u201cBut to simply say as a blanket statement \u2018I will never ever apply it\u2019 seems to me to run afoul of this idea that there is a rule of law.\u201d<\/p>\n The idea of constitutional sheriffs is associated with the constitutional Sheriffs and Peace Officers Association, which believes that in their jurisdiction, sheriffs have \u201cconstitutional authority to check and balance all levels of government\u201d up to the president. Founded by former Graham County, Arizona Sheriff Richard Mack, the group has been called extremist by the Southern Poverty Law Center. A banner across its website calls for an \u201cElection Fraud Investigation.\u201d<\/p>\n Mack\u2019s association and its message have gained followers during the past decade.<\/p>\n After President Barack Obama proposed a raft of gun restrictions in the wake of the 2012 Sandy Hook massacre, at least 31 Colorado sheriffs and the state sheriff association signed statements opposing gun control that were collected by the association.<\/p>\n In 2021, more sheriffs than not said they believe their authority supersedes federal or state governments in their county, a central belief of the association, according to research from Holman and Emily Farris, a political scientist at Texas Christian University.<\/p>\n Sam Bushman, vice president of operations for the constitutional sheriffs group, objected to the characterization of the association as extremist or controversial, saying it was a \u201cpeaceful training association\u201d and that sheriffs and public officials swear to uphold the Constitution.<\/p>\n \u201cTherefore, everyone should be constitutional,\u201d Bushman said. He blamed the media for perverting the term \u201cconstitutional\u201d \u2013 \u201csay unconstitutional then they think you\u2019re a whacked out militia crazy\u201d \u2013 and said the assertion that the group believes \u201csheriffs can do whatever they want to\u201d is \u201cbogus.\u201d<\/p>\n He also said sheriffs have a duty to reject red flag gun laws, asking: \u201cIf there\u2019s a law that conflicts with the supreme law of our land\u201d \u2013 the U.S. Constitution \u2013 \u201cwhich law takes precedent?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cSo the DA, if he says, \u2018Oh, respect for the rule of law.\u2019 That\u2019s right. What rule of law are we talking about?\u2019 he asked.<\/p>\n Bushman said the group doesn\u2019t disclose its membership, but said the association is made up of \u201cordinary Americans,\u201d not only sheriffs.<\/p>\n Watkins, the El Paso County candidate and former Border Patrol agent, is part of the association. He doesn\u2019t consider it extreme. \u201cAt what point did the Constitution and the founding principles in this country become extremist ideology?\u201d<\/p>\n After Watkins left the Border Patrol and contemplated his next career move, he said he felt more and more that the sheriff was the \u201clast line defending your rights\u201d \u2013 the office with the \u201cresponsibility to say \u2018No, we\u2019re not going to do that which is contrary\u201d to the Constitution.<\/p>\n \u201cIt shouldn\u2019t have to be. Our elected officials \u2013 whether it\u2019s executive branch or legislative branch \u2013 should abide by the Constitution and stay within the limitations of power that were assigned to them,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n He believes in the \u201coriginal intent\u201d of the U.S. Constitution and that all government officials \u2013 from the president to a dogcatcher \u2013 should be primarily concerned with upholding it, he said.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve gotten it wrong in this country a number of times. What about Jim Crow? Segregation? Would you have arrested Rosa Parks? These were laws that never should have been enforced. Slave laws \u2013 would you have enforced those?\u201d he said. \u201cThere are lots of instances where we got it wrong, where \u2013 I should say \u2013 our Legislature got it wrong. The Constitution is supposed to provide those checks,\u201d through the separation of powers.<\/p>\n Most Colorado candidates who labeled themselves constitutional sheriffs in campaign materials said they are not affiliated with the organization.<\/p>\n Maxwell, Watkins\u2019 opponent in El Paso County, said he keeps up with the constitutional sheriffs group for the same reasons he reads newspapers he doesn\u2019t agree with ideologically.<\/p>\n \u201cI will say that I do not agree with any type of rhetoric that usurps our model of our three branches of government. Protecting everyone\u2019s constitutional rights is what resonates with me, not any particular group,\u201d he said, in written responses.<\/p>\n Anderson, the Douglas County candidate who served 40 years with Castle Rock\u2019s police department, said he doesn\u2019t \u201cneed somebody telling me what I can do.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI just don\u2019t feel comfortable getting involved in groups. I\u2019ve heard they are extremists and I don\u2019t know if they are or not, I couldn\u2019t tell you,\u201d he said. \u201cI don\u2019t need to be in a wolf pack. I can just be myself because I believe what I believe.\u201d<\/p>\n Anderson\u2019s opponent, Kluth, has labeled herself a \u201cconstitutional sheriff\u201d but said the term is used \u201cvery broadly.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI believe that constitutional policing, in this day and age, my own version of it, is protecting the citizens and allowing them to exercise their constitutional rights, which includes freedom of speech, freedom to gather, freedom to worship, the guarantee of due process, guarantee of Second Amendment rights,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Kluth said she\u2019d seen a slow creep toward government overreach that became more pronounced during the pandemic \u2013 when actions were taken \u201cthat really did impinge on our constitutional rights.\u201d She cited limits on gathering in houses or at indoor church services as examples and, more recently, a sense that parents were not being able to exercise their right to speech before school boards.<\/p>\n While familiar with Mack\u2019s association, Kluth said her views were driven by observing \u201cthings happening that I was very concerned about\u201d during the pandemic. To demonstrate her disagreement with the organization, she said Mack thinks the Reagan-era \u201cWar on Drugs\u201d \u2013 which set minimum prison sentences for drug offenses that disproportionately imprisoned Black people \u2013 was a failure, while she believes it made a difference.<\/p>\n That\u2019s part of what Bushman says too.<\/p>\n He said different levels of government have checks and balances \u2013 the federal and state government balancing locals and vice versa \u2013 and sheriffs, local prosecutors and lawmakers oversee each other in counties.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are not partisan. We don\u2019t believe the sheriff is a king or a god by any stretch of the imagination. We do believe the sheriff has tremendous authority. Most sheriffs are not living up to their responsibility or authority,\u201d Bushman said.<\/p>\n \u201cIf you put \u2018constitutional sheriff\u2019 in the proper context,\u201d he said, \u201cI think most sheriffs would agree.\u201d<\/p>\n