The Daily Oklahoman from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma • 287

County Jail Issue Dominates Sheriff's Race By Ed Godfrey Staff Writer P.D. Taylor Republican, Oklahoma City Dave McBride Republican, Oklahoma City Occupation: Sergeant in Oklahoma City police department. Age: 50. Born: Oklahoma City. Academic: Associate's degree, Oklahoma City Southwestern College.

Church home: Occupation: Former Oklahoma City police chief and former state commissioner of public safety-Age: 49. Bom: Atoka. Academic: Master's degree in public administration, University of Oklahoma: Lamont "Bo" Bolhuis Republican, Oklahoma City Occupation: Owner of security agency. Age: 45. Born: Waterloo, Iowa.

Academic: Bethany High School; attended three years college. Church home: Heritage Baptist Church. Candidate's top priority issues: Management of Oklahoma County jail; gangs; neighborhood security; drugs and crime. Previous elective offices held: None. Larry Greb Republican, Oklahoma City Council Road Baptist Church.

Candidate's top priority issues: Crime; accountability in government; proper management of county jail; more rural police protection. Previous elective offices held: None. John Whetsel Democrat, Choctaw bachelor's degree in law enforcement, Oklahoma City University. Church Home: Council Road Baptist Church. Candidate's top priority issues: Executive responsibility; making the Oklahoma County jail a joint city and county jail; getting accreditation for the jail through the American Correctional Association; community policing; budget controls.

Previous elective offices held: None. J.D. Sharp (Incumbent) Democrat, Bethany Occupation: Security supervisor at Lucent Technologies (formerly Network Systems). Age: 47. Born: Oklahoma City.

Academic: Associate's degree, Oklahoma Military Academy. Church home: Occupation: Choctaw police chief. Age: 47. Born: No response. Academic: Bachelor of arts, University of Central Oklahoma.

Church home: No response. Candidate's top priority issues: Providing professional Occupation: Oklahoma County sheriff. Age: 67. Born: Fort Smith, Ark. Academic: Attended Oklahoma City University; GED from the Navy.

Church home: Not listed. Candidate's too Feed the Children ministries. Candidate's top priority issues: Effective leadership; law and order in rural areas; maintaining a jail that conforms to federal jail standards; assisting area law enforcement. Previous elective offices held: None. Chester Longacre Democrat, Oklahoma City J.D.

Sharp has been sheriff of Oklahoma County for the past 15 years. He's been elected four times to the post, and at age 67, he is asking voters to elect him to a fifth term. But the former Bethany police chief concedes this election year marks the most serious battle in his reign. Armed with an Oklahoma County grand jury's criticism of Sharp's management of the problem-riddled Oklahoma County Jail, six other individuals want the sheriffs job. And Sharp is opposed by some candidates well-known to Oklahoma County voters.

The sheriff said he knows his opponents will make political hay of the jail's problems. "I'm sure they will, but this jail we are finally getting under control," Sharp said. "We had new people that we now have trained and the jail is running a lot smoother now." The oldest candidate in the field, Sharp said he never considered retiring and leaving the criticism behind him. "It scares me to death to think about retiring," he said. Sharp said a friend recently retired and now just "sits in a chair and watches television.

I don't want to do that. I don't want to do that. I want to serve the citizens of Oklahoma County. I want to serve the people who got me where I am." But Sharp faces a challenge just to survive the Democratic primary. In the primary he is being opposed by Choctaw Police Chief John Whetsel and Chester Longacre, a retired major from the Oklahoma County Sheriffs Department.

Whetsel, 47, is making a second bid to become sheriff after losing to Sharp in the 1992 Democratic primary. Whetsel is past president of the International Association of Chiefs of Police. He gained national attention in his crusade for more police pursuit training after his wife and daughter were killed in 1980 by a state trooper pursuing a speeding motorcycle. Whetsel has been Choctaw police chief since 1976. He said he decided to seek election as Oklahoma County sheriff af- ter several citizens encouraged him to run.

"My entire career has been dedicated to professional law enforcement and has been spent providing law enforcement services to Oklahoma County," he said. "I know of no more critical position to provide leadership and coordination for law enforcement in Oklahoma County than the sheriff." Longacre, 55, has 22 years of law enforcement experience, 17 in the Oklahoma County Sheriffs Department. He left the sheriffs office in June to campaign. "I will work to provide better protec-tion for all the residents of Oklahoma County, including the rural areas," Longacre said. Longacre also pledges a secure jail and to provide taxpayers with "maximum services with minimum investment of tax dollars." The Republican primary for Oklahoma County sheriff also includes some familiar names in politics.

management of the county jail; providing a personnel office for recruitment, hiring, promotions, training and other employment issues; creating a volunteer citizen advisory council; recruiting senior citizen volunteers to help with administrative tasks; creating a citizen law enforcement academy; creating a law enforcement council of the district attorney and law enforcement agency administrators; expanding the use of marked vehicles and uniformed deputies; establishing field offices. Previous elective offices held: No response. Occupation: Retired major from the Oklahoma County Sheriff's Department. Age: 55. Born: Oklahoma City.

Academic: Associate's degree, Oklahoma City Community College. Church Home; Lakeside Assembly of God. Candidate's top priority issues: Security of Oklahoma County jail; budget; protection for rural areas; accessibility to citizens. Previous elective offices held: None. For the past 15 years, he has been a security specialist for Network Systems.

If elected, Greb pledges fiscal responsibility and says the problems of the department must be corrected. "The people of Oklahoma County need new, responsive leadership," Greb said. "I believe the key issue facing Oklahoma County is a lack of confidence in our elected officials' ability." Another Republican candidate is political newcomer Lamont "Bo" Bolhuis, 45. Owner of a security agency and member of the Oklahoma County sheriffs deputy reserves for the past 14 years, Bolhuis promises better management of the jail. He lists gangs, neighborhood security, drugs and crime as his top priorities.

priority issues: Continued service to citizens of Oklahoma County. Previous elective offices held: Oklahoma County sheriff. Also no stranger to politics in the Republican primary is Dave McBride. McBride, 49, is the former Oklahoma City police chief and was appointed state commissioner of public safety under David Walters' gubernatorial administration. McBride said the "county jail fiasco" is the reason he is a candidate.

McBride said Sharp and other county officials have not acted professionally in their handling of the jail. "If the sheriff and other county officials had spent half the time planning the design and construction of the jail that they have spent trying to find someone to blame for their own mistakes, we would have the state-of-the-art, escape-proof and efficient jail voters were promised." McBride claims he has a plan to move the sheriff's department into the "21st century." Another Republican contender is Larry Greb, 47, a security supervisor at Lucent Technologies (formerly known as Technologies). Greb lost to Sharp in the 1992 general election. Greb is a former lieutenant and assistant chief deputy with the Oklahoma County Sheriffs Department, leaving in 1980 to work as an investigator in the child support division of the Oklahoma County district attorney's office. The Republican candidates include P.D.

Taylor, a sergeant in the Oklahoma City Police Department, well-known as president of the local police union. Taylor, 49, was elected president of the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 123 in 1983 and has served in that position longer than anyone. In that role, he is the chief negotiator for all contracts between the city and the police. If elected, Taylor pledges to provide accountability in county government and proper management of the jail. "I will look into the feasibility of a professional administrator to manage the jail and ascertain if there Is a better and cheaper way to run the jail," he said.

0Some experts have said Oklahoma may return to five congressional districts after the 2000 census. The districts are based on a state's population and unless Oklahoma's population grows, the number of districts could decline from six to five. Oklahoma has had as many as eight congressional districts. 'amosl'larfWBB ttWtJorltiutde 'THE SUNDAY Okt'AHOWAN.