From Jeffrey R. Gahler:
Over two years ago, my campaign committee and I embarked on the challenge to make our area safer for the families and communities that call Harford County home. When I entered the Sheriff’s campaign I had no idea how many wonderful people I would meet and how many new friendships would result from this effort. I am honored to have had the opportunity to meet and become friends with so many people.
I am truly honored to have had more than 43,000 voters use the power of their vote to support the changes I proposed in order to make Harford County safer and I am humbled that so many believed in me and my message. The level of success we, as a team, accomplished could not have been achieved without the work and support of so many. To each and every person who supported our campaign through donations, attendance at our events, allowing us to place a sign at your home or business and/or spreading the word of our campaign to friends and neighbors, I offer my sincere appreciation and thanks!
Although we did not achieve our goal this year, I would not have traded the experience of meeting and listening to so many concerned Harford County residents and business owners for anything. The desire for safe communities and the concern for our neighbors exhibited by so many I met was truly humbling.
Since the night of the election, I have been asked many times about my plans for the future and specifically, the next sheriff’s election cycle in 2014. I can only say that this is not about Jeff Gahler but the residents and business people of Harford County. However, if there is a need for change in order to protect our County, the Gahler for Sheriff Team will be ready.
The brave men and women of our Sheriff’s Office deserve our support. The job of a Deputy Sheriff is a difficult and dangerous one. I will put my support behind all the men and women who work tirelessly to keep our communities safe. I congratulate Sheriff Bane on his win and wish him and the men and women of the Harford County Sheriff’s Office a safe and successful four years.
Sincerely,
Jeffrey R. Gahler
deputy says
I certainly hope you embrace the deputies instead of fighting them if you decide to run next time. I really think you beat yourself this time by having the walters on your side. I personally have no problem with howard or teresa but there time at this agency has passed. Rumors that they will seek personal attacks on certain people are so strong they are reality. It doesn’t matter if they are true perception is reality.
Recently Retired says
Well good luck with having cluless jesse at the helm. His ship has no sails. The department deserves to have a better leader. He is a good example of someone who has never performed the job trying to tell people how to do theirs. It’s time for a county police department. Harford County needs to move into a modern policing era. We need stable direction instead of pot luck leadership.
Monster says
Recently Retired, don’t you think that politics being what they are, that whomever is chosen as the head of a county wide police force could be bad. I disagree with what you say about Bane and I don’t agree with a county wide police department. First of all, under the Maryland Constitution, we will still need a sheriff’s office to handle court work. So, now we will create another agency to police the county. That is going to cost us more money and I doubt calm anyone down. You really don’t like Bane do you? What did he do to you?
Recently Retired says
Going to a county police department would not sink this county. The operations side of the sheriff’s office would be assimilated into the new dept. The Office of the Sheriff would still exist to manage the courts and serve court documents. Balt. Co. has such an arrangement. I also feel corrections should be separately run. Why do you assume that a Chief would be bad? There are many agencies across this country that have great leadership. Our county needs stability and professionalism, not a circus every four years.
I know Bane, I know what kind of a person he really is. You may not remember when he was undersheriff. He was a man possessed with power and treated everyone with total disrespect. Mele was voted out as Sheriff because of the antics of Bane.
As Undersheriff Jesse came up with a terrible payplan that had to be replaced years later. Many of us lost money due to his incompetence. Some deputies received less than a $100 raise while others received a substantial raise. He did not test the plan but thrust it down our throats. He was not receptive to any suggestions as he ruled like a dictator. When Mele left office he knew that any Sheriff that wants to stay in office needed the support of the Union and gave that lesson to Jesse.
When Jesse became Sheriff he stripped the commanders of their authority and always assumed the commanders were “wrong” before he would know the facts. He has no comprehension of the chain of command. He is now micromanaging all facets of the office because he does not trust the good judgement of people who are experienced and who have risen from the ranks, something I might add he did not do. He never sat in a duty officers’ chair and never had to manage multiple emergencies or situations. He was “given” his rank by Mele for running his campaign.
You’re right. I don’t like Jesse because I know what kind of a fraud he really is. I know he is unorganized (his office is the black hole) and he portrays himself as all-knowing. I look back now at the goofy things he came up with and has done since he became sheriff and I am amazed that people have any respect for his leadership at all.
He is a moral self-deceiver – This kind of person has at his core a basic contradiction. He thinks of acting on a set of core principles, while in fact he does not. To resolve this conflict, and at the same time to preserve his idealized view of himself, he deceives himself about what he is doing.
How many times have we heard from this person that he/she stands for a certain principle, but behind the scenes acts completely opposite of that conviction?
Well, that’s Jesse, and he has plenty of people buffaloed. So, we are stuck with him another four years. Just great.
Sam-52 says
Recently Retired,
First, as you can see I’m no longer trying to be silly or making fun of you (using your real screen name here). I want to take a serious approach with you’re line of thoughts here. I have to agree with Monster…it would cost the county more money to go to a Police Department. They would have to build new buildings to separate the Sheriff’s Office from the Police side…just like Baltimore Co. The existing buildings are still under the Sheriff’s Office. Yes some the county would probably just transfer over to the Police Department….but some you can’t; i.e. headquarters for example. Then you have to change uniforms, cars, badges, patches, report forms, letter heads. The operating costs for the new buildings, a whole new pay scale for the police chief, his deputy chief, and command staff. The list of extra costs can go on and on. So its not as simple and cheap as you say it can be.
Second you hint that having a Chief would make things run smoothly because he’s not elected, and politics would be removed. I strongly disagree with that….the chief of police is covered in politics. Look at all your major city’s. Countless Mayor/Chief relationships end in the Mayor firing the Chief or having him leave i.e. Giuliani and Bratton , O’Malley and Norris. It just wound up hurting the agencies more then anything. A Chief would be appointed by the county executive and signed off on my the council. That’s politics 101 right there. The Chief should be answering to his men, and to the citizens of the county. Instead he worries about the executive who appointed him. A Sheriff answers to his men and more importantly the people who put him there; not the person. And the biggest advantage is the citizens decided who they want to run their police, not one person.
Thirdly, you talk about what Jesse did when he was under sheriff as to why you don’t like him. You describe Jesse as being a disrespectful person, possessed with power, and incompetent. This is not the Jesse I’ve worked with when he was a major and certainly not as the Sheriff. Jesse has always treated everyone with respect, and never once through his weight around. You say these things cause being a captain you sat on his command staff and felt who was really in charge (Sheriff Bane). The top dog makes a choice to do something that trumps yours or takes away your power as a captain. Yea that sucks but your not the boss…he is. It’s the Sheriff’s agency to run as he see’s fit. Just like a Captain tells his Lt. what to do or trumps him, it goes all the way down the line. I may not agree totally with Sheriff’s Bane open door policy, but it shows that he wants to hear from the guys that matter in this agency…all the Deputies and DFC‘s!!!! He wants to hear from them and not hear it from the mouths of a Captain or Major who puts a spin on it by the time it gets to the Sheriff. It sounds like your bitter because he took away some of your power/juice as a commander and placed it in the hands of the common deputy. It showed who Jesse really cares about and that is the men and women who put it out on the line everyday, and night. Blood, sweat and tears. Not desks, paper and pens. Don’t get me wrong we need leaders. But you sound like a disgruntle manger who just didn’t like the fact that a subordinate could get to the Sheriff around you.
In your reply to this give me a few examples of Jesse stripping the Commanders of their authority and assumed they were wrong? I want more then one, because one example is just an isolated incident. Two examples would just be a coincidence, but three or more then yes you have a problem and a right to bitch.
Finally you say that he’s a fraud and has done some Goofy things. A fraud…Jesse has kept his promise he told all of us four years ago. That’s not fraud that’s honesty. As far as Goofy…really?. Under his leadership on one was furloughed. No one lost their job. No one got a pay cut. None…none of our benefits were cut. Because of his leadership, and well organized working relationship with the county he protected all of us from this. No leader is absolutely perfect. Given the amount of work Jesse has done…I’ll take his goofy any day. Also he was instrumental in the agency finally receiving a well deserved pay raise, and new pay scale. Others played a big role too, but Jesse was just as important. He could have easily worked against us, but did not.
I’ve given you examples to back up my statements. Lets see your’s. I want examples of how he’s a moral -deceiver, a hypocrite? Please tell us!!! Don’t just sit their and she what he is…give examples!!!
recently retired says
Monster,
Looks like this could be a long thread…
You said, “I’ve given you examples to back up my statements. Lets see your’s. I want examples of how he’s a moral -deceiver, a hypocrite? Please tell us!!! Don’t just sit their and she what he is…give examples!!!”
OK, well ask Jesse to show you his degree. (Because it is not posted in his office) See if it says “Criminology” of if it says “Sociology”.
Then refer to his literature. Why does a person do that? Why doesn’t he report the actual degree that he has? Because he has deceived himself into believing he has more qualifications than he actually has. So he masks his actual education. At the Univ of Md during the late ’60’s and early ’70’s there were a variety of topics that were grouped under Sociology. There were a few criminal justice type classes included, maybe even a criminology class. When I received my degree in Criminal Justice there were classes in Sociolocy included but I don’t go around saying I have a degree in Sociology.
There were plenty of examples that I could give that I witnessed while I was there. Most people are not aware of his ploys and deceptions. When he was a Major of Administration he should have acquired a good deal of information about his own operations. When he becam Sheriff he demonstrated that he had not. And I might add he lacked information about every Unit he supervised. He is good at going around and complimenting everyone about their good efforts, but he does not know what they do.
Take the simple matter of protecting criminal history information. By wanting to please everyone he continually committs HCSO resources and in one case to a private club. He ordered a detail under Captain Bakie to fingerprint the Boys and Girls Club volunteers, (for free) and directed the fingerprint cards be delivered to Records so that criminal history checks could be conducted with the purpose of turning that information over to the club. I advised the Sheriff that we could not do that. (I was abiding by the rules and trying to protect the agency…)CJIS is the keeper of criminal history information. The Sheriff asked why we could not do that. He did not believe me or the Records Manager and even questioned the Colonel about it. This is basic knowledge that he somehow did not acquire or remember. The Sheriff then directed the Task Force to write out a check (over $300) to cover the costs of those records inquiries by CJIS. So he used Task Force Funds to pay for criminal history checks for a private organization. He should have just realized that he made a mistake committing the HCSO resources tot he B&G Club.(A side note- the B&G Club does not have a policy of requiring their volunteers to have background checks, so any perv. can “volunteer” for those sleep-overs. We found out that there were a few volunteers with felony convictions but the Sheriff did not seem to mind about that…)
When he was a Major he could have directed property auctions and in fact the last auction was in July of 2000. The Property Manager suggested that another auction should be held and Jesse authorized the auction. After we received bids form auctioneers we obtained an auctioneer that would provide free jewelry appraisals, food and water, portable toilets and a tent. The auctioneer really worked hard at organizing the event. It was posted in the Aegis. Then the Sheriff gets a call from an auctioneer friend who complained he didn’t get the auction. So the Sheriff cancels the auction and paid the original auctioneer $3,000. (Your tax dollars by the way) We then recommended PropertyRoom.com and placed the information on his desk in Feb. ’08. Well over two years later he finally decided to run with it. His excuses were many. So, he wanted an auction, but didn’t want an auction for fear of hurting the emotions of his auctioneer friend. Goofy.
Some of his other goofy ideas…going after the soccer moms for have Quarter Autions. He assigned Task force personnel to gather intell, and perform a great deal of actions to thwart these malicious auctions. He could have made an effective press release alerting citizens as to their legality and made his point. Goofy.
He made it a priority for the deputies to invesrtigate all fireworks complaints and to charge offenders. Gee maybe the Fire Marshall might have some say in the matter. Let’s not worry about the gangs, robberies, domestics, assaults that are taking place at the same time. Goofy.
I will make a brief comment about the “The top dog makes a choice to do something that trumps yours or takes away your power as a captain. Yea that sucks but your not the boss…he is. It’s the Sheriff’s agency to run as he see’s fit. Just like a Captain tells his Lt. what to do or trumps him, it goes all the way down the line.”
First of all the Captains and all of the other supervisors (except a select Sgt in Warrants…)were stripped of their “Power” The first lesson of Command is that if you are in a position to command, you must command. The Captain could not “tell” a Lt. anything. And the Lt’s cannnot “tell” their Sgt’s, and the Sgt’s cannot “tell” the Cpl’s. Jesse removed that line of authority. Most supervisors want to work with their people and be able to support them. Jesse felt the lower ranks should have the final say in their matters. Bottom up Management he called it. (What operation has ever been successful using this concept? During the civil war it was the commanders leading the charges with the colors so that the men would follow.) So if an inexperienced Lt. is having difficulties the Captain cannot interceed without being subjected to repriomand directly from the Sheriff. No wonder the Captains and other supervisors who are experienced, who have risen from the ranks and understand the problems are frustrated at Jesse’s lack of understanding of basic leadersghip.
I will comment on some of your other citations but you know when it is all said and dome we are going to just agree to disagree. I don’t really have to prove mush. Jesse will prove his own incompetence eventually. It’s just too bad we have a leader who chooses to be so deceptive.
Inside Stuff says
Sam-52
Thanks so much for confirming that Sheriff Bane answers to his deputies rather than having the deputies answer to him. Also, thanks for confirming that Sheriff Bane did not work against you and the union when the union was pressing the County Executive for significant increases in pay and benefits. As you stated, he could easily have stood in your way – but choose not too. What a guy!!!
I find it interesting that all of the really great things you believe Sheriff Bane has achieved in the past four years have to do with how he has taken care of you. I didn’t read any of the many things that he has implemented or accomplished for the citizens of Harford County with regard to policing and how effective those actions have been. It is easy to see why you are a big Sheriff Bane fan!! I would be too. Hey – maybe he will stay out of your way this next four years so you can double down on your pay and benefits.
Best of luck with that. And you want us to believe that the tail does not wag the dog in the Sheriffs Office!!!
Inside Stuff says
I can’t recall a time that Jesse was really effective at anything, except perhaps the Christmas toy and food drive.
The dark hole that Recently Retired speaks of certainly exists. That has been a Jesse Bane trait for years. He just can”t make a decision because he does not understand the facts of most matters. So no decision is made – thus the black hole.
Since the tail wags the dog with regard to the Sheriffs Office, it is critical that Commanders not have the authority to take certain actions. You would not want to upset the union leadership. For the most part the union does not deal with the Sheriff when it comes to pay, benefits, and other organizational issues. The union deals directly with the County Executive. The Sheriff by and large has no direct say in those matters. This has been going on for years. It is no wonder that the union leadership would not want someone serving as Sheriff who actually thought he/she ran the Sheriffs Office. It is no surprise that the union leadership did not want Gahler as Sheriff – he would not have let the tail wag the dog.
Recently Retired says
Truer words have never been spoken. There’s at least a few people out there who know the real story…
Sam-52 says
But I thought Gahler said he could win with out the Unions support? Saying he would be the first one to win without the support of the deputies. Why on earth would someone want a position as a leader if the people he want’s to lead don’t want him? That sounds like a power trip to me. Not to mention he has expressed a point of view that suggests he would do anything he want’s with the agency and not have the input of the men and women who work for him.
With out us, the deputies, there is no Sheriff. Sheriff Bane knows this and is always working to help us. See all you Bane haters and Gahler supports are missing the point. The deputies don’t want to run the agency…the union doesn’t want to run the agency. We, and the union just want what is right, and fair. The union does not make appoints to the command staff. The Union doesn’t make policy. Sheriff Bane has allowed policy changes to come from within from the people it effects the most. Committees meet, form a new policy and pass it on to the command staff and sheriff for final review.
Some of these committees don’t always work…but other work fine i.e. sick leave bank, transfer policy, boards, etc. And what is wrong with allowing that to happen. Ultimately the Sheriff makes the final choice and the dog wags his tale. It’s a small group that say no to this and want the boss to make The impression Gahler gave the agency was fuck the union, and fuck its members (who is just about every one here). I can’t imagine what it would be like with the Sheriff fighting on everything with the union and County Executive. Nothing would get done. You say the tail wags the dog…what’s wrong with the little guys speaking up for themselves and the big guy (Bane) actually listening? WoW…what a crazy concept!!! Bosses looking out for their workers!!! Gahler lost for two reasons…not listing to the union, and listening to Howard Walter. Had Gahler come in with an open mind, and no attachment to the Walters I think things would have been different. But he didn’t….in his opening statement he bragged about how much money he had “I’ve raised almost $100,000…”. Please…we can all see what that got him….second place… what a waste of money. That statement alone showed how stuck up he was. He basically said “I don’t need you…look how much money I have. You guys can suck on it!!!” Smooth move their ex-lax
david roadhouse says
Sam you just don’t get it. You are right–the deputies don’t want to run the agency, but what they do want is an effective leader and that’s what they deserve. Too bad we don’t have that in Bane. To me the worst possible thing is that Bane doesn’t have your back. As a member of the agency, you want to believe that when push comes to shove, the Sheriff will support you but with Bane, he believes you are guilty until proven innocent (except with Forwood of course). If a complaint comes in, he believes the complainant instead of the deputy and acts accordingly. It is shameful the way he treats most of his deputies, except for his select few–Gividen, Waltman, Carlevaro and all the other players. When has Sheriff Bane ever listened to his employees? Yes, he listens to his chosen ones but I have personally submitted ideas to enhance and enrich the office however they become lost in the black hole. He doesn’t even have the courtesy to acknowledge that he received my ideas, much less act upon them. But if Lt. Col. Waltman goes to him and says I want to wear Hawaiian shirts and shorts to work–wow, it is a done deal. You are quite delusional in your thinking that Bane is “the man”. I am tired of reading the same old crap from you. All I am going to say is that Bane won the election because of circumstances, not on his platform or the union backing. If the weather had been bad and the Dems in the lower end hadn’t come out to vote–different outcome. If the Forwood story broke a little earlier–different outcome. When a few of his geriatric cultists start to kick the bucket–different outcome. Sour grapes to you, truth to me.
Sam-52 says
David Outhouse:
LOL…sour grapes to me? You’re the one whining about had the weather been this…had circumstances been that. Had the Democrats not voted, had the Forwood incident not come to light sooner …. whaaaa…whaaa…whaaa!!!! LOL…that’s a lot to ask for to change the outcome of a vote. Had Gahler only gotten 3000 more votes….if only. Sour grapes….more like sour puss on your end. BTW…what great ideas have you had to submit to the sheriff? Once again all you Bane bashers say shit but have no examples to back them up. Bottom line Bane is the boss, and he’s going to make choices that don’t please everyone. He’s made some choices I don’t agree with….promoting Galbraith, giving back a evidence to the suspect. See I have the balls to give you examples here…where are yours? Again I don’t agree with that but I still support Sheriff Bane…lets not forget you still have a job here. You were never furloughed, or received a pay cut, or had your benefits slashed and taken away. I guess you think Bane and the union had nothing to do with that…go have a beer with Gahler and Howie and cry your sour puss tears.
recently retired says
David,
Perhaps more county employees did not have to take furlough days if jesse had not misspent so much money during his term. One small example: Why would he authorize $20,000 in repairs to a car that only cost $20,000 to begin with? Because he has no comprehension to evaluate and make logical decisions. Most of his decisions are completely 180 degrees from what they should be.
Another..He signed a multi-million contract with Interact, a very small unproven company with high turnover, then placed an incompetent civilian in charge of the records conversion,(which by the way was not tested prior to activating it, so all of the records modules were corrupted) then wanted to hold someone else responsible when it became obvious Interact was a failure. After we advised him the Interact civil module was not functioning he would only say that we had to use the module because the (incompetent computer tech manager) was going to shut down the previous civil module. When the Commander questioned the civilian abilities and held her accountable the Sheriff’s response was to transfer her to another commander. Of course we know there was a previous history with that commander and he was stuck with the incompetent employee. See, Jesse will only discipline the deputies, not a poor defenseless civilian.
Hate is a strong word to use in these forums. I don’t hate anyone especially Jesse since he has dedicated himself to the profession for so many years. For the most part he is a nice person and does try do the right thing, but due to the Union and other forces at work his decision-making is terrible. I don’t respect his leadership and actions, especially when he has chosen to disregard and ignore sound operational and legal advice. His total disrespectful treatment of his commanders was and is unprofessional. What is highly evident is that he transfers his own lack of operational knowledge to the commanders. He assumed that no one knew anything about LEOBR when most of us have not only had the training but have had to work with the process during our careers. My only question for him would be why he even has commanders? Just demote everyone and put them on the road. Then maybe he would listen to them.
Inside Stuff says
That’s what Sam-52 says should happen – the Sheriff answers to the deputies. Sam-52 says that the Sheriff should not listen to Majors, Captains, and Lieutenants because all those Officers will do is “spin” the story about the deputy under their command. But Jesse is wise to the kind of stuff his “hand picked” Commanders will do (which according to Sam-52 is “spin the story their way) and now the Sheriff listens to the deputies… just as it should be according to Sam-52. I’m with you Recently Retired, why does Bane even need a Command Staff?
On first read of Sam-52’s posts, I thought, this guy is really full of himself. But after giving it some further thought, I see that Sam-52 is correct. He/She has Bane exactly where Sam-52 and the Union want him. They don’t answer to the Sheriff – He answers to them!! Well, what more could you want? The only thing better than that would be to have the County Executive exactly where you want, and it would appear that is exactly what they have!! Not a big plus for the citizens of Harford County, but a great deal for the deputies!!
This guy Forwood probably had it all figured out. Jesse pays no attention to his senior commanders. He could pull off a felony theft scam right under Jesse’ nose. Hey, I think Sam-52 is on to something here. Jesse is not asleep at the wheel…he is just not paying any attention.
Inside Stuff says
That’s what Sam-52 says should happen – the Sheriff answers to the deputies. Sam-52 says that the Sheriff should not listen to Majors, Captains, and Lieutenants because all those Officers will do is “spin” the story about the deputy under their command. But Jesse is wise to the kind of stuff his “hand picked” Commanders will do (which according to Sam-52 is “spin the story their way) and now the Sheriff listens to the deputies… just as it should be according to Sam-52. I’m with you Recently Retired, why does Bane even need a Command Staff?
On first read of Sam-52’s posts, I thought, this guy is really full of himself. But after giving it some further thought, I see that Sam-52 is correct. He/She has Bane exactly where Sam-52 and the Union want him. They don’t answer to the Sheriff – He answers to them!! Well, what more could you want? The only thing better than that would be to have the County Executive exactly where you want, and it would appear that is exactly what they have!! Not a big plus for the citizens of Harford County, but a great deal for the deputies!!
This guy Forwood probably had it all figured out. Jesse pays no attention to his senior commanders. He could pull off a felony theft scam right under Jesse’ nose. Hey, I think Sam-52 is on to something here. Jesse is not asleep at the wheel…he is just not paying any attention.
Well, now we know:
–The Sheriff answers to the deputies and the citizens.
–The Sheriff does not listen to the Commanders because they will only spin the story to their benefit. Thus the deputy has to come in and give the Sheriff the “real story”, you know… the no spin version.
So, who do the deputies answer too? Anyone??
belairfed says
we’ll never have a county police force in Harford County. We tried it 20 years ago and it didn’t pass. Unions are too strong, politicians are too entrenched. I don’t know what led Baltimore County to bite the bullet but Harford has demonstrated time and again they don’t have the will to make the change.
belairfed says
another thing…. if you had a police chief, theortically speaking, you’d have somebody hired with qualifications. With elections, anybody that’s popular could theoretically run and win, whether qualified or not – gaining the big paycheck for at least four years. There’s too many police retirees who’d like to have that sheriff’s paycheck – look how many ran this time. another reason we’ll never have a county pd.
Inside Stuff says
Having a County Police Department and an appointed Chief would not eliminate the position of Sheriff nor the the big paycheck. This seems to be the argument of those opposed to a police department. The cost does not justify having a PD. When the day comes that the Sheriff, or the Deputies Union, does not play ball with the County Exec., and Council, then you will see an HCPD. This is about control, not effective policing.
Al J Thong says
I was a Gahler supporter throughout all but the end of the race. It was toward the final days of the election when Gahler stopped dancing with who brung him and started believing his own press. How dumb was it to bring Bodeway on at the end? No one that voted FOR Bodeway in the primary was ever going to vote for Bane in the general election. So those votes were a given. However Gahler did lose every vote from a sizeable portion of the county that can’t stand Bodeway…like me. Gahler’s handlers advised and he didn’t listen. And knowing about the Forwood scandal and the Bane rope a dope delay tactics should have made Gahler hang that situation around Jesse’s neck like an Albatros. But he just wouldn’t listen to the folks that brought him from a virtual unknown to the big dance.
Inside Stuff says
So you voted to retain Sheriff Bane?