Incumbents will face challengers in Perry, Scott, Bollinger sheriff races

John Jordan doesn't know how good he's got it. While the Cape Girardeau County sheriff will coast into a fifth term without drawing an opponent, other Southeast Missouri sheriffs have seen candidates -- some familiar, some not -- line up this election year with intentions of taking over.

Fellow Democrats Ron Merideth and Paul Johnson are gunning for Scott County Sheriff Rick Walter's seat. Gary Schaaf, the 20-year Republican sheriff in Perry County, will have to beat Democratic challenger Ted Christisen again.

And Bollinger County Sheriff Leo McElrath will have to get more votes than two other Republicans, Darin Shell and Denny Cato, in the August primary and possibly more than independent candidate hopeful Stash Petton, who is gathering signatures in an attempt to get his name on a crowded November ballot.

The challengers touted various degrees of law-enforcement experience, education and a willingness to bring fresh perspective if voters will kick out the incumbents and give them a chance. Those who hold the office, however, espoused the values of having actual on-the-job training, an understanding of what the job requires and suggested that voters not tinker with what they considered proven records.

Of these three races, McElrath has the potential of having the most competition. In addition to Shell and Cato, Petton announced Tuesday he has been gathering the 114 signatures required and is confident he will have more than enough by the July 31 deadline for independent candidates to file. Other candidates filed under the banner of the two major political parties during the 30-day filing period that ended March 27.

"I've had a lot of people telling me it's suicide to run as an independent," Petton said. "But I've gotten good feedback. The reason I want to run as an independent is I don't think law enforcement can have the luxury of saying I'm on this side or that. ... But I think I can do a good job as sheriff."

Petton is a former police officer in Marble Hill, Mo., who later served as chief deputy in Bollinger County. Most recently, he's worked as a private investigator and in security for a Cape Girardeau hospital.

Shell, the statewide animal cruelty investigator for the Humane Society of Missouri, also wants the job in Bollinger County. But Shell said that the fact that the department was the center of a controversy involving a deputy there who shot and killed a Chihuahua had "no bearing" in his decision to run. A female deputy resigned after killing the small dog and is now suing the department for employment discrimination.

Echoing several candidates who were asked why they were superior choices to the sitting sheriffs, Shell declined to criticize the incumbent, saying he instead wants the focus to be fixed on his qualifications.

"I'm not going to say anything negative about Sheriff McElrath. I strictly want to focus on my credentials," he said.

Before his two-year stint with the Humane Society, Shell worked for nearly eight years as a Cape Girardeau firefighter. He's also been a police officer for departments in Jackson and Marble Hill and broke into law enforcement at the Bollinger County Sheriff's Department as a deputy.

If elected, Shell says he would implement community policing through town hall meetings, building better partnerships with the community, community education and by starting what he calls "coffee with the sheriff," giving people a chance to meet with him one-on-one to make him aware of concerns and other issues.

But McElrath says his actual experience makes him the best candidate to do a job he's had for the past four years. Before that, he served with the Missouri State Highway Patrol for 27 years. He said he didn't know if what happened to the dog or the ongoing lawsuit would be an issue for voters, but he said he stands by how his department handled the situation.

"I just feel like every situation that has occurred on my watch has been properly handled," McElrath said. "I'm qualified to be sheriff. I've brought good, solid law enforcement to the sheriff's department and I've made a lot of improvements."

In Scott County, the race for sheriff will end with the August primary, barring the entrance of an independent candidate. Merideth brings 23 years of law enforcement to the table, which he hopes will persuade voters to cast ballots for him. Merideth works as a narcotics officer with the Southeast Missouri Drug Trask Force. But he's also held law enforcement positions in Sikeston, Miner and Scott County.

While he and incumbent Sheriff Rick Walter "go way back," Merideth said he thinks he can run the department more efficiently. He said he has ideas to make that happen, but he wasn't ready to discuss them this early in the campaign. Once he does, he thinks his ideas will resonate with voters.

"I think it's going to be a challenge. But I think it's doable to beat him," Merideth said.

Walter, naturally, sees things differently. Walter, who took over the office in 2005, has held officer commissions in Oran and worked full-time at the sheriff's department as a deputy before he ran an unsuccessful bid to beat Bill Ferrell. When Ferrell retired, Walter ran again in 2004 and won, despite Ferrell's endorsement going to another candidate.

Walter said he still likes and enjoys his job, from the law enforcement aspect to the administrative day-to-day duties. He's working to merge the department's dispatch with Sikeston's. He's also helped the county generate revenue by taking on immigrant detainees and getting funds to transport them.

"I'm very passionate about this job," Walter said. "It's different than a lot of other jobs and I believe I'm still very good and effective at doing it."

The Perry County race sets up a rematch between Republican incumbent Gary Schaaf, who was first elected in 1992, and Democrat Ted Christisen, who was easily dispatched by Schaaf four years ago.

Schaaf is used to having someone challenge him for his job and he doesn't recall one election year that he didn't draw an opponent. While Jordan has said this would be his last term on the job, which would give him 20 years, Schaaf doesn't know when he'll give it up. He just hopes voters don't decide for him in November.

"As long as I'm having fun and enjoy doing what I'm doing -- and I'm still effective -- I want to continue doing this," Schaaf said.

Christisen, Cato and Johnson did not return repeated phone calls over several days seeking comment.

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