It may surprise to learn that in some parts of the country, deputy sheriffs are treated as political appointees who can be hired or fired at the discretion of the sheriff. Many federal courts forbid the practice, but as a group of deputy sheriffs for the Christian County Sheriff’s Office learned, the federal Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals approves of…
Alisha Congleton was employed in the Letcher County Sheriff’s Office in Kentucky for almost four years. Mickey Stines successfully ran for sheriff in the May 2018 primary and in the November 2018 general election. Congleton openly supported Eugene Slone, a deputy in the sheriff’s office, in the primary election. During the general election Congleton made…
The Lake Charles Police Officers’ Association represents the rank-and-file members of the Lake Charles, Louisiana Police Department. All of the members of the Association – which does not have collective bargaining rights – are considered “classified employees” under a Louisiana statute. A separate Louisiana statute prohibits classified employees from engaging in certain political activities, and…
The Kane County, Illinois Sheriff’s Office hired Steven Yahnke in 1986, and he worked as a deputy sheriff for more than 20 years, eventually holding the rank of sergeant. The position of sheriff is an elected post in Kane County, and in 2006, then-Sheriff Kenneth Ramsey opted to retire rather than run for reelection. Deputy…
When Daniel Bailey was elected to the office of Sheriff of Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, he immediately fired Deputy Sheriff Terri Young, who had failed to contribute to Bailey’s election campaign. Young sued, citing a North Carolina statute that “no county employee may be required as a duty or condition of employment, promotion, or tenure…
Some public sector employers have so-called “resign to hold office” rules. Indiana, for example, has a statute that prohibits individuals from simultaneously holding elected office and being employed in the same unit of government. These rules prohibit law enforcement officers and firefighters from successfully running for public office and continuing to hold their jobs as…
Terri Ezell began working in the Muscogee County, Georgia Sheriff’s Office in 1983 as a correctional officer in the county jail. She was promoted to the position of deputy sheriff in 1985 and continued to climb in rank thereafter. In 2000, she became the first woman to have obtained the rank of major, and later…
Micah Phillips began working for the Dallas, Texas Fire Department in April 1999. He was working as a fire dispatcher when, in December 2011, he announced his candidacy for the Dallas County Commissioners Court. The City fired him, citing a provision in the city charter that employees who run for elective office within Dallas County…
A recent federal appeals court decision begins with a blunt tale of Philadelphia politics: “In the century preceding the adoption of the 1951 Charter, Philadelphia’s civic government was dominated by political party organizations. The city’s then-powerful Republican Party machine had a stranglehold on local government, determining who was elected, who was hired, and who received…
