Meet the candidates running for Berrien County Sheriff

 

BERRIEN COUNTY, Mich.-- Former Berrien County Sheriff Paul Bailey held the seat for 23 years, until his retirement at the end of 2023. That makes this the first contested sheriff's election in a generation.

Four Republicans are on the ballot for Tuesday's primary.

Chuck Heit was appointed interim sheriff after Bailey's retirement. Now, he's running to win the spot for another four years!

"I think what sets me apart is my administrative experience," Heit said. "Serving 21 years as undersheriff, dealing with the budget, the HR personnel issues, no other candidate has the administrative experience that I have in running the day-to-day operations of the sheriff's office."

Lieutenant Roger J.R. Johnson has been with the Berrien County Sheriff's Office for over 20 years.

"This is unheard of in our county, for somebody to oppose the sheriff," Johnson said. "I mean, when was the last time we had a viable election?"

One of his primary focuses as sheriff would be to improve communication between the department and the public.

"I feel like I'm the best pick because I've had a front-row, center seat of the changes in law enforcement over the last even 10 years," Johnson said. "I've been front row, been center, I see the people first hand, I see the issues first hand, I talk to the officers first hand that are actually doing the job."

Also running is business owner Rick Briand.

"I'm an outsider," Briand said. "I've been a business owner for 36 years. I understand how business works and I also understand how people think. I've been in thousands of people's homes, I feel like I have a real good rapport with the voters. And I want to change the direction of our sheriff's department. I think for too long, we've had the same people in there, same policies, same procedures. We need to update to the 21st century and make the sheriff's department more user-friendly for the people themselves."

Briand said he wants to reform the department, primarily how jail inmates are treated.

And finally, Jason Long is also running, a Black conservative looking to be the buffer between the public and the government, which he said is too big. Long did not respond to ABC57's requests for an interview Monday, but did speak to ABC57 during a voter forum in June.

"The sheriff has a lot of authority. A lot of authority that has not been tapped," Long said. "You look at what happened here with the shutdowns here in Michigan, with the mandates, the sheriffs here in Michigan and around the country, they could have put a stop to that a lot sooner than most did."

The Michigan primary elections are Tuesday, Aug. 6. Polls open at 7 a.m. and close at 8 p.m.