Sheriff: Lemma in Seminole, López in Osceola
Dennis Lemma, Seminole County
In a state full of machismo sheriffs who puff themselves up to impress constituents and the media, Dennis Lemma is a refreshing change of pace.
He takes crime just as seriously as his peers but understands that law enforcement is about more than just slapping the cuffs on bad guys and hauling them off to jail.
“Crime is a symptom of another problem,” Lemma said in an interview with the Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board, “and if we want to be effective, continue to be effective in our community we have to treat and address the underlying conditions that lead people down the path to commit crimes in the first place.”
His view is remarkable for its clarity and insight.
And, to an extent, for its bravery. Lemma’s a Republican, and sheriffs from his party often adhere to the politically convenient — and lazy — good guys vs. bad guys worldview.
Lemma, who served in the U.S. Marines, puts his more thoughtful and nuanced view of crime into practice. He’s a key force behind Project Opioid, an effort by Central Florida leaders to focus public attention on the scourge of opioid addiction and, just as important, how it impacts those who get addicted and the people around them.
He implemented a program of using medication and other means to treat Seminole County Jail inmates who are addicted to opioids. Lemma understands that if they can get past the addiction, his deputies are far less likely to arrest them again.
More broadly, he understands the impact that mental health issues have on crime.
Lemma also utters words that rarely escape the lips of a Florida sheriff: He doesn’t need more deputies.
In his own words: “Additional deputy sheriffs are not needed at this time and will only result in a greater level of disproportionate contact with citizens. The most significant thing that we can do about crime is to prevent it from occurring in the first place.”
This is precisely what reasonable law enforcement reformers have been trying to say: Find new ways to use the resources you have to get out ahead of crime rather than reacting when it happens.
Lemma’s style of law enforcement hasn’t made Seminole less safe. Just the opposite. Since he took office violent crime and property crime have gone down. Yes, that follows a national trend but those numbers don’t provide ammunition for criticism.
Lemma’s opponent is Democrat Paul “Spike” Hopkins, an amiable and experienced law enforcer who spent many years with the Orange County Sheriff’s Office in various positions of responsibility.
Hopkins ran for Orange County sheriff four years ago as a Republican but lost to then Sheriff Jerry Demings.
Hopkins takes a more traditional and predictable view of how law enforcement should work. He wants more deputies providing a greater presence in neighborhoods to deter crime. During an interview, Hopkins worried that deputies weren’t equipped with riot gear like gas masks and helmets and shields.
Hopkins offers a number of ideas that have to do with redeploying personnel, training deputies, physical fitness and the presence of deputies in schools. He’s clearly put a lot of thought into how he would run the sheriff’s office.
We can think of several counties where Hopkins would be a step up from the incumbent sheriff.
Seminole isn’t one of them. It already has a good sheriff, an excellent sheriff, who is trying to view crime and crime-fighting in a different way.
Seminole County voters should give Lemma another term.
Marco López, Osceola County
Marco López pulled off a surprise win in the three-way Osceola County Democratic primary for sheriff in August, besting the incumbent Sheriff Russ Gibson.
Gibson wasn’t a bad sheriff, he just seemed to be playing catch-up a lot of the time. Voters — and the Sentinel’s Editorial Board — were ready for a change.
López now faces a no-party affiliation candidate in the general election, and he remains the person we think should become the county’s next sheriff.
The NPA candidate is Luis “Tony” Fernández, a retired Osceola County deputy who previously worked for the Puerto Rico State Police.
Like López, Fernández says he wants to reform the department by creating a citizen review board to assist the sheriff’s office with formulating policy.
Fernández says the board would have access to the sheriff’s office budget, but that’s hardly a bold reform considering the budget already is subject to disclosure under Florida’s Public Records Law. Fernández suggested creating a “ladies’ office” where wives would assist deputies in various ways. The intent might have merit but his use of the term “ladies office” suggests the kind of thinking that has no place in a modern law enforcement operation.
Fernández seems to have good intentions but his initiatives were vague and ill-formed.
Either candidate would make history by becoming the first Hispanic sheriff in Osceola County history.
But López has a firmer grasp on the issues, and he continues to talk about reforms designed to make the sheriff’s office more diverse and less militarized.
López is the better of the two candidates in this race.
Election endorsements are the opinion of the Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board, which consists of Opinion Editor Mike Lafferty, Jennifer A. Marcial Ocasio, Jay Reddick, David Whitley and Editor-in-Chief Julie Anderson. Sentinel Columnist Scott Maxwell participates in interviews and deliberations. Send emails to insight@orlandosentinel.com.