County must find strong candidates to run for sheriff
Santa Clara County Sheriff Laurie Smith hasn’t announced whether she will seek a seventh term in office in 2022.
Regardless of whether she chooses to run again, the county needs strong candidates who could effectively lead its law enforcement office. It’s imperative that Smith’s reign as the department’s leader come to an end.
Yes, Smith could be removed from office as the result of a Santa Clara County civil grand jury investigation that reportedly began earlier this month. If the grand jury finds cause for an accusation of willful or corrupt misconduct, a jury trial would then determine whether she should be removed from her post.
But county residents shouldn’t bank on that possibility. The county’s political leadership and its residents should do everything possible to encourage as many strong candidates as possible to run for sheriff next year.
Two candidates — retired Capt. Kevin Jensen and Sgt. Christine Nagaye — have announced their candidacy. It’s a welcome development. But it’s questionable whether either has the name recognition or political savvy necessary to beat Smith, if she runs. Jensen garnered only 40% of the vote in 2018 when he ran for sheriff, and he has significantly more leadership experience in the department than Nagaye.
Finding good candidates is challenging because of a 1989 state law requiring all sheriff candidates to have certification from the Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training or recent salaried law enforcement experience. It’s imperative that the effort to find qualified candidates begin now in order to mount the most effective campaign possible for the June primary election.
We had hoped Smith would retire gracefully in 2018 after five terms in office. But we felt compelled to call for her immediate resignation after her unacceptable decision to invoke her Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination when appearing before a different grand jury in September 2020. The grand jury was probing a pay-to-play concealed weapons investigation involving her office.
We said at the time that county residents had a right to know if the county’s top cop knew about corruption in her office, or worse, was involved in it. Her refusal to answer questions under oath makes her unfit to hold her office. County residents must not reward that behavior with another term in office.
Smith’s invoking of the Fifth Amendment and her role in the pay-for play scheme is hardly her only shortcoming as sheriff.
Two tragic county jail incidents have cost taxpayers millions of dollars in settlements, and a third is expected to result in an eight-figure settlement.
A Sheriff’s Office employee testified before a criminal grand jury that Smith asked her to buy cheap tickets to a San Jose Sharks hockey game in order to avoid reporting luxury suite tickets as a gift under state political campaign laws. The sheriff reportedly did not use the cheap tickets and instead celebrated her reelection in the luxury suite.
It’s this wretched level of performance that caused the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors in August to approve a vote of no-confidence in Smith.
Think about that for a minute. The board consists of five members with a range of backgrounds and political views, but they unanimously backed the no-confidence vote. Supervisors Joe Simitian and Susan Ellenberg said in their memo, “We no longer have confidence that Sheriff Laurie Smith is able to faithfully, effectively and ethically perform the duties of sheriff.”
We agree. The county needs a new sheriff who will restore trust and respect to the office.