AN ORAL HISTORY OF RETIRED MADISON COUTY, OHIO
 SHERIFF STEVE SALTSMAN

An Oral History

 Retired Madison County Ohio Sheriff Steve Saltsman

Elizabeth N. Zamara

* The article is copyrighted. All rights pertain.

Abstract

This paper focuses on the duties, responsibilities and functions of the county sheriff. Given that the position of sheriff has such an extensive history in the United States, it is surprising that more research studies have not utilized the sheriff as a subject of research. The available literature typically focuses on police chiefs and/or police departments as subjects of study. While there are more police departments in the United States, and the nature of the job is similar, the county sheriff and local police chief are quite distinct. Through an oral history interview with retired Madison County Ohio Sheriff Steve Saltsman this paper examines the duties, responsibilities, and functions of the county sheriff and how law enforcement has changed over a career of six terms and over 24 years.

Keywords: county sheriff, sheriff’s office

An Oral History

Retired Madison County Ohio Sheriff Steve Saltsman

INTRODUCTION

         The office of county sheriff has an extensive history in the United States which dates back to tenth century England with the “shire-reeve”. The shire-reeve was a “local political figure, who was appointed to serve and protect the King’s interest in the shire.” (Falcone & Wells, 1995) The shire-reeve was responsible for the “…maintenance of community order, supervision of local military units, the collection of taxes, and the custody of accused persons.” (Falcone & Wells, 1995) Falcone and Wells (2005) write that “initially the shire-reeve was chosen from local nobility within the shire; however, after the Norman invasion in 1066 the sheriff was imposed on the local community as an outside administrator.”

            Information from the Buckeye State Sheriffs’ Association (2009) explains that the Office of Sheriff is the oldest law enforcement office within the common law system. The “sheriff and the law enforcement, judicial and correctional functions he performs are more than 1000 years old.” (BSSA, 2009) Due to the “English heritage of American colonies, the new United States adopted the English law and legal institutions…” (BSSA, 2009) including the concepts of “county” and “Sheriff”. They quote Thomas Jefferson as having said “…the office of Sheriff is the most important of all the executive offices of a county.” (BSSA, 2009)

            Prior to Ohio becoming a state in 1803, the position of Sheriff “…was filled through appointments made at the pleasure of the Colonial Governor.” (BSSA, 2009) The first sheriff was appointed in 1788. After statehood, “only three public offices in Ohio were filled through the electoral process system…” which includes the office of Sheriff. (BSSA, 2009) It remains the “only law enforcement office which is filled through the election method.” (BSSA, 2009)

            Today, 47 states have county sheriffs – Alaska, Hawaii, and Connecticut do not. The National Sheriffs’ Association (NSA) reports there are currently 3,085 county sheriffs in the United States. (NSA, 2011) All sheriffs are elected officials.  The length of term the sheriff holds office varies across the U.S. with the majority serving four year terms, and a few serving two or three years, and one serving a six year term. (NSA, 2011) Ohio sheriffs serve four-year terms.

The sheriff is the chief law enforcement officer of the county he serves and holds jurisdiction over the entire county, though the sheriff is somewhat limited in cities or municipalities that maintain a police department. The sheriff’s duties include: “the maintenance of law and order, court services support, administration of the jail and correctional facilities, and (in some states) collecting county taxes and fees. (Falcone & Wells, 1995) Falcone & Wells (1995) also note that “the sheriff also has extensive civil law powers and responsibilities.” Halstead, Bromley, and Cochran (2000) write that sheriff’s offices are somewhat different from other law enforcement agencies…” due to the varied duties they are charged with. According to the BSSA (2009) “within Ohio, Sheriff’s Offices have probably one of the most extensive sets of responsibilities…by statute they must provide…line law enforcement, court security and service of papers, jail operations, extradition process, and transportation of prisoners.” (BSSA, 2009)

            As an elected official, a sheriff is independent of other county officials. (Williams & Hester, 2003) In most states the sheriff is a “constitutional officer” (Williams & Hester, 2003) and the office “cannot be abolished, have powers or responsibilities reduced, or have personnel decisions made by county boards or commissioners.” (Falcone & Wells, 1995)  The sheriff’s office is an “independent entity with separately defined responsibilities and powers” (Falcone & Wells, 1995) though county boards or commissioners may control the budget. LaFrance and Placide (2010) write that “the sheriff has the potential to defy the county legislature as he pleases…”  Despite the electoral nature of the position, LeFrance & Allen (2009) find that sheriffs “professional autonomy is more highly prized than political deference.” LaFrance & Allen (2009) write that “the electoral nature of the sheriff’s office may also affect professional accountability.” Halstead et al. (2000) also note that “sheriffs are popularly elected and thus more dependent on maintaining public approval.” A recent editorial (2011) reflects on the partisan nature of the county sheriffs elections. The author writes that the U.S. Senate passed Senate Bill 317 which “would allow all qualified candidates to appear on the primary election ballot beginning in 2012.” (Editorial, 2011) Currently, Independent candidates are “now shut out of primaries” and “the winners are often decided in primaries.” (Editorial, 2011) The author writes that voters in small towns “aren’t going to be fooled” because they will know who “…belongs to which party” but suggests that this does not matter because a “…sheriff’s work ...has little to do with politics and everything to do with public safety.” (Editorial, 2011)

            LaFrance and Placide (2010) write that the National Sheriffs’ Association believes the county sheriff should continue to be an elected official. The authors write that “…the sheriff checks the power of the county board and is….prevented from having ‘unfettered discretion’ through the election process, the budget and state laws that authorize the removal of the sheriff from office for misfeasance or malfeasance of duty.” (LaFrance & Placide, 2010) Further, they write that “democratic government depends on citizens being able to choose the sheriff, who is often ‘the single most powerful individual and institution’ in a given county.” (LaFrance & Placide, 2010) The NSA also believes the quality of law enforcement “decreases sharply and the sheriff’s office ‘becomes more politicized, not less’ …when the sheriff is subject to the whims and caprices of the board of commissioners.” (LaFrance & Placide, 2010) LaFrance & Placide (2010) take note that “the empirical validity of these claims, however, is suspect, because the author offers no data to back them up.” LaFrance & Placide (2010) believe that the direct election method enhances the autonomy of sheriffs. Cochran, Bromley & Swando (2002) write that in comparison of the sheriff and a local police chief, “sheriffs must interact with and more accountable to the communities they serve.” Cochran et al. (2002) believe that a community-policing model is more suited to sheriff’s offices than police departments given the electoral nature of the office of sheriff. In contrast, police chiefs are appointed.

            Crank & Giocomazzi (2007, 2009) examined factors within a Sheriff’s Office that could account for differences in important policing issues among different communities. They found
“…significant variation in perceptions of crime and disorder, in perceptions of safety, in social cohesion, and in attitudes toward deputies and to the sheriff’s office.” (Crank & Giocomazzi, 2007) Further, the authors write that “these findings suggested the importance of local policy through the tailoring of services to local needs.” (Crank & Giocomazzi, 2007) They write that their study focuses on the “non-urban Sheriff’s Office” and that “one size fits all” styles of policing are being challenged by a “community policing” style. (Crank & Giocomazzi, 2007) Decker (n.d.g.) examines “the impact of community and political structures upon styles of policing.” Decker (n.d.g.) finds that sheriff’s (and by extension, sheriff’s deputies) style of policing is influenced by a “convergence” of citizen and deputy perceptions of the proper actions in a specific situation and “consequently police behavior is consistent with citizen expectation.” Decker (n.d.g.) reports the “primary ‘style’ of enforcement for sheriffs is a combination of the service and watchman patterns…”

            The requirements to be sheriff are varied in the U.S. Some states “explicitly exempt” sheriffs from state-mandated training standards for law enforcement officers, though this is not the case in Ohio. The Buckeye State Sheriffs’ Association (BSSA) the association for Ohio sheriffs, worked to implement mandatory training requirements for sheriffs. Currently, newly elected sheriffs are required to complete a two week orientation program prior to the start of the term to which they are appointed or elected. (O.R.C. 311.01) The Ohio Revised Code 311.01 requires a county sheriff to meet certain requirements before taking office. These requirements include that the sheriff be a U.S. citizen as well as a resident of the county he serves for at least one year immediately prior the qualification date. (O.R.C. 311.01) The sheriff must be a high school graduate, not been convicted of or pleaded guilty to a felony, any offense involving moral turpitude or a misdemeanor of the first degree. (O.R.C. 311.01) The sheriff must be fingerprinted and submit to a local, state, and federal background check as well as file a list of all previous places of residence and places of work for the six years prior. (O.R.C. 311.01)  The Ohio Revised Code 311.01 also requires the county sheriff to hold a basic peace officer’s training certificate and be employed as a peace officer immediately prior. Lastly, the individual must have either: “at least two years of supervisory experience as a peace officer at the rank of corporal or above…or served at the rank of sergeant or above in the five year period immediately prior or completed at least two years of post-secondary education or the equivalent satisfactorily.” (O.R.C. 311.01)

            Helms (2008) writes that “locally elected sheriffs experience considerable disparity in comparative annual money wages…some county law enforcement executives earn a ceremonial wage, others draw lavish returns for their public service.” In Ohio, the sheriff (along with all other elected officials) receives a salary that is set by the General Assembly. The salary is based on the population of the county. Helms (2008) finds that “the average difference in wage allocations between those executives who oversee local jail facilities and those who do not are substantial.” In addition, Helms (2008) writes that “…local political competition may be influenced by pay considerations for this local elective post.” A 2009 news story published on the Broward Palm Beach New Times highlights the high paying salaries of Broward County Sheriff, his command staff and “political coterie.” (Norman, 2009)  Doerner & Doerner (2010) write that sheriffs, as public employees, are not given collective bargaining rights. They find that the “deputy sheriff”, at least in Florida, was considered an “extension” of the appointed sheriff, and not an “employee” entitled to collective bargaining rights. (Doerner & Doerner, 2010) In Madison County, Ohio sheriff’s deputies won the right to collective bargaining in 1993. Retired Sheriff Steve Saltsman reports that he personally had no feelings about the unions “one way or the other” though he “never really cared for unions because of the things” he had seen or heard. He reports that it “set up established procedures and standards, and “made it a whole lot easier to say no.” (He uses the example of a deputy coming in and asking for the next day off work, which according to union procedures, he could not permit. The unions implemented a procedure which requires a certain period of advance notice before a vacation day can be authorized.) He does note that the former sheriff was then a County Commissioner, which made the process of negotiating budgets “a lot easier.”

In addition to high salaries, many of these individuals are also given an SUV to drive at no cost. (Norman, 2009) One lieutenant is a paid a salary of $144,537 and receives a pension of $7,570 and a monthly payment of $6,813 a month from the Florida Deferred Retirement Option Program. (Norman, 2009) He “retired” in 2006 after 28 years and was rehired two months later. When questioned about it, the sheriff’s spokesman said “it happens all the time everywhere, and right, wrong or indifferent, the system permits it and some people take advantage of the ability. (Norman, 2009) This lieutenant’s salary is more than the county sheriff receives. In comparison, Lewis County New York legislators considered in June, 2011 reducing the salaries for their sheriff and other county officials. (Virkler, 2011)  The sheriff would receive a salary of $64,250 annually under the proposal. (Virkler, 2011) The sheriff is currently paid a salary of $76,484. (Virkler, 2011) The current sheriff plans to “retire at the end of the year after 37 years with the department, the past eight as sheriff.” (Virkler, 2011) Davis (2010) writes of another method a sheriff’s salary is calculated. In Indiana, the sheriff’s salary is capped at a maximum of the prosecutor’s salary as set by the state and a “minimum salary can be set at 70 percent of the prosecutor’s pay.” (Davis, 2010) In Jackson County, Indiana that salary is $119,000. (Davis, 2010) Formerly, Indiana county sheriffs were given an approved salary for which they deducted the cost of inmate meals. Anything remaining the sheriff could keep. (Davis, 2010) This often meant the sheriff received a hefty salary and scrimped on feeding jail inmates. (Davis, 2010)

            Many sheriffs hold office across multiple terms before they retire. They often are employed for several years as law enforcement officers prior to being elected sheriff leaving them with extensive “total service” years in the law enforcement professional. Kinnaird (2011) writes that “for a law enforcement officer, leaving active duty can be a difficult time.” He writes that “officers must be prepared to become civilians. A loss of police power and a feeling that one is no longer part of the cop family strongly accompanies the change.” (Kinnaird, 2011) Kinnaird (2011) discusses the “way of life” that law enforcement becomes to an officer and states that officers may experience “times of great depression, isolation, and a sense of being lost that they had never felt before.”

METHODS

            To review the relevant literature on the functions, duties and qualifications of sheriff, I conducted searches of both the internet and academic journal for information. Search terms included “sheriff”, “county sheriff”, and “deputy sheriff”. In addition, searches were conducted on the methodology of oral history and templates were found to create consent and release forms, and a pre-interview background questionnaire. I developed a list of questions to guide the interview process. After selection of a subject for the oral history interview, I arranged a meeting time to conduct the interview. After the meeting, the interview was transcribed. Upon completion of the interviews and transcription, the interview was provided to the subject for approval.

DATA

Setting

Madison County Ohio is located in Central Ohio between Columbus and Springfield. According to the county’s website 88% of the land is farms and the county ranks fourth in both soybean and corn production in the state of Ohio. (http://www.co.madison.oh.us) The current county population is 40,213 and the county is 467 square miles. The county seat is London, Ohio. The Madison County Sheriff’s Office is responsible for enforcing the laws of Ohio with the county. In addition, the Sheriff’s Office provides assistance to municipal agencies and court services support. The county jail is a regional jail which operates in conjunction with Champagne and Union counties. The jail is located in Mechanicsburg, Ohio. The sheriff is the chief law enforcement officer of the county and is independent of other county officials. The sheriff is elected to serve a four-year term in partisan elections.

The interviewee, Retired Madison County Ohio Sheriff Steve Saltsman, is the longest serving sheriff in the history of Madison County. He served as sheriff for twenty-four years, five months and one day beginning in July, 1980. His career in the criminal justice field began with four years of employment in Washington, D.C. with the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) as an identification technician. Upon leaving the FBI, Saltsman came to London, Ohio and was employed for seven years at the Bureau of Criminal Investigations (BCI). He joined the Madison County Sheriff’s Office as a deputy sheriff in 1972 and after eight years of employment, was elected to the office of sheriff.

The following is the transcribed interview with Retired Sheriff of Madison County Ohio Steve Saltsman.

Begin recording.

Interviewer: My name is Elizabeth Zamara and I am here with Retired Sheriff of Madison County Ohio Steve Saltsman. Steve is also my grandfather. Today is August 8, 2011. I have obtained the signed consent form and release. For my first question, why don’t you tell me a little about your background prior to being sheriff?

Steve Saltsman: Well, my career started right after high school when I joined the FBI in Washington, D.C. Not as an agent, but as a technical employee … I was a technician in the identification division. I stayed there for four years and I went to the Ohio Attorney General’s Bureau of Criminal Identification. I did pretty much the same thing until I moved on to the Investigation section. I worked at BCI for over seven years. In 1972 I joined the sheriff’s office and worked as a patrol officer, and also as a jail administrator and obtained the rank of Sergeant. And then, I decided to run for sheriff  which had been vacated by the former sheriff.

Interviewer: Um… Tell me about your parents, siblings, children… your family.

Steve Saltsman: Well, my mother is Margaret Saltsman and she lives in Portsmouth, Ohio in a retirement home. And my dad, Robert, he passed away in 2004. I had four brothers – one, Tom, he passed away in ’77 of cancer.

Interviewer: What about your wife and your children?

Steve Saltsman: My wife, Donna. We got married November 25, 1961 and we have three children as a result of that marriage. Teresa, a self-employed hair stylist and Patti who is a nurse at Children’s Hospital in Columbus, and Steve. Steve works for the Columbus Fire Department and is captain of the Bomb Squad.

Interviewer: Tell me about your education and any training you have.

Steve Saltsman: I graduated from Portsmouth Notre Dame Catholic School. I did attend George Washington University and Strayer College of Business though I did not obtain a degree. Other than that, I had law enforcement related training throughout my entire career.

Interviewer: Did you always want to be in law enforcement?

Steve Saltsman: Well, other than every kid wants to play cops and robbers. (Laughter) I went to Washington, D.C. with the idea that I would get a degree in accounting. My goal was to become a CPA – a Certified Public Accountant. When I got there and got involved in the work with the FBI and my interest was still in being a CPA, but then I found out that the Ohio BCI which is a part of the Attorney General’s Office was expanding. At that time they were under the Department of Corrections and the Attorney General took it over. I saw there was an opportunity there for growth beyond just the fingerprint work. At that time I was pretty much satisfied with the field of law enforcement. Well, those two fields weren’t really law enforcement, but they were law enforcement related.

Interviewer: And how did you find out about the job at the FBI, in Washington D.C.?

Steve Saltsman: It was through a school recruitment – schools had Career Days and you could sign up and attend a seminar, a recruiting event, of your choice, depending on what you wanted to pursue. I, ironically, didn’t sign up for the FBI but uh…the day of the Career Day, the Bureau couldn’t be there because of something – I don’t remember if it was a bank robbery or something. They came to the school individually, and they called me out of class  and said the FBI was there to talk to me about a job. It sounded a little bit more interesting than English Literature at the time, so I faked it and said yeah, I’m interested.

Interviewer: Okay, so tell me about how you became the sheriff – what year you were elected and how your family felt about it. And you.

Steve Saltsman: Well, the current sheriff had decided to retire. I had thought about uh.. ever since I joined the sheriff’s office, that was my goal… I think everybody has, should have a goal in mind. I discussed it at length with my wife. At the time there were four of us that wanted the position – three of us from the sheriff’s office and one from the juvenile court. Um.. The three of us from the sheriff’s office were all good friends. We all wanted it for different reasons and all went after it. In 1980, this was in 1980, the primary and I was declared the winner. Uh.. not to take office until January of 1981, but the former sheriff decided to retire in July and since I had no opponent in the general election, and I was a Republican and so was the former sheriff, I was appointed by the Central Committee to finish the term. Which was five months and one day.

Interviewer: And then you had to run?

Steve Saltsman: Well, I had already run in the primary and there was no opposition, so it was pretty much a given that I…

Interviewer: Were there any hard feelings between you and the others that wanted it? (the position)

Steve Saltsman: No, uh… if there was they weren’t shown. We had agreed that … we felt like one of the three of us would get it, and we agreed that the other two could stay employed if they chose to do so. We chose to run a clean campaign and uh..

Interviewer: Did they stay employed?

Steve Saltsman: They did, yes. One was the Chief Deputy at the time we ran, and his interest was really in detective work and the other was a co-sergeant with me, but he was in the civil division. He took care of all the process and sales and whatnot. I think my reason for really going, was more administrative than the other two and I could see down the line that that job was becoming more of a management type job as opposed to law enforcement, per se. There were things that were going to happen, jail standards and such and I think that was more my interest than it was the other two. Both of the other said later, it worked out best for the three of us. The fourth went about his merry way…uh…stayed in the juvenile court for a while and then left law enforcement.

Interviewer: How old were your kids then? Or what year was that?

Steve Saltsman: 1980 was the year I ran, I think Teresa, the oldest was 17. Patti would have been 15, and Steve 14.

Interviewer: How did you feel, I mean, who notified you that you had won the election?

Steve Saltsman: Well, the Board of Elections was in the courthouse and it was always the place to go on Election Day. Board of Elections was in the basement and they would post the results as the precincts were coming in. 1980 was the first year they used computerized ballot counting, before that it was hand count, so the ballots were counted pretty quick. The polls at that time, I think, closed around 6 o’clock in the evening, by 8 o’clock it was posted that I had won the election. Of course it had to be certified by the Board of Elections within 10 days but by and large it was known that I had won the election that night. Always before it sometimes was 8 o’clock in the morning before the winner was known.

Interviewer: Did you have a big campaign, or because there was no opposition you didn’t have to do that?

Steve Saltsman: Well, in the primary it was a pretty big thing. It was the first time in 24 years that the position had become open. The former sheriff had had some opposition when he ran, but this was the first time that the incumbent wasn’t seeking it in 24 years. There were some other county positions and I think there was maybe opposition in the Clerk of Courts, so it was an election that was going to, or should have, drawn a lot of voters.  Yea, we did a lot of campaigning. The uh… several groups in the county had Meet the Candidate Nights, never really had any debates per se, but a lot of it was door-to-door and telephone calling. Most of my campaign was relatively small because it was almost all family. A lot of my family was supporting us, uh… we talked to the deputies and told them to try to stay neutral because we thought one of the three of us would win it and we didn’t want there to be any hard feelings. A lot of it was putting out yard signs and that type of thing…

Interviewer: Describe your duties and responsibilities of sheriff.

Steve Saltsman: Well, the sheriff is the chief law enforcement officer of the county. He’s got total jurisdiction over the county, including the villages and the cities but there is some limitations there. The City of London had a police department for example, as did the Village of West Jefferson and the Village of Mount Sterling. We wouldn’t enter into their enforcement unless we were asked to, or if they failed to – if the mayor or whoever – didn’t act when they should have, then we could go in and do it. We were officers of the court which meant we had to serve all the civil process. I’m talking about subpoenas, summons, complaints, provide court security for the courts in the court house which included the municipal court, which at that time was county court… common pleas court and juvenile/probate court. We also ran the jail. And we had the only jail in the county. The city jails had all pretty much shut down because of jail standards. And I had 465 square – some miles, 600 miles of roadways to patrol. I only had 13 deputies at the time and 3 cruisers so…

Interviewer: Did you have to take any specific training when you first became sheriff?

Steve Saltsman: Not when I first became sheriff. Uh… in fact, the sheriff wasn’t even required to have the peace officer’s basic training… at that time. Since then, and there was a one week sort of orientation that was not really mandated, but was recommended by the Buckeye State Sheriffs’  Association. Of course since then, the sheriff does have to be peace officer certified, by the peace officers’ training academy or council and there is also a three week training period for new, for incoming sheriffs  that I think it’s either two weeks prior or one week after becoming sheriff or one week before and two weeks after he becomes sheriff. That went into effect back about 1988, or somewhere around there.

Interviewer: So that’s required of all sheriffs, or just…

Steve Saltsman: All sheriffs in the State of Ohio.

Interviewer: In Ohio?

Steve Saltsman: Yes. (Silence) The sheriffs… we have to get 16 hours of inservice training every year too. That was a result of the act that required sheriffs to be qualified. The BSSA runs at least four training sessions of 4 hours every year. Of course, we could pick up those hours plus other hours too and it’s kind of a… schedule them as we see we need them. Um.. if there is a new law, for example, when the sex offender registration law went into effect we had quite a bit of concentrated seminars on that particular fact or law….

Interviewer: You were a deputy before you became sheriff, so did you still wear your uniform to work when you became sheriff?

Steve Saltsman: Yes, I did at first…and I still continued to wear it. Sometimes, a suit and tie was more appropriate. The other elected officials in Ohio, other than the fringe benefits of county employees such as health insurance, retirement and whatnot, um… anything else is taboo. In other words, I had to buy my own suits and uniforms. There is nothing in the code, so in other words – if the sheriff wore a uniform, he bought it. At least that’s the way it was supposed to work. Uh… Some sheriffs wear it every day, some wear on occasion. I usually dressed the part in business attire.

Interviewer: And when you did wear the uniform, was your uniform different than the deputies uniform? Or how did it differ?

Steve Saltsman: The only difference between my uniform and the deputies’ uniform was the shoulder patch – it said sheriff, and theirs said deputy sheriff. And the breast badge said sheriff, and of course theirs said deputy sheriff. Of course, the ranking officers, if they were a lieutenant it said lieutenant. And it’s not just in Madison County Sheriff’s Office, but no matter where you go in Ohio you’ll see the same uniform and the cars marked exactly the same. We had a Uniform and Car Marking Commission and it’s appointed by the governor, in fact I was appointed to serve on it, and we decide what the uniform is, what’s appropriate to put on the uniform, and the same thing with the car markings. Probably, 47 or 48 other states that probably wished they had done the same thing. There is a couple of them that did have standard uniforms, but Ohio stood out when they had the National Sheriffs’ Association meetings or whatever. Everyone was always kind of envious of the Ohio sheriffs. The nice thing about it was, if you provide mutual aid. Say a neighboring county, say Fayette County had a serious problem down there, he could call on us. People down there didn’t know if we were Fayette County or… and that’s one of the things that was going on. There were times we would go into a neighboring county and weren’t dressed in the same uniforms, so therefore we quote didn’t have any authority to enforce. Even though we did. It created problems.

Interviewer: Now, tell me about the requirements for attendance for the sheriffs.

Steve Saltsman: By law, the sheriff is a part-time position, as is most of the other county positions. I think the prosecutor and the engineer are the only two considered full-time positions. I was required, or the sheriff was required, to be there one day in every thirty and that was quote to inspect the jail. Which was uh… a law that should have been changed years ago. That law was outdated with the jail standards, because that pretty much governed how jails were run. Before, the common pleas court could establish how jails were run but the sheriffs were….. To give you an example, we were required to white-wash the jail every six months.

Interviewer: Do you know anyone that actually only worked one day of every thirty?

Steve Saltsman: No, I don’t know of any… There may have been some back… I doubt very seriously uh… that there was anyone that worked the one day. There was no way in the world you could only work part-time. Uh…For so many years, the sheriff in the smaller counties, the help was limited, his wife was the matron and the cook, they lived in the jail, and you had prisoners in the jail, you had to have someone there in the event of an emergency. So, no, I don’t know of anyone who worked one day out of thirty, or one week out of four as far as that goes.

Interviewer: You decided not to live in the house that was attached to the jail, but other sheriffs before you did.

Steve Saltsman: I was the first sheriff in Madison County not to live there. Not that there is anything wrong with it, but I had already purchased a home and I lived two blocks from the sheriff’s office and didn’t particularly want to have that exposure to the kids and their friends and whatnot. Um.. the county was a little bit cramped for space, and there was a lot of room in the sheriff’s residence. As a result I chose not to live there. When the former sheriff’s wife retired, she was the matron and the cook, and about a month or so after I took office, she retired. I released the house to the county commissioners with the understanding that I could keep at least 2 of the three  rooms downstairs, and the kitchen obviously, because we still had a jail. The prosecutor took over the rest of the house. It was an older house, with a lot of big rooms which made it easy to operate in especially for the prosecutor who had pretty cramped quarters in the basement.

Interviewer: Was anyone upset with your decision not to live there?

Steve Saltsman: Nobody was upset with it, some of the elected officials thought I was stupid for not doing it – to live rent free. Maybe stupid is a little harsh, but they didn’t understand why I wouldn’t accept rent free housing.

Interviewer: Now when you became sheriff, was that an increase or a decrease from your salary when you were a deputy?

Steve Saltsman: There was no change. Actually, I guess the statute of limitations has passed… (Laughter.)The former sheriff was making 300 dollars a year less. I was making 14,500 and the former sheriff was making 14,200. It got overlooked. When I started out to finish his term, it slipped past them in the Auditor’s office so I continued at 14,500.

Interviewer: Could you tell me what Madison County was like, at the time when you became sheriff?

Steve Saltsman: It was primarily agriculture. There was very little non-agricultural business. Of course, we had the prison, London Correctional. We got a couple business industries in town there. There were about 20=25,000 people in the county. The interstates had just opened up, I had 13 deputies, no dispatchers.

Interviewer: Who did the dispatching?

Steve Saltsman: The regular deputies had to do the dispatching, and all the … pretty much take care of the jail. We did have part-time deputies and part-time people to take care of the jail on the weekends.

Interviewer: How has Madison County changed?

Steve Saltsman: Well, it’s up to 46,000 people now I think. We have considerable amount of industry, warehousing, of course farming and agriculture is still a factor there. The difference between my first day in office and my last day in office, I think I had 52 people on the payroll – 36 or 37 of those were full-time. I went from three cruisers and an unmarked car to 21 cruisers and a couple of jail transport wagons. And salaries were certainly improved. And I didn’t have a jail to operate.

Interviewer: And what happened to the jail?

Steve Saltsman: In 2000, Madison, Union and Champagne Counties went together and formed a regional jail located in Mechanicsburg. We are still part of the governing body for the jail, but it was a big relief, really. At the time, the jail here was 110 or 112 years old. We were expected to meet current jail standards and there was no relief or exceptions for old facility. The standards were what they were – for a brand new jail, or a 112 year old jail. And it was extremely hard and extremely expensive to try to function that way. And it was outdated. It was way overcrowded. We had 17 beds and that’s what jail standards would allow me to house, and we had a daily average of 35 people every day and 37 on weekends. What kept me out of civil court I don’t know. Grace of God and luck.

Interviewer: Tell me some of the highlights of your career over the years.

Steve Saltsman: Well, I think probably implementing the D.A.R.E. program probably. We implemented that in 1988 and it’s still in existence today. We were able to go from 5^th grade core to where we were offering K-12 really. The new jail, really was obviously. We implemented 9-1-1 for the county.

Interviewer: Do you remember what year that was?

Steve Saltsman: That would have been 1991 – March of ’91. Um… which created a little more work for the sheriff’s office because we were central dispatch for most of the county. Now it’s practically all of the county, I think London, West Jeff and Mount Sterling have police dispatch only. The county does the rest of it and all fire and squad, the township fire departments as well. Expanding, I think growing from the 13 officers to where we were at and provided the services that we could. Those are the things that jump out at me the quickest. Uh… one of the highlights of my career, if that’s included in there, was being elected to President of the Buckeye State Sheriffs’  Association. I was a board member for 14, maybe 15 years, but to have been chosen as president by 87 other sheriff’s was kind of … uh… an honor for me.

Interviewer: And what did…. Um… Tell me about the BSSA.

Steve Saltsman: Well, the Buckeye State Sheriff’s Association is an association of all the sheriffs in all 88 counties. About every state has a statewide association, and some of our functions as an association was to deal with the legislature, you know… to encourage the passage of certain bills, or the defeat of certain bills, if they were going to have a certain effect on us. Uh… to offer mutual aid to each other, we were able to get expanded training. When I took office there was no standard training for sheriffs. There was for deputies and police officers, but none for corrections officers.  When I started at the sheriff’s office, even part-time, they handed you a gun and a badge and said you’re a deputy, now go patrol.

Interviewer: You didn’t have to have any training?

Steve Saltsman: Not when I started, no. That came in later but uh…the same thing with the jail. We had all these standards we had to operate a jail by, but there was no specified training for corrections officers. Corrections officers, quite frankly, were looked at as second class citizens. Guilt by association with the criminals they were supervising. We fought to get mandatory training, and if we had mandatory training it was going to have to be funded by the county. That was part of the problem. Funding not for all counties, but a lot of the counties that were underfunded. And to this day, it’s still only I think, 120 hours. It might be increased a little bit. You know, the deputy was required to have 580 hours when I left of training, and he might make 1 or 2 arrests a week depending on the county. Obviously, if it’s a bigger county – Franklin County or Cuyahoga County – he might have a little more. He had to have all that, but the jailer, the corrections officer, he only had to have 120 hours and they were with them 8 hours a day, 40 hours a week. Now it was a controlled environment, but it made the job… we fought to have the job become more of a profession. We wanted to have career corrections officers, you know you seek to hire somebody; you generally put them in the jail – that’s where they started. What better way to learn about the people you’re going to be dealing with. But sometimes, in small departments, there’s no turnover, you don’t have much hope for getting out of the jail. Um… at the time, I had some guys that were in there 4,5, and 6 years before they had the opportunity.

Interviewer: Did you ever have any riots or anything at the jail?

Steve Saltsman: Never had any riots. I had two escapes, or attempts. Occasionally we’d have a prisoner fight, but no what you call a riot. Uh… a couple guys hung themselves, but other than that didn’t have any difficulty. I was sued; I think 15 or 16 times, and never lost one. I had one that was settled out of court against my wishes. One of them, I didn’t even know about, the other was against my wishes. But the loss was minimal. I think one got $100 and one got $8500. That was a result of having good employees, doing what they were supposed to, when they were supposed to, and how they were supposed to.

Interviewer: What changes in law enforcement or criminal justice did you witness over your career?

Steve Saltsman: Well, I think technology was probably the biggest change. We had limited communications. We had a statewide radio band which most of us worked on so you had communications with neighboring sheriffs, but if you had business with one outside the immediate area, you usually had to do that by telephone. The deputies at the time all had take home hand-held radios, so we had communications there. There were no cell phones, no computers. We didn’t even have a direct link to the Bureau of Motor Vehicles or BCI other than by telephone at the time. We did get a LEADS machine, which was a computerized machine that allowed us to communicate with literally all the.. it was a teletype type system, but it gave you communications capabilities with uh… everyone in the state, or uh..in the country. But now they have in car computers, and I think radios are going to become obsolete with the type of communications you have now. The problem with radios is that anybody that has a scanner can pick up the traffic. Not that everything is top secret, but there are occasions when you have to speak in code or try to tell the deputy to go to the telephone if you don’t want it to get out over the air. There’s no question about the technology, now they have a … and even here in Madison County they’ve got a … an instrument, I don’t know what else to call it… and uh… that actually reads license plates of every car that passes. And it can tell you if it’s a stolen car or not.

Interviewer: They have that in Madison County?

Steve Saltsman: Mmm-Hmm. Not in all the cruisers, but a couple of them do. And the technology now, and even when I was still there, the deputies going to stop a car, a traffic violator for example, and before he stops the car, he can give the license number and know who the owner of the car and the type of the car. He may not know if the owner is driving it at that time, but if there’s a warrant for an outstanding arrest, they can tell him that too before he even pulls him over. One of the other changes, is probably concealed weapons. Concealed carry, it’s pretty much supervised by the sheriff’s office. That and sex offenders. And it’s a result of technology too.

Interviewer: And when did the concealed carry…

Steve Saltsman: That went into effect in 2002 or 2003.

Interviewer: And what involvement does the sheriff’s office have in that?

Steve Saltsman: Anyone that wants to concealed carry has to apply through the sheriff’s office. And then the sheriff is required to do a background check on them, and uh… the person that is applying has to have a certain amount of training including time on the range, and the sheriff has to verify that he got that.

Interviewer: Was that really popular in Madison County?

Steve Saltsman: Yes, in fact when the law was passed, originally you had to apply in your home county. So, applicants in Madison County were people that lived in Madison County but that changed before the law went into effect. A lot of the Franklin County permit seekers came over here because you could walk in get the application, and it was pretty much one-stop shopping except for having to come back after the background check to actually get the license. But with some of the larger counties, you had to have an appointment. Franklin County, you have to go downtown, pay for parking, there were only certain hours you could get it and that was usually during the working day. Therefore, it made it very difficult for working people. We were actually second or third in the number of licenses issued in the first year.

Interviewer: And what about the sex offenders? You mentioned that…

Steve Saltsman: Well, the sex offender law you know, once the sex offender was released from control of the court, whether if he was paroled or release from prison with no supervision, nobody knew where he was at. And the thought was, and still is, that most of those people are not cured, especially pedophiles, Of course, see the uh… law, it fell again in the sheriff’s hands. The law required the sex offenders to register with the sheriff so they were under some kind of judicial control and it was up to sheriff’s to maintain uh… knowledge of where they were living as best they could. Of course it prevented them from living in certain areas, still kind of controversial, there’s some ups and downs to it, but pretty much now it’s … every sheriff’s got its own website and you go to the website and find out where there’s sex offenders. It gives the public peace of mind, though I’m sure these guys find ways to beat the system, but by and large the communities are a little bit safer as a result of it. And they put the responsibility of keeping tabs on those guys on the sheriff.

Interviewer: Did you ever have any … um… sex offenders, who after they registered and the public was notified, that they were harassed or assaulted or any problems with that?

Steve Saltsman: We… uh… I can only think of a couple repeat offenders that were registered and even got off parole, or out of judicial supervision and went back. By and large… are you talking about uh…

Interviewer: Yes, once the public found out where they lived, and they harassed them or went to their house and…

Steve Saltsman: You mean the sex offender?

Interviewer: yes.

Steve Saltsman: To my knowledge, no.  (Silence) We didn’t have that many in the county, we had some that were still serving prison time. When I was there I think we had 10-15 total in the county. I don’t know what it is now.

Interviewer: Can you describe any special or interesting cases while you were sheriff?

Steve Saltsman: I think any homicide would be an interesting case. One of the most interesting cases I guess would be Jessica Keen. Jessica was a young girl who was 14 or 15 and found beaten to death in a cemetery. It was a very intense investigation. It included surrounding counties, the FBI, the Columbus Police Department, BCI, of course. It made uh… oh America’s Most Wanted, what’s the other…?

Interviewer: Unsolved Mysteries?

Steve Saltsman: Unsolved Mysteries. It was featured on Unsolved Mysteries a couple three times. The current sheriff was the lead investigator on it and uh… for 17 years, and almost 17 years to the day…. She was discovered on March 17, it was Saint Patrick’s Day which is the reason I remember that, and 17 years later on Saint Patrick’s Day BCI got a hit on DNA. It was a guy living in Tennessee. He was never a suspect. We had a number of suspects that was eliminated either through physical evidence or DNA and he was brought back to Ohio and admitted guilt and struck a deal to avoid the death penalty and uh… he’s currently serving time. That was probably the most interesting. We had another one that was a…drug deal that went south, or went bad, and involved a Cuban boat people were involved in shooting a drug dealer. That was quite a bit of intensive work for the investigators. The rest of them were pretty much routine… I had an interesting shoplifting case. In fact it was a shoplifting ring. A couple of the big box stores here, Kmarts and Walmarts, were being hit pretty hard. We were ultimately able to get indictments and arrests and convictions. It was basically shoplifting, but the culprits got 13-64 years as a result of the total number of counts against them and the total loss. Walmarts I think estimated that they lost close to a million dollars over a period time that these guys were operating.

Interviewer: Were they like… younger people?

Steve Saltsman: They were in their 30’s – 40’s. The ringleader got 13-64 years; I don’t think the other ones got quite that much time. It’s a lot of time for basically a shoplifting offense.

Interviewer: Homicide, now that’s not… something that happens often in Madison County?

Steve Saltsman: Uh… not really. I think I only had 7 homicides in the 38 years I was with the sheriff’s office. A couple of those went unsolved. We had a biker out of Columbus, we know who did it but we could never prove that one. It went unsolved. That is, would have been the only one that was never solved. Fortunately, we didn’t have a lot of crimes of violence. Rapes were few and far between, armed robbery didn’t happen very often, but house burglaries, breaking and entering, thefts were the primary. Why we didn’t have more, I don’t know. I mean… we had two interstates passing through and of course, Interstate 70 had a lot of businesses on it that were prime for robbery but it just didn’t happen. We had a lot of prostitution problems, and that was kind of unique. At one time, we had about 25 prostitutes working out there and that was a cover for , some of it was a cover for the drug dealers. Columbus has 75% of the United States population living within 1000 miles of Columbus. So it’s a hub. And a lot of these truckers were maybe even unknown to them, were mules, hauling drugs in. And the prostitutes were providing services and they were also picking up the drugs and taking them back to Columbus. Major heroin ring was broken up in Columbus as a result of arrests we made at the truck stop.

Interviewer: And how far is Madison County from Columbus?

Steve Saltsman: Well, we figure to the capital is 30 miles so it’s only about 15-18 miles to the west side of Columbus.

Interviewer: What do you think the best part of your career was?

Steve Saltsman: It’d be real hard to narrow it down because I had a very satisfying career. I’d say some of the things that I’ve already mentioned, the implementation of the D.A.R.E. program, the implementation of the 9-1-1 system, the construction of the jail; those were all highlights plus the fact that I was successful in going through the ranks of the office including the presidency of the BSSA. Uh ... I think the fact that we were able to grow from the 13 people that we had in the beginning to the 52, of course that was also… it dropped down a little before I retired because we closed the jail but those people went on up to the Tri-County Jail, but we had the dispatchers. We went from no dispatchers to two per shift. Uh... there’s probably some other things but those are the highlights.

Interviewer: Did you ever get to meet anyone famous?

Steve Saltsman: Oh yea. I got to shake hands with President Clinton. I was the only Republican there – well, the only Republican Sheriff anyway. Uh…I met a number of law enforcement professionals with the FBI, actually saw President Bush, President Reagan, President Ford, President Kennedy… well, that wouldn’t have been with the sheriff’s office but I did meet him.

Interviewer: So tell me about the day JFK was assassinated. You were working for the FBI?

Steve Saltsman: Well, as I said before, when word got out a little before it was made official, everything went down in the District of Columbia. Phone service was not available; there was hardly any activity whatsoever. It’s kind of a long story, but my wife who was also employed by the FBI at the time, but was on maternity leave, and she… had called for me to return a call. She had left a message. We could receive messages, but we had to make the return call from the phone bank – a pay phone. We had a bank of pay phones in the rest areas of the building. I was a little concerned because she knew the bureau didn’t appreciate the “bring home milk and bread” type phone calls; you know it was supposed to be somewhat of an urgent thing. My concern was that something was wrong with her or the baby. So I went to the phone banks and put my dime in and didn’t get anything. So I thought well, that one’s dead and you know, routinely that happened. So I went on to the next one. It was probably about five, ten, twenty in a rest area. I went to the next one and it was dead. I went through about four of them and I couldn’t figure out – I mean, it was really weird. I hadn’t heard anything about the president yet. I finally got  through and Donna was telling me about Kennedy being shot and there was going to be a news conference or that they were going to make some kind of announcement on the television. And she said I’ll hold the phone up so you can hear it. Well, about that time Special Agent Ganley who was in charge of our bureau – we were 13 blocks from the Justice Department in the Identification Division so there was considerable distance between us and headquarters. He came along and he said you have an outside line, and I said yea, my wife is on here and they’re about ready to … that was as far as I got and he yanked the phone out of my hand and pretty soon he handed it back and took off like towards the front offices. And I got on the phone and I said what in the world did you tell him? She said, well, that Kennedy is dead. Well, within five minutes… well, she was kind of relaying to me everything that had happened, with the parade and everything, and then they came out on the PA system and said the Bureau was being dismissed, that Kennedy had been assassinated. So I didn’t think anything about it and I know Mr. Ganley, he’s a very, very… uh…personable individual for an FBI agent. He had a son, Mike, that was my age that worked there and we’d become good friends. But anyway, after things was all settled down there a week or so later, he called me to the office and said he wanted to apologize. And I thought what in the world do you want to apologize to me for? But he said for being so rude the other day. I said well, I never took it as being rude… I said I was a little surprised but I didn’t know about the way he was going from Point A to Point B and didn’t have access to a phone. And he told me now, I’m going to tell you this but he said, you’re free to tell whoever you want to, but if you have to have it proven, the FBI will deny it emphatically, but your phone is how we found out in this Identification Division that Kennedy was assassinated. All the phones were dead, and how you got a line through…I said well I guess I had the right phone or the right dime. He said it confirmed what they were hearing. Of course I’m sure they had other forms of communication but that kind of stuff you don’t put over the air. So I said well, I guess if I tell anyone I’ll put that disclaimer on it. It never did become an issue, but…and I haven’t told too many people about that actually. Not that it’s a secret, but nobody would believe it anyway. (Silence) And when I say the FBI, I don’t mean the entire FBI, but the Identification Division.

Interviewer: Tell me about your decision to retire? What year did you retire?

Steve Saltsman: I retired in… January 1 of 2005. December 31, 2004. I was just shy of...three months from having 40 years of total service in the retirement system plus another four years with the FBI. I was really ready to retire. Uh … I still enjoyed doing what I was doing, but I could see some other changes going on… and it was time for new blood. I ended up being the longest serving sheriff in county history. 24 years, 5 months and 1 day. Not the longest serving elected official, but the longest serving sheriff.

Interviewer: How did you prepare the office for your retirement?

Steve Saltsman: I knew when I ran for the last term, the sixth term that it was going to be my last. Well, I was pretty much sure it was. The current sheriff, Jim Sabin, had expressed interest in that job, uh… He had qualifications, certainly had the time, managed to get him into the National Academy – the FBI National Academy so he was well trained in administrative duties and I promoted him to the Chief Deputy. I basically turned over some of my responsibilities to him. So when the time came, he was ready to step into the job. He was pretty much familiar with the way government was run, dealing with the commissioners, and budgetary issues… It was an easy transition. Jim was well-liked by the other deputies in the department. I’m sure he’s had some stumbling blocks, but they’ve been small.

Interviewer: Do you have any involvement with the sheriff’s office now?

Steve Saltsman:  I still have a deputy’s commission. I do some paid part-time and volunteer time, though it’s pretty sparse in both areas. I’m available whenever he needs somebody. I don’t pursue it actively because if some of those guys need the money, I don’t really need it. Not that I’m flush, but uh…

Interviewer: What do you do when you’re helping out?

Steve Saltsman: Generally court services. Transporting prisoners back and forth or providing court security in the common pleas or municipal court. I have occasionally transported prisoners in extradition procedures. I went to Tennessee to get one, I went to Georgia to get one.

Interviewer: Is it weird to work under the sheriff since he used to work for you?

Steve Saltsman: No, not really. I was ready to go when I retired. I was probably… he might have been a little more uncomfortable than I was… I tried to avoid being very visible in his first, early on in his term. As a special deputy I’m a member of the auxiliary, but I avoided going to the auxiliary meetings so… Because I’d been there for so many years, and some of the things he wanted to do might not have been the way I would have done them…I just didn’t want to interfere. I had no trouble wearing a deputy uniform. And I still get called Sheriff. If I walk in over there, and I stop in frequently, if I run into one of the guys, or the other elected official, I guess once you get elected, you always carry the title.

Interviewer: When you were sheriff, you did not have a personal assistant or a secretary, why?

Steve Saltsman: It was pretty much by choice. I could have easy enough. For budgetary reasons, I could see where I could do my own personal work, or secretarial work. I should clarify I did have an administrative assistant. A person to take care of the books, the cash book. I did the payroll, but she was able to do the payroll in case I couldn’t get to it. I did most of my own secretarial type work because it was just as quick for me to sit down and type it as it was to write it out for someone else to type. I had a couple of people there, either the Deputy Clerk, that took care of the court services, or the administrative assistant that could take care of it for me if I needed it. The foreclosure sales, that type of thing was handled by the administrative assistant. I just didn’t see the need for a full-time secretary; the money was better put in other personnel.

Interviewer: What year did the union come to the sheriff’s office?

Steve Saltsman: I believe it was 1992 or 93. Maybe it was 1993.

Interviewer: And how did that all come about?

Steve Saltsman: Well, the deputies they tried to organize when they first implemented collective bargaining but they chose… I guess enough of them chose not to organize so it kind of fell through. That was a drive by the union, the FOP, they got enough signatures of the employees, to show they were interested in it. There was a vote and they voted to put the union in. Uh … It really wasn’t difficult. I had no feelings about the union one way or the other. I never really cared for unions because of the … never had any experience with them personally, but some of the things you’d seen or heard was I guess, a little bit of a turn-off for me. Realistically, it made my job a little bit easier in some areas. At least, it made it a lot easier to say no. But it set up established procedures, standards. You know, before, if someone came in and said hey boss, can I have off tomorrow? Unless I could think fast enough of a reason why they couldn’t, they got off. Now they had to ask a certain amount of time ahead, certain priorities in the way they got it. They weren’t unreasonable in what they were going after, in any case, it got to negotiations to go for the maximum comprise in the middle but it was done without much difficulty. One contract we had a mediator that dealt with health insurance. They wanted the family health insurance provided, and the county had insurance available but they didn’t pay it. And uh… the mediator thought they should get at least partially paid, so they got it worked out but uh…the thing is, it only affected one or two of the people. The union spent all that money for the mediators and the county did, and what they got they didn’t really use. Or utilize.

Interviewer: What were some of the complaints the deputies had at the beginning of your career as sheriff compared to complaints when you retired? Like, other than money – equipment, lack of equipment…

Steve Saltsman: When I took office, the biggest issue was manpower. I mean, uh… as I mentioned before it’s a pretty good sized county. From one corner to another corner, we’re talking about 60 miles, and that time there was one deputy on duty at a time. Occasionally, we could get one to work part of two shifts, or on the weekend we might have two out there, but that was one of the biggest complaints. And the fact that we had three cruisers, made it difficult to uh… sometimes a guy came to work but he couldn’t go to work because he’s waiting on the guy to bring the cruiser in. Money was an issue; obviously, they’d like to have more in their paychecks and certainly deserved it. Equipment, well…. It was not a major issue. There was some stuff out there they would have liked to have, but primarily they were pretty well satisfied. I mean, as well as they could be at the time. Getting the help was the biggest issue I think. Of course some of the guys didn’t want to sit at a desk and be a dispatcher so they wanted dispatching. That kind of stuff got approved pretty quickly. Now, keep in mind, the former sheriff who had been in there six terms himself, was now a County Commissioner and that made it the issues with the budget a lot easier. And at the end, obviously, money was an issue, but there really weren’t any major issues. We had a good bit of equipment. There’s always something new out there, and it’s just like anyone else, they want the latest thing. By and large, when we negotiated contracts, equipment was not an issue, training was not an issue. An uh, even benefits weren’t that big an issue. The first year they were negotiating a contract the year I retired, and there were no major issues about things that they wanted. You know, they go to trade shows, and they see all this stuff that’s out there, obviously. They said they wanted uniform allowances, obviously we were going to pay for uniforms, but they wanted the uniform allowance upfront in the form of cash. We fought it and won, but I can see what would happen. They would take whatever the amount was and run out and buy something that was work related but not necessarily needed and then fall down and bust their pants. Then I’d have to buy them a pair of pants because they didn’t have any uniform money left so we set a limit but kept control of it. It never became an issue after that.

Interviewer: Do you miss being sheriff?

Steve Saltsman: In a single word, no. I’ll qualify that answer. There’s certain parts of it I definitely miss – you miss the people. Uh… you miss some of the positive things, but I’ve never had any regrets about leaving. Um… after 24, almost 25 years, it was kind of unnerving to see somebody else’s name on the star on the cruisers. No, I got out at just the right time. I wasn’t having budget problems; uh….I had plenty of help. Everything was going pretty good. It was shortly after I retired everything started going south, but it’s starting to come back. I figure every day is a holiday now.

Interviewer: Is there anything you disliked about sheriff, or an aspect of your duties?

Steve Saltsman: Well, there was always things that weren’t pleasant. Generally, it was a victim of a crime. One of the most distasteful thing I’ve had to was deliver death messages. I had to do that a few times. There’s no easy way to do that, but sometimes too, when you’re the sheriff of a county the size of Madison, you get to know people pretty well. I’m sure the sheriff of Franklin County or Cuyahoga County knows a lot of people, but he doesn’t walk down the street and see people he knows by first names. Sometimes when a kid gets in trouble and you have to go have a talk with their parents, and tell them their kid was caught dealing drugs or whatever the case may be- or worse yet, have the kid in jail. Had to do that a few times, but uh… I don’t know that there is anything that I really disliked. There were things that were not pleasant, but you dealt with. I didn’t necessarily run across anything I didn’t expect – I knew what the job entailed, but I think in a county the size of Madison – we’re not a small county, we’re an average county. Uh… the sheriff is personally responsible, or more personally involved than maybe a larger county sheriff.

Interviewer: Is there anything else you’d like to add at this time?

Steve Saltsman: I can’t think of anything else. I’m sure if I get to thinking about it I’ll come up with better answers. (laughter)

Interviewer: Well, thank you for your time. I appreciate it.

End.

FINDINGS

            The oral history interview with Retired Sheriff of Madison County Steve Saltsman provided insight into the duties and responsibilities of the elected county sheriff that corresponded to my review of the available literature. The sheriff, the chief law enforcement officer of the county he serves, is responsible for jail administration, court services support and security, and patrol of the unincorporated areas of the county. The information Saltsman provided was based on his personal experience as an Ohio sheriff for six terms which equated to 24 years, 5 months and 1 day. Due to the length of time Saltsman served he was able to identify changes to both the office of sheriff and in law enforcement in general. Saltsman identified these changes as being primarily related to technology, though he did highlight two changes to the Ohio legislature that impacted the responsibilities of the sheriff. These two legislative changes involved the registration of sex offenders in the county and the concealed carry licensing process. Technology in 1980 was limited. Saltsman reported “limited communications”- no cellular phones, no computers and no direct link to the BMV or BCI other than by phone. Now the deputies enjoy cell phones, in car computers, and radios. Saltsman believes radios will become obsolete due to the advancing technologies available.

            Saltsman also discussed the lack of training requirements for both the sheriff and sheriff’s deputies when he took office in July, 1980. Saltsman himself had worked with both the Federal Bureau of Investigation in Washington, D.C. and the Bureau of Criminal Investigation in London, Ohio prior to becoming a sheriff’s deputy. He worked as a deputy for 14 years until he became sheriff.  He detailed the work of the Buckeye State Sheriffs’ Association to make the office of county sheriff (as well as the job of deputy sheriff) more professional through the requirement of training standards. Through the BSSA, the Uniform and Car Marking Commission was created. This commission was the driving force behind the development of standardized uniforms for sheriffs and their deputies. Saltsman indicated that sheriffs and deputies in all of Ohio’s 88 counties wear identical uniforms. In addition, the sheriff’s offices vehicles share the same markings. He indicated the reason behind the standardization as being related to mutual aid. When deputies arrive in another county to provide mutual aid they are dressed identical to the deputies in the area, thus the public cannot say they have no authority.

            Serving as sheriff in an “average size”, agricultural county, Saltsman provided information on the nature of the job and how it differs from that of a larger county. He indicated that during his 38 years with the Madison County Sheriff’s Office there were “only 7” homicides and not “a lot” of violent crimes.  Saltsman expressed his surprise in the lack of robberies to businesses given the extensive stretches of interstates that run through Madison County.

            Interestingly, one homicide case that gained national attention was mentioned  by Saltsman. He cited the Jessica Lynn Keen homicide as being one of the most interesting cases. Saltsman reports that Jessica was a young teenage girl found beaten to death in a county cemetery. He states it was a “very intense investigation” which involved surrounding counties as well as assistance from the FBI, the Columbus Police Department, and BCI. It was featured on Unsolved Mysteries three times. A Madison County Sheriff’s Office press release (April, 2008) provided more information on this case. It reads:

“On March 17, 1991 the body of Jessica Lynn Keen, age 15 years, was discovered in the Foster Chapel Cemetery, located in Jefferson Township, Madison County, Ohio. An

Autopsy revealed she died from blunt force trauma to her head and body. Evidence indicating sexual activity prior to death was recovered. Investigation of the crime scene revealed bare footprints running from the north, through the ditch, and across a wooden fence. Impressions were also discovered behind grave markers, as if hiding. Evidence indicates that Jessica ran into a fence in the rear of the cemetery which knocked her to the ground, giving the assailant time to catch up with her, and where she was killed….No information or evidence was developed which linked a particular individual to the crime…. Although at the time DNA was developed from evidence, no suspect DNA concluded in a match. A state and national data base of offender DNA standards, currently in existence utilizes different testing and reporting methods from the original evidence in this case. An insufficient amount of evidence DNA was available for additional testing. Over the years evidence has been resubmitted to laboratories as technology changed. Evidence was again resubmitted to the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation and as a result of being able to do more with less, on March 17, 2008, a computerized match was obtained, which was then reviewed and matched to the original evidence.”

Sabin (2008) writes that the suspect, Marvin Lee Smith Jr. was identified through DNA standard evidence obtained after serving a three year sentence for an attempted kidnapping and rape conviction from Franklin County, Ohio in August 1991. Since the press release was written, Smith has been convicted of aggravated murder with specifications of kidnapping and rape after he pled guilty and confessed to the crime to avoid the death penalty.

 Saltsman noted that sheriffs of larger counties likely were not able to develop familiarity with the residents of the county as well as he was able. Saltsman turned down the opportunity to reside in a home attached to the jail and sheriff’s office as all previous sheriffs had done. He did this for two reasons: to reduce the exposure of his children to the jail and provide the county with additional storage space which was lacking. The county prosecutor took over the house for office space. Saltsman resided in his family home two blocks away, and still resides in the same home today.

            The Madison County Jail, the only jail still in existence in the county, was closed during Saltsman’s tenure, though the county did form a regional jail for use by Madison County, Union County and Champagne County. The “tri-county” jail is located in Mechanicsburg, Ohio.  The former jail was outdated at 112 years old and did not meet jail standards which were developed after Saltsman took office. The new jail remains in operation with Madison County sheriff’s deputies providing transport to and from the jail location to the courts on a daily basis. When the jail closed, Saltsman’s number of employees decreased as corrections officers was no longer necessary.

            Though by law in Ohio, sheriffs are only required to work one day in every thirty (and this is to “inspect the jail”) Saltsman relayed that this is just not practical given all of the administrative duties the sheriff has. He did not know of any Ohio sheriff who only worked one day in every thirty, nor did he know of any who only worked part-time. In Ohio, only the county engineer and the county prosecutor are considered full-time positions. Saltsman expressed that he thinks this law should have been changed years ago.  

            Saltman retired December 31, 2004 as the longest serving sheriff in Madison County. He knew after the election in 2000 that it would “probably” be his last term and worked to prepare the office accordingly. He promoted an investigator who had expressed interest in being sheriff to Chief Deputy after he had completed training at the FBI National Academy to prepare for the administrative duties of the sheriff. In turning over some of his duties to the Chief Deputy, Saltsman said it was an “easy transition.” He still maintains a deputy’s commission with the Madison County Sheriff’s Office and he does some part-time and volunteer work. He believes he “got out” at the right time due to the budget issues the current sheriff has faced. Saltsman reflected that his career was rewarding in all aspects.

CONCLUSION

            This study examined the county sheriff including the history, responsibilities and functions. Despites the extensive history of the sheriff, there is a lack of research specific to the county sheriff. All county sheriffs are elected officials and many serve multiple terms. This experience offers a unique perspective with regards to the insight the sheriff can provide into the changes in both the elected office of sheriff and changes in law enforcement over time.

            Through an oral history with Retired Madison County Ohio Sheriff Steve Saltsman (served as county sheriff from July, 1980 – December, 2004) who had 19 years in the criminal justice field prior to holding office, valuable insight was gained into the nature of the office, responsibilities of an Ohio county sheriff, and the changes he experienced throughout his career.

            Oral history as methodology is a valuable tool to “create primary source documents” based on the personal accounts of individuals. (MacDowell, n.d.g.) The Smithsonian Folklife and Oral History Guide (n.d.g.) states that “as active participants in community life, these bearers of traditions are primary sources of culture and history.” Further, they write that these experiences “anchor us in a larger whole, connecting us to the past, grounding us firmly in the present, and giving us a sense of identity and roots, belonging and purpose.” (Hunt, n.d.g.) They cite Barbara Kirshenblatt-Giblett, a Folklorist, and write that “tradition-bearers are living links in this historical chain, eyewitnesses to history, shapers of vital and indigenous way of life. They are unparalleled in the vividness and authenticity they can bring to the study of local history and culture.” (Hunt, n.d.g.) Limitations of the oral history method include the personal biases of the individual, questionable ability to provide accurate memories, and the dynamics between interviewer and interviewee. All of these may contribute to unreliable data. Despite these limitations, oral history is useful in collecting personal accounts of events that would otherwise go unrecorded. MacDowell (n.d.g.) writes that by recording oral history narratives, “the intangible histories become tangible.” MacDowell notes the importance of transcribing the interviewee “word for word without correcting for grammar, usage, sentence construct or trying to interpret what the person meant.” (MacDowell, n.d.g.)

            The interviewee provided a unique perspective of an elected county sheriff in Madison County, Ohio over a period of six terms. This information is valuable in providing insight into the implementation of both training and jail standards maintained by the State of Ohio while he held office. In the interview, Saltsman discusses changes in technology that impacted the operation of the Madison County Sheriff’s Office, changes in legislature (sex offender registration and concealed carry laws), and various highlights of his personal career. This information can be compared to future oral history narratives of other county sheriffs and local police chiefs. Future research should recognize the distinction between county sheriffs and local police chiefs, as well as the different responsibilities of each and their employees.

References

Buckeye State Sheriffs’ Association. History of the sheriff. (2009, August 17). Retrieved from http:.www.buckeyesheriffs.org/history.htm Provides a history of the office of sheriff in the United States. Gives history of the office of sheriff in Ohio from 1803 when Ohio achieved statehood.

Cochran, J.K., Bromley, M.L., & Swando, M.J. (2002). Sheriff's deputies' receptivity to organizational change. Policing: An International Journal of Police Strategies & Management, 25(25), 507-529. Examined the effects of sheriff’s deputies’ socio-demographic characteristics, work orientations, and perception of agency readiness on their receptivity to organizational change. Found that a service orientation and belief that agency is sufficiently prepared positively influences their receptivity to the change.

Crank, J.P., & Giacomazzi, A.L. (2007). Areal policing and public perceptions in a non-urban setting: one size fits one. Policing: An International Journal of Police Strategies & Management, 20(1), 108-131. Studied neighborhood variation in citizens’ perceptions of differences related to policing services in an urban setting. Found significant variations in matters related to deputies and sheriff’s offices. Suggested tailoring of service to local needs.

Crank, J.P., & Giocomazzi, A. (2009). A sheriff’s office as a learning organization. Police Quarterly, 12(4), 351-369. Described the authors development of methodology based on learning organization theory. Provided an assessment of a Western Sheriff’s Office based on focus groups with citizens and sheriff’s deputies.

Davis, D. (2010, November 17). New sheriff, new pay options. Tribune, The (Seymour, IN) Retrieved from EBSCOhost. http://search.ebscohost.com.proxy.oplin.org/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nfh&AN=2W61224161965&site=ehost-live. Discussed new legislation in Jackson County, Indiana related to sheriff’s salary. The legislation provided for two options: entering into a contract with the sheriff or setting a salary and allowing the sheriff to take a 10 percent cut of tax warrant collections. In Jackson County, Indiana the sheriff’s salary is tied to the prosecutor’s salary.

Decker, S. The rural county sheriff: an issue in social control. Criminal Justice Review, 97-111.

Doerner, W.M., & Doerner, W.G. (2010). Collective bargaining and job benefits: the case of Florida deputy sheriffs. Police Quarterly, 13(4), 367-386.Examined the effects of Florida deputy sheriffs’ right to unionize after the ban on such was lifted in 2003. Looked at entry-level salaries and other benefits received by deputy sheriffs at hiring.

Falcone, D.N., & Wells, L.E. (1995). The county sheriff as a distinctive policing modality. American Journal of Police, 15(3), 123-149.

Gagloff, M. (2010, February 14). Modern law enforcement methods haven’t edged out all traditions: Professional law enforcement standards govern Virginia sheriffs, but old ways of policing persist in some rural pockets. Roanoke Times, The (VA), Retrieved from EBSCOhost. http://search.ebscohost.com.proxy.oplin.org/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nfh&AN=2W63741810227&site=ehost-live. Described the nature of the sheriff’s responsibilities and traditional roles of the sheriff in Virginia. Discussed the National Sheriffs’ Association role in professionalizing the elected position of sheriff and the impact it has had in the state.

Halstead, A.J., Bromley, M.L., & Cochran, J.K. (2000). The effects of work orientations on job satisfaction among sheriffs' deputies practicing community-oriented policing. Policing: An International Journal of Police Strategies & Management. 23(1), 82-104.Examined the effects of work orientation on levels of job satisfaction among deputy sheriffs in an urban sheriff’s office after change to community policing model. Found that service-oriented deputies are more satisfied with their work than traditional crime-control oriented deputies.

Helms, R. (2008). Locally elected sheriffs and money compensation: a quantitative analysis of organizational and environmental contingency explanations. Criminal Justice Review, 33(1), 5-28. Compared variations in locally elected sheriffs by environmental sources including tax base, political support, crime rates and unemployment. Found that county sheriffs are compensated at rates that reflect patterns of uncertainty in local environment.

Hunt, M. (2003). The Smithsonian folklife and oral history interviewing guide. Informally published manuscript, Folklife , Smithsonian Institute, Washington, District of Columbia. Retrieved from http://www.folklife.si.edu. Provided introduction to oral history and detailed instructions on conducting an oral history interview. Sample forms and questionnaires included.

Kinnaird, B.A. (2011, January 1). Life after law enforcement. Sheriff Magazine. Discussed life after retirement from law enforcement and the return to civilian life. Provided several hypothesis for why it is difficult to leave law enforcement career as residual trauma, loss of feeling part of the group, addiction to adrenaline, and feelings of being misunderstanding.

Ohio Revised Code. n.d.g. Ohio laws and rules. http://codes.ohio.gov/orc. Ohio’s laws as related to the office of sheriff. Described the duties and responsibilities of sheriff as mandated by the law.

LaFrance, T.C., & Placide, M. (2009). Sheriffs' and police chiefs' leadership and management decisions in the local law enforcement budgetary process: an exploration. International Journal of Police Science and Management, 12(2), 238-255.Examined the role of sheriff and police chief as related to method of appointment. (elected and appointed) Discussed the role of how each is appointed as it relates to decision making ability concerning the budget. Found that sheriffs are more likely to cooperate with county legislature than police chiefs, who are more likely to remain focused on their own departments.

LaFrance, T.C., & Allen, J.M. (2010). An exploration of the juxtaposition of professional and political accountability in local law enforcement management. International Journal of Police Science and Management, 12(1), 90-118. Discussed professional and political accountability and the development of discretion in law enforcement managers. Found that sheriffs are less professionally accountable than police chiefs, but no meaningful difference in decision making.

MacDowell, M/. (n.d.). Spoken word project. Retrieved from http://www.historicalvoices.org/spokenword/resources/collectingohistory.php. Discussed reasons for doing oral history, procedure for doing an oral history interview, and methods for storing the oral history interview.

Madison County Sheriff. (2008) Jessica Lynn Keen homicide. Media information. http:www.madisonsheriff.org

National Sheriffs’ Association. (2011) History of the Office of Sheriff. http://www.sheriffs.org

Norman, B. (2009) Broward sheriff’s office brass triple dips, makes obscene pay. Broward Palm Beach New Times. http://www.browardpalmbeach.com

Sever, B., & McSkimming, M.J. (2004). The impact of racial composition and other county characteristics on the size of sheriff's departments: a new analysis of police force growth. Criminal Justice Policy Review, 15(4), 486-512. Tested the impact of minority populations, crime and other county characteristics on the number of sworn sheriff deputies and deputies in the field for 122 large counties in the United States. Found that the number of deputies in a county is not largely influenced by minority populations or other characteristics of county.

Virckler, Steve. (2011) Sheriff,treasurer salaries to be cut. Watertown Daily News. http://www.watertowndailytimes.com

Williams, J.J., & Hester, G. (2003). Sheriff law enforcement officers and the use of force. Journal of Criminal Justice, 31, 373-381. Examined the relationship between sheriff law enforcement officers’ characteristics and the use of force. Found that white male officers aged thirty-five years or younger with less than 145 months of service and assigned to patrol duties are more likely to use force.

(2011, March 12). EDITORIAL: Nonpartisan elections best for county sheriffs. Tulsa World (OK) Retrieved from EBSCOhost. http://search.ebscohost.com.proxy.oplin.org/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nfh&AN=2W6405307877&site=ehost-live. Discussed Senate Bill 317 impact on sheriff elections beginning in the year 2012. The legislation calls for nonpartisan elections for county sheriffs. Explained the impact this legislation would have on elections and the political nature of the office.