After defeating Gloster police chief Tommie Lee in the Democratic runoff election on Aug. 23, probation officer and former chief deputy Tim Wroten faces four independent candidates in the race for Amite County sheriff in the Nov. 8 general election.
Four law enforcement officers and a businessman are running to replace incumbent Tim Perkins, who is not seeking a fourth term.
Wroten, 50, garnered 68 percent of the vote in the runoff, getting 2,998 votes to Lee’s 1,415 votes. Voter turnout was 44 percent.
In the Nov. 8 general election, Wroten faces sheriff’s deputy Murdock Reeves, former deputy sheriff Joe Hampton, Gloster police officer Tyrone Green Sr. and Liberty businessman Dale Causey.
Most candidates said educating young people about drugs and improved training for officers are top priorities.
TIM WROTEN
Wroten is a probation and parole officer with the Mississippi Department of Corrections and is making his first run for the sheriff’s office.
In addition to working for the sheriff’s department for 14 years, Wroten also has worked as a narcotics agent and Gloster police officer.
“A sheriff is a peacekeeper. My thing is, I want to get out here and do a good job for the people,” Wroten said. “I want to educate young people on drugs and find something positive for them to do. All of us coming together and working together is key to coming up with solutions to keep young people away from drugs.
“I’d like to be informed of what’s going on and work with (youngsters) before they break the law,” Wroten said.
As for jail conditions, Wroten said additional training of officers is needed.
“Cameras can be throughout the jail for everything to be monitored,” Wroten said. “If there are any allegations, we can get the video and see if anything occurred.
“I want to try and run the jail like Mississippi Department of Corrections Work Centers. That cuts down on cost.
“We need to utilize an inmate workforce to cut the grass and painting.”
Wroten said he is confident of victory.
“I feel pretty good about it. I feel confident, but not over-confident. After winning the last two, I still need all my support back for this last one,” Wroten said.
TYRONE GREEN SR.
The 44-year-old Green has 18 years in law enforcement, including 15 years as a Gloster police officer. He is running on a platform of change.
“The reason I’m running is I felt like things needed to be changed. I saw that while I was working with the police department,” Green said.
“I want to work with local agencies. If I can, I feel like I need to work with the youth as far as intervention (to drugs) is concerned. We really need to work with addicts to try and see if they can get some type of rehab to see if they can get off their habit.
“Drugs are the root of the problem in Amite County. That is the first thing we need to work on.”
Green said the budget must be looked at before hiring additional deputies.
As far as jail conditions, Green said, “if I am elected, I’ll look at the budget to see what I can do.
“It’s been a quiet election,” Green said. “I feel like I have a good chance.”
JOE HAMPTON
The 55-year-old Hampton is making his first run at political office. Hampton said improved communication is vital to all concerned. He served as a sheriff’s deputy for 13 years.
“I feel like my qualifications are my experience, and I’m a people person,” Hampton said. “I’m going to try and do what the people want. My military experience is also a qualification.
“My first thing if I am elected is to get something for the young people to do,” Hampton said. “If I can get to these 15- to 25-year-olds, that can curb some of these burglaries and break-ins.
“Education is the backbone to everything. Encouraging young people to get an education is the main goal instead of locking them up and throwing away the key,” Hampton said. “I would like to see them ordered to get a GED.
“From getting out in the community, I see we have no communication,” Hampton said. “I want to be a sheriff who communicates. I want to have a cup of coffee with the neighbors. I would like to see communication with the sheriff’s department and the county. I don’t think all these elected officials and people in the county are on the same sheet of music.”
As far as jail conditions, Hampton said it goes back to communication.
“We just don’t communicate. Overcrowding is causing problems. We have to hold people responsible. We must treat people the way you want to be treated.”
Hampton said he prayed before deciding to run.
“I decided to run about a year ago. I tried to avoid it, but couldn’t avoid it and prayed about it. The only way was to get rid of the feeling was to try,” Hampton said.
MURDOCK REEVES
Employed with the sheriff’s department for six years, the 43-year-old Reeves has 12 years of law enforcement experience.
“If we can curb the drug problem, that would take care of a lot of breaking and enterings,” Reeves said. “(Drugs) is where all that stems from. That, in itself, will take work with the local departments and provide help where needed.
“We need more officers on the street,” Reeves said. “We’ve been running with the low staff as far as I can remember. Times have changed. You can only put so many officers out there. As for the supervisors, you can only do what the budget allows you to do.”
Reeves said federal grants are available and he would like to work with supervisors to secure those grants.
“What I would love to do is get in these schools and start talking to these kids about staying in school,” Reeves said. “These kids are our next generation. If somebody doesn’t show these kids a little love and understanding, it’s going to get worse.”
Concerning jail conditions, Reeves said additional officers are needed for supervision.
“Not having enough back there to run the jail causes problems,” Reeves said. “You need someone to take care of the back of the jail and someone to take care of the booking.
“It all goes back to more officers. Something need to be discussed with the board of supervisors. You have to have officers who can do the job.”
DALE CAUSEY
The 48-year-old Causey owns a lawn care service. He was employed for 19 years by Air Cruisers and was a supervisor before his job was shipped off to Mexico.
Causey agreed the county has a drug problem.
“I have a teenager, so I would like to see the drug problem cleaned up so my son and everybody else’s child won’t have to worry about it,” Causey said.
Causey said a sheriff should be a good manager.
“I don’t have experience with law enforcement, but I’m a firm believer if you surround yourself with good people, that will take care of itself,” Causey said.
“A sheriff, to me, is a management position. If you have good people, you don’t have to worry about things. A sheriff is the driving force in the community.
“I want to upgrade the jail and would like to see a juvenile facility to straighten out the kids.
“I believe that if you eliminate the drug problem, you eliminate a lot of the break-ins,” Causey said.
