Carson City Sheriff Ken Furlong announces fourth term run

Carson City Sheriff Ken Furlong will run for a fourth term as the capital city's top law enforcement officer, announcing his 2014 re-election intentions Tuesday.

In what Furlong described as three "politically quiet but challenging years," crime statistics have trended downward since the 2010 election, which is remarkable given Carson City's economic climate as it continues to deal with the effects of a deep, prolonged recession.

For the past three years, economics forced Furlong to make hard adjustments in managing the overall department, which includes the jail and dispatch divisions, each feeling the pinch and having to "do more with less." Budget cuts in the past three years have forced the sheriff's office to be downsized by 19 positions.

This downsize required some realignments of how the city remains patrolled. On the plus side, because of some of those changes, response time to calls has improved and crime in Carson City overall has actually declined in the past three years, despite an unusually high number of high profile cases, Furlong notes.

"Running a community from the sheriff's seat really does require that you keep close track on the differences out there between rumors, street talk, hallway conversation and the facts," said Furlong.

Some will argue there are too many law officers on the street and others will say there's not enough. The fact is that in 2012, the crime rate in Carson City was the lowest it has ever been, and this year, even with the high profile crimes, Carson City is down 11 percent in crime over 2012 figures, said Furlong.

"What is going on in Carson City is that law enforcement is working with the community, with business to promote awareness and education. In 10 years, we've stepped it up and we've made a difference," he said.

"Our first priority out there is to save lives. You have to acknowledge that as a proactive organization this is what we do. We do not wait and go clean it up afterwards," he said.

The IHOP tragedy on Sept. 6, 2011, when a mentally ill gunman opened fire in the restaurant, killing four people, including three members of the National Guard, and wounding seven others was a turning point for Carson City, Furlong notes. After the event, the community, law enforcement and local government was forced to address issues of mental illness and violent crime.

In the two years following the shooting, the sheriff's office has made marked improvements on addressing mental health issues in the community, providing internal workshops for officers and beginning in December coordinating with state and local agencies to form the Justice and Mental Health Program which is in line to receive a grant of $249,000 this year, said Furlong.

The program looks at outreach, especially among families that are suffering internally and who are often victims themselves. The program also aims at intervention and identifying those with mental health problems before serious or violent trouble begins.

"All of us here are embracing the challenges we face today. We saw the most exaggerated example at IHOP, where mental health can reek havoc on an entire community," said Furlong. "This program is an example of us seeing the challenges we face and doing something about it. I think the answer to many of our most disastrous incidents across the country really requires focused attention on mental health. It's not the guns. It's mental health."

Internally, Furlong is known for a commanding top-down leadership style. For some it hasn't been popular and even became issues in previous elections. While his style may not always be popular among everyone in the department, Furlong expressed confidence in them noting the sheriff's office is staffed with strong, capable men and women all working for the benefit of the community and public safety.

Though his third term hasn't had the same kind of politics, (not yet anyway) he does expect a challenge in next year's election. Thus far no one has stepped forward. Furlong said he's heard of four or five interested but wouldn't divulge who they would be.

Furlong is personable and public in the elected role, involved in community meetings and civic functions in leadership with the Carson City Chamber of Commerce, Downtown 20/20, senior citizen groups and more. He's also one to be out with officers on the street, routinely patrolling on weekend nights.

He notes that among several commitments he's made as sheriff since 2003, there is one that is particularly close to him and that was making a culture change in the department in the way its children and young people look at law enforcement. The DARE program in Carson City, considered highly respected among other programs in Nevada and California, is successful because of its commitment. The commitment includes an admin staff member, Lisa Davis, assigned to the job as DARE officer.

On Monday at a town hall meeting, Furlong admits that when a high school student prepared to take the podium and address him publicly, he flashed back to a memory of a high school student who addressed him 10 years ago who was angry that Carson City law officers looked at youth in town as criminals.

The student on Monday instead asked Furlong about traffic issues at Saliman and Robinson streets before and after school. For Furlong, the question was a reminder that Carson City has come along ways in the way cops and kids interact.

"There is a different relationship with law enforcement. Ten years ago it was 'why are the cops picking on the kids.' Today it's an issue about traffic congestion on a street in front of the high school.

How do we continue to engage kids so that they trust us and we can trust them? It starts with programs such as DARE. Why is DARE important to our community? Because connecting with children early on, getting the trust and relationship going has proven that it works."

To emphasize his point Furlong notes that prior to his first term, around 1,000 juveniles were arrested annually for various crimes.

"Today we are barely arresting a third of that. Our children are showing the most positive trends than any other age group. When you look at the impact, that's 700 families a year" not having delinquency problems affecting them, he said.

Below is a news release from the Committee to Re-Elect Sheriff Ken Furlong.

Sheriff Furlong Announces Bid for Re-Election

Sheriff Ken Furlong has announced his intentions to run for re-election in 2014. During his tenure, he has implemented programs and initiatives designed to enhance our quality of life in Carson and he looks forward to continuing this philosophy. To his credit, the Sheriff’s Office has been confronted with some of the most significant public safety challenges and events in Carson City’s history.

In every case, his leadership has provided the fundamental direction and preparedness to meet the challenges with efficiency and extreme effectiveness.

The Sheriff’s style of open and connected communications with city leadership and the community has resulted in feature programs. The creation of units to target gangs, drug activity, and underage drinking has resulted in marked improvements in enforcement activity and turned the corner on past trends. His determination to run parallel all-age educational programs such as DARE, citizens academies, anti-gang, and regional cooperation have all had positive impacts on community crime prevention.

The Sheriff’s open posture and accessibility in the community is one of his key attributes. He is frequently seen patrolling the streets, listening to the needs of the community, and working closely with city government to achieve results. He led city departments in the creation of critical data systems that permit decision making and resource allocations based on factual information. Kenny believes strongly in close public contact and that the continuous exchange of information serves as a basis for an effective and efficient law enforcement agency.

Sheriff Furlong promotes community wellness by committing the department’s leadership fully to every opportunity. His community oriented posture results in events such as Cops and Kids Dinner, Open House Kids Street Fair, National Night Out, and Extreme Motor Challenge. Many of his events have received national and Congressional recognition. He also contributes support to charitable and non-profit organizations. Kenny sits as a board member on Partnership Carson City, Capital City Circles Initiative, the Boys and Girls Club of Western Nevada, the Ron Wood Family Resource Center, and Carson City Community Counseling.

Sheriff Furlong’s volunteerism commitment features citizen first units. These units contributed over $680,000 of labor to the community police functions during the year 2012 alone. The units include the Uniform Reserves, Mounted Unit, Search and Rescue, Aero Squadron, Chaplains, Cadet/Explorers, RSVP, Volunteers in Police Service, DARE education, and Youth Stellar Squad. These programs support a wide range of public and business services, while providing opportunities for all ages, youth to seniors, and all walks of life.

The Sheriff has already begun new initiatives that he hopes will add further benefits to the community in his next term. Some of these include assisting those suffering from mental health obstacles, a stronger protective role in the Carson City Schools, a funded return of the Traffic Management, a permanent fixture within the Sheriff’s Office for alternative juvenile diversion disciplinary, and rural open space patrol coverage, and he hopes that his efforts to reduce fatalities on the highways will have rapid results throughout the community.

Sheriff Furlong continues to draw on grant opportunities that have a direct benefit to the community. Some most recent examples include expanded mental health collaborations, a Carson City drug contraband incinerator, a grant to fund additional officers in our schools, and working jointly with the Lyon and Douglas County Sheriff’s to continue combatting gang activities from a regional perspective. The Sheriff cites the Tri-County Gang Unit as one of the most effective and efficient collaborative law enforcement efforts ever witnessed in this region.

— Committee to Re-Elect Sheriff Ken Furlong