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Jerry Hatcher recall, Benton County, Washington (2020-2021)
| Benton County Sheriff recall |
|---|
 |
| Officeholders |
| Recall status |
| Recall election date |
| August 3, 2021 |
| See also |
| Recall overview Political recall efforts, 2021 Recalls in Washington Washington recall laws Sheriff recalls Recall reports |
A recall election seeking to remove Jerry Hatcher from his position as Benton County Sheriff in Washington was held on August 3, 2021.[1] A majority of voters cast yes ballots, approving the recall.[2]
The recall effort began in July 2020 and was led by the Benton County Sheriff's Guild. Members of the guild said Hatcher had performed his duties in an improper manner, committed illegal acts, and violated his oath of office.[3] Hatcher said the guild was refusing to hold deputies accountable. He said the guild would not let him take disciplinary action against employees who committed wrongdoing.[4]
Hatcher first took office in May 2017.[5]
Recall vote
Jerry Hatcher recall, 2021
Jerry Hatcher lost the Benton County Sheriff recall election on August 3, 2021.
Recall Vote |
% |
Votes |
|||
| ✖ | Yes |
74.3
|
31,731 | ||
No |
25.7
|
10,972 | |||
Total Votes |
42,703 | ||||
|
|
Recall supporters
The Benton County Sheriff's Guild voted in favor of starting a recall process against Hatcher in June 2020. Benton County Sergeant Jason Erickson filed the recall petition with the Benton County Auditor on July 20, 2020.[3] The guild issued a letter denouncing Hatcher in February 2020.[4]
The recall petition said:
| “ | My client Jason Erickson, is a resident of Benton County, a Sgt. employed by the Benton County Sheriff's Office and a member of the Benton County Sheriff's Guild.
Jason Erickson is acting in his capacity as a member of the Benton County Sheriff's Guild and in his capacity as a citizen. The Benton County Sheriff's Deputy's Guild as an organization held a vote after being presented evidence on the issue of whether Sheriff Hatcher had committed acts of malfeasance, misfeasance and/or violations of his oath of office. Over 90 percent of the Benton County Deputy Sheriff's Guild voted on this matter and 100 percent of the votes cast by the Benton County Deputies voted in support of recall. Benton County Sheriff's Deputy Guild member Jason Erickson is submitting this document for the purpose of adjudication to petition for the recall of the Benton County Sheriff Jerry Hatcher for malfeasance, misfeasance and/or violation of his oath of office on the following grounds: 1. Performance of duty in an improper manner; 2. Commission of illegal acts; and |
” |
The Benton County Board of Commissioners published a letter in support of the recall on June 30, 2020.[7] The commissioners also unanimously voted on August 4, 2020, to not use county funds to help with Hatcher's legal defense against the recall.[8]
Recall opponents
Hatcher said his problems with the guild began after he was charged with a misdemeanor of Domestic Violence Assault in the 4th Degree and a felony of Tampering with a Witness in October 2019, following an alleged altercation with his wife, who filed for divorce in September 2019. "This started with my personal allegations," Hatcher said. "We don’t investigate crimes like that Everybody has their day in court. It’s guaranteed. Everybody gets to say their piece That was not afforded to me. If that is the type of investigations that we are doing here. That needs to be stopped immediately."[4][9][10]
After the Benton County Sheriff's Guild issued their letter denouncing him in February 2020, Hatcher said he was open to having a conversation.[4]
| “ | It’s been extremely frustrating. When the deputies put out their first letter, I put out a seven-point plan with how I thought I could fix that. One of them was to have a monthly labor-management meeting. What I got in return was they didn’t want me to talk to any of my employees. They forbid me to talk to them one-on-one. They would not meet in a group unless there was three of them that I was paying on overtime to be in here.[6] | ” |
| —Benton County Sheriff Jerry Hatcher[4] | ||
After the guild voted in favor of starting the recall process in June 2020, Hatcher said the guild was refusing to hold deputies accountable. He said the guild would not let him take disciplinary action against employees who committed wrongdoing. He said some deputies had refused to investigate crimes or had abandoned investigations due to the deputies' personal beliefs. "It's been hard watching what goes on in the nation," Hatcher said. "And for the first time, I'm seeing it within my own organization."[4]
In reaction to the recall effort, Hatcher denied all of the allegations listed on the recall petition.[11] He said he was committed to working hard. He said he had promoted two officers in order to alleviate some of his responsibilities. "While we may have internal labor issues that we have to work through," Hatcher said. "It is my job to run the labor within the sheriff's office its not the other way around."[3]
Path to the ballot
- See also: Laws governing recall in Washington
Benton County Sergeant Jason Erickson filed the recall petition with the Benton County Auditor on July 20, 2020.[3] A hearing to determine if the allegations on the petition were sufficient to move forward with the recall effort was scheduled for August 13, 2020.[12] At the hearing, Walla Walla County Superior Court Judge Scott Wolfram granted Hatcher a delay of at least one week.[13]
At the rescheduled hearing on August 20, 2020, Judge Wolfram approved the recall petition. Hatcher filed an appeal against that decision with the Washington Supreme Court.[14] Hatcher's appeal was considered by the court on November 5, 2020.[15] The Washington Supreme Court ruled on November 6, 2020, that the recall effort could move forward and begin collecting signatures.[16]
Recall supporters had to collect 13,937 signatures in six months to get the recall on the ballot. The number of signatures was equal to 25% of the votes cast in the last sheriff election. Recall supporters submitted 16,552 signatures on April 23, 2021.[3][5][17][16][18] The Benton County Auditor verified 14,215 signatures, allowing the recall to be put on the ballot. The recall election was scheduled for August 3, 2021.[1]
Related recalls
- Adam Fortney recall, Snohomish County, Washington (2020)
- John Snaza recall, Thurston County, Washington (2020)
See also
- Benton County, Washington
- Recall campaigns in Washington
- Political recall efforts, 2021
- Political recall efforts, 2020
- County official recalls
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 YAKTRINEWS, "Benton County sheriff recall election set for August 3," May 6, 2021
- ↑ KEPR, "Voters overwhelmingly approved recall of Sheriff Jerry Hatcher," August 3, 2021
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 KIMA, "Petition Filed with the County Auditor's Office to Recall Benton County Sheriff," July 20, 2020
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 KEPR, "Sheriff Hatcher fires back, calls Guild members out," June 23, 2020
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Tri-City Herald, "16,500+ signatures to recall Sheriff Hatcher turned over to Benton election officials," April 23, 2021
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Fox 41 Yakima, "Benton County Board of Commissioners supports vote to approve a recall petition for Sheriff Jerry Hatcher," July 1, 2020
- ↑ NBC Right Now, "Commissioners vote not to financially support sheriff's legal fees," August 4, 2020
- ↑ KEPR, "Sheriff Jerry Hatcher charged for suspicion of domestic violence," October 9, 2019
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ YAKTRINEWS.com, "Benton Co. Sheriff Hatcher and lawyer respond to state supreme court decision," November 16, 2020
- ↑ Tri-City Herald, "Should Benton Co. pay for Sheriff Hatcher’s recall fight? ‘Hell no,’ says commissioner," August 4, 2020
- ↑ Tri-City Herald, "Benton sheriff’s deputies want their boss kicked out of office. Judge puts off decision," August 13, 2020
- ↑ Tri-City Herald, "Benton sheriff wants state Supreme Court to end employee’s attempt to force him from office," September 1, 2020
- ↑ Tri-City Herald, "WA Supreme Court agrees to rapid review of Benton County sheriff recall petition," September 10, 2020
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 The Daily Chronicle, "State Supreme Court Rules Unanimously on Benton Sheriff Recall Bid," November 7, 2020
- ↑ 610 KONA, "Judge allows Sheriff Hatcher recall petition to proceed," August 20, 2020
- ↑ Tri-City Herald, "Judge OKs petition to recall Benton County sheriff over theft, lying and intimidation claims," August 20, 2020
