Thursday, May 29th, 2014
I hit the ground running Thursday morning but I got nowhere fast. I set a couple of deputies up on a tail of Manuel Perez however the county had such limited resources for that sort of thing that I didn’t have a lot of hope of catching him at anything. Meanwhile, I was still hitting brick walls trying to get a bead on Ryan McClarnan. The guy was so far off grid, no one knew where to find him. Even the BMV was a total bust. Apparently, he doesn’t drive and he doesn’t have any sort of state issued ID.
My best hope was to physically root him out. I figured I’d try the old fashioned way first. I hopped in my county SUV and headed south along the Muskingum River. I crossed the river on the Route 32 bridge at Duncan Falls and, just south of Philo, I began scanning the banks and fields in earnest for signs of a trailer, a camper, some sort of a little cabin or his bee keeping or crop growing operations. Being late May, it was unfortunately still early in the year for planting to show very much promise. Fields were tilled and planted sure, but not much of significance was yet popping up that needed anyone around tending to it. I saw no hives at all. No one was camped out or around doing anything else either. I had smacked into another big wall of dead ends. I came to realize that the address on the honey bottle, at least as far as the honey production was concerned, may have been a complete fake.
Temporarily defeated, I returned to the station. Holly rose when I entered the office.
“Sheriff, Commissioner Bell has called twice for you. He says it’s urgent that he speak with you.”
“Did he say what he wanted?”
Holly spread her hands in an ‘I don’t know’ gesture then handed me a memo slip with his contact numbers on it.
Todd Bell is a real thorn in my side. As a county commissioner, he sticks his nose into lots of places where it truly doesn’t belong like into official police investigations. He’s all about appearances and how tourists will perceive the county. That was probably his issue now too. I have a news flash for him...tourists don’t spend time in Muskingum County. They go over the ‘Y’ bridge and pass right on through!
I laid the memo aside. I figured I’d deal with him later.
Later came right at lunch time. Holly hadn’t been out the door two minutes off to pick us up sandwiches when Bell poked his head into my office unannounced.
“Commissioner, this is a surprise!” I tried to sound pleasant.
“You didn’t say it was a ‘nice’ surprise,” he said as he stepped in and thumped his fingers down on the edge of my desk.
I ignored the barb. “What can I help you with?”
“You can join me for lunch. We need to talk.”
“Can we talk here? I have lunch on the way and a lot on my plate, so to speak.”
“I’d prefer not to.” He jerked his thumb to the left. “Walls have ears.”
It took all I had not to roll my eyes. I knew there wasn’t any point in trying to argue with the man. I left a quick note for Holly and then we were off.
I was surprised when we parked near to Bryan Place. It’s one of the nicer restaurants in downtown that’s located in a historic old YMCA residence building. It’s not one I’d typically visit for lunch on a work day.
Commissioner Bell, apparently a regular, was greeted by name and then we were led to a table deep in a corner. Once we were seated and we had ordered he asked that we be left alone. I was surprised by his bluntness.
“Crane, let me cut right to the chase, the May primary election is in the history books. No one threw their hat into the ring for Sheriff.”
I don’t like where this is going... “I know. I’m assuming you want assurance that I’ll continue to stand as Sheriff in until someone is elected?”
“Don’t assume Crane. What I want...what the commissioners want, is for you to run.”
“Commissioner...”
“Todd, please.”
“Okay. Todd, you already know my position. I’m happy to stand in but I want to go back on the street when a new Sheriff is elected. I don’t want the job permanently but I’m willing to do it until the right candidate comes along.”
“Hear me out please...Mel, is it? Is that what you prefer to be called?”
I nodded my assent. He fell silent when our server appeared with our salads but he picked right back up as soon as he walked away.
“Mel, the filing deadline for candidacy passed for the primary with no filers so there was nothing to put on the ballot. We were left hoping that a reasonable write in candidate or two would step up for the November general election. Well, someone threw a wrench in the works.”
“How so?”
“A patrol officer from Columbus filed yesterday for an August special election. Under state law, we can be required as a county to pay to print ballots and hold the election just for the one office.”
“A patrol officer? An experienced one? That could be good Comm...Todd...”
“Not in this case, it’s not!” He tossed his hand in the air. “We had him checked out right quick. He has his OPOTA certificate and two total years on the force. He’s a 24 year old, wet behind the ears kid.”
I winced. I don’t want a 24 year old, know nothing boss! I tried to hold my true feelings in check. “Can we protest his candidacy?”
“Here’s the thing, see, you have up until 70 days prior to an election to protest the qualification of a candidate if you want to try and keep them off the ballot. An August special election would by on Tuesday, August 5th. Do the math; that’s 69 days from now.”
“Damn. He knew what he was doing and he waited on purpose!”
“You got that right!”
“Who is he?”
“Name’s Noland Troutman.”
“As in Noland Troutman III?”
“You know him?”
“Yeah, I know him. He’s from a very wealthy family who had some milling interests in this area for years. When he was younger he used to spend summers out this way with his grandparents. He was a punk ass kid then that I picked up a few times for petty stuff. He always pulled the “Do you know who I am?” card.” I shook my head. “Hard to believe he’s a cop now. I can’t fathom that his family would have backed that...”
“Maybe this is a political stepping stone for him. Think about it; it was probably all planned out either by him or by the family. He puts in his two years, bides his time then he preys on a vulnerable county for a Sheriffs slot. New Sheriffs get training from the state before they take over their departments so he’s not coming in cold and he knows that. He puts his four years in or maybe even less with the unlucky department then he uses his position as a springboard to higher political office.”
I thought about that for a minute as I chewed. As much as I don’t care for Bell here, his argument has a ring of truth to it... “His family, from what I recall, is politically connected.”
“Rich enough and connected enough that they can push the state for this election to happen?”
“Unfortunately, yes.”
“Then you see what needs to happen?”
“Pardon?”
“You have to oppose him in the election Mel. You have to run. We can’t have law enforcement taken over in the county by this kid.”
“You’re right but I’m very torn. I stepped in when Sheriff Carter was killed with the understanding that it would be a short term assignment, until a proper replacement could be put in place. It’s been nearly a year. No one has stepped forward and now this.”
“He’s not a proper replacement as a Sheriff Mel but you fit the bill just fine.”
“I’m not so sure about that. Aside from the fact that I don’t really want the job, I don’t think I’m actually, um, let’s just say ‘electable’.” I made air quotes hoping Bell would catch my drift.
“Nonsense! You do a great job here and people respect that.”
He’s going to make me say it...
He stared at me for a long minute. “Look, Mel, besides you thinking you really don’t want the job,” I started to speak but he raised is hand, “Hear me out, please. Besides that, deep down, what’s keeping you from throwing your hat in?”
He really is going to make me say it. “Commissioner we live in Muskingum County, on the edge of Appalachia. I’m a gay woman in a rural, unaccepting, unforgiving county.”
He didn’t bat an eye. “Tell me something I don’t know Crane! Everybody knows. Not electable, hell! You’ll run rings around that kid! I can promise you that.”
“I’m not so sure. Look, I’m not going to hide who I am. I’m not in a relationship right now but there is somebody that I want to be in my life. I’m not going to back burner that to run for Sheriff only to have my family’s name and hers dragged through the mud.”
“You underestimate the people of this county. They elected me didn’t they? Lord knows I’m not the most likeable guy around!”
Again, he has a point!