Allegany County Undersheriff Scott Cicirello announces bid for top spot
Wellsville native Scott Cicirello is running for Allegany County sheriff, hoping to win the job his father ran for unsuccessfully 38 years ago.
A 47-year-old Republican, Cicirello was appointed undersheriff in August 2021, his latest post in a law enforcement career that has included serving as chief of police in the village of Alfred and in the city of Salamanca.
Cicirello announced his bid for sheriff at a campaign kick-off Sunday in Belmont. He told more than 100 supporters that he has been “blown away by the response” to his campaign and detailed a career that he said has “involved probably every aspect of law enforcement.”
In addition to Alfred and Salamanca, Cicirello has worked for police departments in Andover, Cuba and Wellsville, where his father, the late Jim Cicirello, was chief of police during a 35-year career with the force. Jim Cicirello made an unsuccessful run for Allegany County sheriff in 1984.
Scott Cicirello retired from the New York State Police Bureau of Criminal Investigations in 2020 after spending 13 years with the State Police at Endwell in Broome County and Amity in Allegany County.
He was an investigator with the Allegany County District Attorney’s Office prior to being tapped by Sheriff Rick Whitney to be Whitney's second in command last year.
Whitney announced last week that he is not a candidate for reelection and he will retire after three terms as sheriff at the end of the year.
“My vision for the sheriff’s office is to build upon the foundation laid by Sheriff Whitney and Undersheriff (Kevin) Monroe over the last 12 years,” Cicirello said at the campaign event. “We will focus on state accreditation in every area of operations. We will put a priority on recruitment and retention of personnel (and) we will continue to be involved at the ground level on outreach to local communities.”
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Cicirello, a FBI National Academy graduate, said being undersheriff has helped prepare him for the top job.
“It has given me an inside view of operations and the opportunity to really evaluate each and every area there," he said. "Being able to see it from the inside is really something that you can’t understand from the outside perspective.”
This is Cicirello’s first run for public office.
“It is definitely outside something that I am used to,” he said. “A little bit out of my comfort zone. I am getting the hang of it with the assistance of some great people. I think it is going to be just fine.”
The general election is scheduled for Nov. 8. If there is a primary, that will take place June 28.
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This article originally appeared on The Evening Tribune: Wellsville native Scott Cicirello running for Allegany County sheriff
