In their words: Republican candidates for Ontario County sheriff share future plans
CANANDAIGUA — The results of the Republican primary election on Tuesday will go a long way toward determining the next person to lead the embattled Ontario County Sheriff's Office.
The GOP race pits Ontario County Sheriff's Office Lt. David Cirencione of Geneva, against Silvio Palermo, a Canandaigua resident, retired Gates Police Department and federal officer who ran unsuccessfully for the sheriff’s job four years ago.
This year's race was set up after former Sheriff Kevin Henderson, a Democrat, resigned last September, as did his undersheriff. Employee morale and staffing soon emerged as issues for employees.
Former Sheriff Philip Povero was appointed to serve as interim sheriff until the end of this year.
The Ontario County Board of Supervisors' so-called 209 Committee was formed last fall in the wake of what its report said were complaints made to an anonymous county hotline related to sexual harassment and inappropriate workplace behaviors that were not adequately dealt with by the Sheriff’s Office. The committee's report acknowledges steps taken to address issues and concerns in the Sheriff's Office moving forward.
Explainer: Here's what you should know about Ontario County Sheriff's Office investigation
Steven Slavny, a Victor resident and retired State Police sergeant, will run on the Democratic Party line in the November general election. The winner will serve a four-year term, beginning Jan. 1, 2023.
Both Cirencione and Palermo were asked the following questions. Here are their responses, which have been lightly edited for clarity.
How do you see the role of the sheriff in the Ontario County community?
Cirencione: First and foremost, the job of sheriff is simple: To keep the people of Ontario County safe. Across the nation and state, there has been a serious uptick in crime and it’s more important than ever to have a sheriff who has the expertise to tackle it. For example, when there was a recent potentially dangerous situation at Red Jacket, I was on-site managing the scene. It’s that kind of local, hands-on experience that gives a law enforcement professional the skills to handle the job of sheriff and effectively work with the Board of Supervisors to implement policies like placing a school resource officer in every school.
A secondary, but critically important role, is standing up for our constitutional rights and fighting back against dangerous policies out of Albany like bail "reform," the HALT Act, and the SAFE Act. While those policies are decided by the governor and state Legislature, our sheriff has a bully pulpit to speak out on these issues. If elected, I will be a loud voice to help ensure that they hear what Ontario County and the law enforcement community thinks. That’s one of the reasons that I was endorsed by the State Troopers PBA, NYS Police Investigators Association and Geneva Career Firefighters.
I never aspired to run for elective office, but I’m running for sheriff now because my 20 years of local law enforcement experience and leadership will bring stability back to the Sheriff’s Office and keep families safer. My primary election opponent chose to spend the last two decades working outside of Ontario County.
Palermo: The sheriff holds a constitutional public office of trust and is directly accountable to the people and the only example of elected law enforcement in the state.
The Office of Sheriff protects the populace from law enforcement and public safety issues. The role of a sheriff is one of a public safety administrator with lawman duties and legal responsibilities and involves not only police work, but custody and maintenance of the county jail, operation of a civil bureau, protection of our courts and many other activities.
A sheriff must be visible and approachable in the community. Communication with the people is of vital importance. I will be equally accessible to all citizens regardless of their social or financial status. All law-abiding citizens should have open access to their elected leaders.
The sheriff must be a visible leader in good times and in bad times.
What is your takeaway from the investigation into the Sheriff’s Office and how do you plan to move the department forward?
Cirencione: I was the first member of the management team to call on the former sheriff to resign. In my opinion, there’s no place for unethical behavior in law enforcement because it undermines the mission of what we’re there to do.
I’m glad that the Board of Supervisors conducted an investigation to get to the bottom of the previous administration’s issues so the agency can move forward and get the focus back on protecting our families and taxpayers.
My opponent takes cheap shots using political sound bites like "toxic culture" but that oversimplifies the issues. As someone who has worked in the Sheriff’s Office for 20 years, I know what works and what doesn’t. And I know that, although there was an issue with the previous leadership, the brave men and women who serve and protect us are good people doing a very difficult job. It’s insulting to them to see the agency — and their credibility — attacked because someone is trying to score political points.
The right way to fix the problem is to support these men and women, which is what I’ll do as sheriff. I will implement wellness programs and additional training to help them cope with the difficult situations they face in the line of duty. And we will focus on continuing to recruit the best and brightest to be a part of our team.
Palermo: My takeaway is that I still have many unanswered questions. From the recent actions that have taken place, from the previous sheriff and undersheriff resigning, an ongoing county investigation into the Sheriff’s Office, the creation of two compliance investigators, this leads me to believe serious misconduct has occurred at our Sheriff’s Office in the last few years.
An assessment needs to be conducted by the new sheriff into what occurred, what corrective action has been implemented, and whether this corrective action is appropriate and/or goes far enough to ensure this never happens again.
In order to move forward, we need a sheriff that can bring a clean slate to the office and has no connection to the past culture. I can move the office forward with objective leadership free from any bias. Where Sheriff’s Office personnel are all starting on the same level and are treated fairly.
I will build trust, confidence, and respect with personnel by listening to them, soliciting feedback, and making them an active part of the office. We will build an aggressive recruitment program to recruit the best candidates. Study best practices throughout the state and country to bring the best training programs and new public safety initiatives to the Sheriff’s Office.
How do you plan to build morale among officers and other staff members?
Cirencione: A Cirencione administration at the Sheriff’s Office will lead by example, starting with myself and my undersheriff running mate, Mike Rago. We are both individuals who approach the job — and life — with a positive attitude. I’ve found that very little gets accomplished when you spend your time complaining or spreading negativity.
As mentioned above, I’ll continue to enhance training and wellness to ensure that our men and women are equipped to handle the rigors of the job, and will work with the Board of Supervisors (who control the Sheriff’s Office budget) to make smart investments to recruit and retain the best officers we can find.
Palermo: Policies do not drive behaviors, culture does. Culture is created by an administration and its leadership team as employees tend to follow their leaders.
As sheriff, to be successful in implementing a cultural change, we need to engage in a deliberate and sustained effort to remove all the attitudes and behaviors that perpetuate the old culture and replace them with new standards and expectations. These new standards and expectations will be promoting a team culture, embracing a culture of dignity and respect, keeping employees actively involved and investing in our employees who are the backbone for success of any organization. Retention of personnel is directly correlated to morale. High morale will create high retention rates.
Another reason for low morale is due to the staffing crisis at the Sheriff’s Office. Building an aggressive recruitment program is necessary to continuously seek the best-qualified applicants so you have an active pool of individuals to fill vacant positions.
Undersheriff picks
Cirencione: Ontario County Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Mike Rago will serve as undersheriff if David Cirencione is elected Ontario County sheriff.
Rago is an 18-year law enforcement veteran. In his current role, he supervises Road Patrol shifts; manages a fleet of more than 120 vehicles; manages intake and preservation of evidence for the Crime Scene Unit; supervises members of Crash Reconstruction, the Marine and Recreational Unit, Evidence Technicians and Drone Pilots; is a member of the Ontario County Safety Council; and acts as liaison to the fire police, fire chiefs and highway departments.
Palermo: Ontario County Sheriff’s Office Investigator Bill Wellman will serve as undersheriff should Silvio Palermo be elected Ontario County sheriff.
Wellman is a 25-year veteran of the department.
Wellman is the former president of the Ontario County Sheriff’s Police Benevolent Association and is currently a member of its executive board. Wellman is serving his second term on the Phelps Town Board.
How to vote
Early voting continues from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday, June 24; 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, June 25; and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, June 26.
Locations include the Board of Elections Office, 74 Ontario St., Canandaigua; Victor Town Hall, 85 East Main St., Victor; and Geneva Housing Authority Main Office, 41 Lewis St., Geneva.
For details, contact the Ontario County Board of Elections at 585-396-4005 or www.co.ontario.ny.us/elections, or the State Board of Elections at 518-474-1953 or www.elections.ny.gov.
The polls are open from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. on primary election day, Tuesday, June 28.
Coming Sunday: Both David Cirencione and Silvio Palermo are seeking the top job in the Ontario County Sheriff’s Office. How did they get their start in the law enforcement field?
This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Ontario County sheriff primary: GOP's Cirencione, Palermo square off
