Danny Gibbs has been serving the citizens of Saline County for ten years, and has now thrown his hat into the ring for the office of sheriff.
SALINE CO.—The election preview continues this month with the race for the office of sheriff, currently held by incumbent D. Keith Brown.
His challenger on the Democrat ticket March 18 will be Danny Gibbs.
Gibbs has served Saline County in after being elected six times in total; three Primary Elections and three General Elections. Since then, Gibbs has served ten years on the Saline County Board. During his time serving Saline County, Gibbs has served in Budget and Finance, been the Chairman of Building Committee, chaired the Industrial Harco Road Committee, served on Insurance Committee, at one point Chaired the Insurance Committee, and served on the Ordinance and Policy Committee, which he has also previously chaired. Gibbs is presently serving on the Landfill Committee, which he has also served as Chairman on previously. Additionally, he has also served as Vice-Chair of the Saline County Board since the death of Gary Seibert in late 2013.
Very conscious of youth issues
During his time serving Saline County in his many different capacities, Gibbs says he has become very familiar with the problems faced by Saline County on both the official and citizen levels. This is why Gibbs feels he would be the best bet for Saline County Sheriff.
One of the many problems that Gibbs has identified and plans to fight to correct is the considerable drug problem in Saline County.
“I want to fight to put an end to the problem in a variety of ways,” he said, “the first of those ways being to look at each type of drug problem, be it hard drugs such as meth and cocaine, and cut them down at their source. The second would be to find a better and more effective way of identifying where discrepancies are with prescription drugs, where they are coming from, and cutting off the flow.”
Gibbs also feels that drug problems among Saline County youth need to be addressed.
“Of course drug offenses would be addressed as the law requires,” Gibbs said, “but I want to take a step back and do as was done in days gone by. When kids are found on drugs, I’d like to see them delivered to their parents in that state, and ensure that the parents took action to punish their children as the first line of action.”
In addition to that avenue of thought, Gibbs wants to see a Youth Camp opened in Saline County.
“This would be a place when youth who have criminal offenses, or who are considered at-risk, could be sent or invited to participate,” he said. “Kids would be taught good work ethic, and would also learn a trade skill.”
Ideally, Gibbs would like to see a share-knowledge base between kids.
“As an example, a youth who is tech-savvy could teach a kid who is skilled in mechanics his trade, and vice versa,” Gibbs said. “This would build teamwork, leadership, and other valuable life skills.”
Cushy in Saline? No longer an option
Gibbs wants to see an end to the lax thought process towards the law in Saline County.
“The ‘Henley Hilton’ mentality has often been referenced in the community for the high standard of living, compared to other jails, in the Saline County Detention Center,” Gibbs said. “Saline County currently is budgeted to, and spends, an average of $3 a day per inmate, which is far in excess of the national standard. I want to lower the standard of living in the jail down to the legal limit.”
By doing this, several things would happen simultaneously.
“One would be that the ‘oh well, being jailed in Saline County isn’t that bad’ mentality would cease,” he said. “Secondly, the taxpayers would be losing less money to pay for criminal’s expenses. Lastly, the people who opt to leave things such as child support unpaid would be cut down, as those people who would be facing something a lot worse than simply laying around in a cell on weekends for a short stint.”
That being said, Gibbs also will quickly say that he believes that medical needs of inmates should be given more adequate attention.
“Several events in the Saline County Detention Center that concerned the loss of life as a result of inadequate care were what fueled my desire to join the Saline County politics in the beginning,” Gibbs said, stating he is very vocal on the matter.
“No one should ever die in the Saline County Detention Center,” he said.
Budget: Run it like it’s your own
Other changes that Gibbs would bring to Saline County would be the way the budget would be handled.
“I would run the budget in a manner more reminiscent of a family budget, being mindful of where every dollar goes,” Gibbs said. “I’d also think more along the lines of the way an insurance company would handle funding. If a squad cars repair costs exceed two-thirds of the car’s value, I’d rather replace it with a new one that could run for a much longer time with lower upkeep costs.”
Gibbs would like to see several additional changes to the department as soon as possible.
“The first would be to see trained drug dogs added as a valuable part of the police force,” he said. “The dogs would be beneficial to drug cases, and could also be used in situations where suspects needed to be chased and taken down, and are too dangerous for human officers to safely pursue.
“Another change would be to see cases like deadbeat dads or moms punished to the full extent of the judge ordered rulings.”
Additional changes to the Saline County Sheriffs Department would come from the voices of the people.
“I’d make changes that the citizens of the county ask for, not what I want for myself as sheriff,” Gibbs said. “I view it that the tax dollars that fund the department should work for the people, and not for anything else. I want to hear the voices of the people, make improvements that they feel are needed, and bring fresh new ideas to the department.”
Adequate training; applying the law
Gibbs took two years of classes in Law from Southeastern Illinois College, and plans to go through Police Training under the Illinois Police Training Act as soon as he wins the primary election.
Gibbs said he also will ask Saline County Officers to learn along with him.
“I want officers to learn to handle their actions more on a case-by-case basis. Oftentimes in police work, it is too easy to stick to the book without considering each case. This is not only a Saline County problem, this is a universal problem,” Gibbs said. With that in mind, Gibbs said he will ask officers to take every case on as a fresh new matter, and use personal judgment and discretion each and every time. Gibbs said the law is written to protect, not to harm. Sometimes, by-the-book law enforcement can reduce prosperity.
Gibbs discussed various scenarios.
“Imagine a lower-income citizen that has just obtained a job, and has purchased a car to get to work,” he said. “His cash would immediately be strapped from that purchase, and he may not be able to afford something like his registration right away, until he brought in his first paycheck. If he were to get pulled over, and ticketed as the law states, without the officer taking his circumstance into consideration, that ticket, along with the registration, will now take the money that individual was going to use for gas to get to work, and likely food out of his mouth.”
Gibbs stated that he believes the law is intended to help people, not hinder them, and certainly not to hurt them.
“In a situation like I just discussed, the law would have both hurt AND hindered his prosperity,” Gibbs said, calling this the “Revolving Door” that law enforcement without personal discretion can sometimes create. Gibbs does not want the law to ever harm someone, where it is meant to help them.
Unsolved murders
Another major topic on Gibbs’ radar is unsolved murder cases in Saline County. Historically, all the way back to the days of Dr. John Dale Cavaness, or Doc Cavaness as locals more frequently call him, Saline County has been notoriously bad in leaving murder cases unsolved.
“I want to put an end to the idea that ‘if you’re going to kill someone, do it in Saline County,’” Gibbs said.
Gibbs is confident that his ten years of service in Saline County have given him a very accurate view of the issues that Saline County faces, as well as ways in which they could be fixed.
“I promise that, when elected, I will do everything within my power to correct those issues,” Gibbs said, “and give the taxpayers a safer, more productive, and more active sheriff’s department.”