Garique Clifford, patrol sergeant for the Skamania County Sheriff’s Office, is running for Klickitat County Sheriff in the upcoming August primary against incumbent Bob Songer.
Because of Washington’s top-two primary system, Clifford and Songer will advance to compete for the seat in the Nov. 8 general election.
Clifford, a graduate of Columbia High School’s class of 1996 and former police officer with the Bingen-White Salmon Police Department, said he was inspired to run initially following Songer’s retirement announcement; since he’s back in the race, Clifford said that he decided "with the support of my family, friends and law enforcement peers, to run for sheriff to make Klickitat County a better place to live, work and visit.”
Among Clifford’s top priorities are training for staff, evolving the search and rescue program, and to increase the number of deputies on staff.
“With the pandemic, (the Gorge) is now a high recreational use area. I’d like to increase the amount of deputies so they’re able to respond to emergencies and assist citizens in a timely manner. And I’d like to foster a sheriff’s program and build a relationship with the schools in the county so that children at a young age can feel confident and safe and communicating with the deputies about anything,” Clifford said.
After graduating CHS in 1996, Clifford spent time working at SDS Lumber Company. He had friends working in law enforcement and saw how their work involved helping people. After becoming inspired to switch careers, Clifford started taking classes at Columbia Gorge Community College and found his first law enforcement position with the Bingen-White Salmon Police Department.
“It wasn’t always about enforcing laws. It was about helping people as well,” he said. “Sometimes they intermix, and that’s why I have, right now, a huge passion for search and rescue.”
Training for deputies and staff would be of the utmost importance, Clifford said, due to recent changes in law enforcement in the state of Washington.
“There has to be… regular training, because there’s changing laws,” Clifford said. “A short time ago the governor signed a bill to rescind some of the laws. And so you, as the leader for the office, you have to be knowledgeable about that and pass it on to your deputies so that when they’re out interacting with the community, they have the answers.”
Clifford added that more deputies results in less use of force incidents.
Building community relationships would be important to Clifford as sheriff. He noted Goldendale Police Chief Jay Hunziker and Bingen-White Salmon Police Chief Mike Hepner spent time cultivating relationships with the mayors and councils and the community. He said they would be good role models to emulate.
Clifford’s opponent, Bob Songer, is a member of the Constitutional Sheriffs and Peace Officers Association; asked whether he endorses constitutionalist positions on governance in the county, Clifford said he swore an oath to “uphold the United States Constitution, the Washington State Constitution, and Washington state laws.
“Most people don’t realize this. Washington state laws passed in the state of Washington are presumed constitutionally. But we know oftentimes, they are disputed in court. They overturn it if found unconstitutional. So with those disputes, I plan to seek legal advice before I enforce anything,” he said.
As a patrol sergeant for Skamania County Sheriff’s Office, Clifford said he helped to create a mental health program with Skamania County Community Health. This program evaluates signs of an impending metal health crisis and refers that person to a mental health provider.
“That’s something that I’d like to implement here in Klickitat County,” he said, noting that mental health crisis calls have increased throughout his 19 years in law enforcement. “Sometimes we’re going to multiple calls a day where mental health is one of the aspects of that call… That’s why we’ve been mandated to complete mental health training every year, and I’ve taken extended courses in mental health training to further my knowledge and experience. And that’s what I will implement for the county deputies.”
Law enforcement officers are not mental health counselors, he said, and people often call 911 when a family member or friend is in crisis, when a law has not been broken, “But there’s no one else to call, that someone will respond immediately.”
Clifford added that he has completed leadership courses through FBI LEEDA (Law Enforcement Executive Development Association)
Columbia Gorge News previously reported Songer is running for re-election, a story which can be found on our website at columbiagorgenews.com.
Washington’s primary election is on Aug. 2.
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