Huffman in tight fight

24-YEAR INCUMBENT CATAWBA SHERIFF FACING 30-YEAR POLICE VETERAN

Sunday, October 29, 2006

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

A 24-year GOP incumbent sheriff in one of the state's sturdiest Republican strongholds is facing a formidable Democratic challenger at the polls this year.

But both candidates say this race isn't about politics.


Republican David Huffman, who has run the Catawba County Sheriff's Office since 1982, is characterizing the race as a face-off between two experienced law enforcement officers with very different resumes.
"This particular race is looking at the individuals, and what the individuals can do, rather than the issues," he said.

Steve Hunt, Huffman's challenger and a retired 30-year veteran of the Hickory Police Department, is new to politics and says Huffman has done a good job for the past six terms, but the agency needs revitalization.

"We need a new direction," he said. "We can't police the way we policed 30 years ago."

Huffman, however, said his office continually adapts to new trends in crime and that his long tenure hasn't left law enforcement stale. He touts an array of programs geared toward helping the elderly and handicapped and highlighted one that monitors sex offenders.

"We're constantly bringing new and innovative programs," he said. "As things change, you have to change with it."

While Huffman said he thinks highly of his opponent, he says that Hunt's three decades as a police officer won't necessarily translate into automatic success in the Sheriff's Office.

"I'm not sure he'd be able to hit the ground running, and that comes with the territory," he said.

First, Huffman said, there's the issue of connections in Washington. His tenure as sheriff has left him with a long list of links to the federal government that he said has helped him secure millions of dollars in grants.

Huffman is chairman of the Homeland Security Intelligence Team, which monitors information on local, state and federal terrorism activity, and said making connections is critical to the sheriff's job.

"Contacts that you make through life don't happen overnight," he said.

But Hunt isn't worried about building connections. He began representing Catawba County in Washington more than a year ago, when he was assigned to the Department of Homeland Security's intelligence subcommittee.

He has been meeting with the committee's National Council of Readiness and Preparedness, he said, to make sure that ideas conceived at the federal level will work in the county, as well.

Hunt, who teaches criminal justice at the Catawba Valley Community College, is focusing on accreditation, he said, and is encouraging deputies take regular refresher courses and pursue advanced degrees.

"I want to raise the professional bar, and I want employees of the Sheriff's Office to come with me," he said.

Officers who excel in training and show outstanding performance will be promoted, he said, which he hopes will inspire others in the department to do the same.

"Standards, standards, standards are a big deal to me," he said.

Hunt said he's heard concerns that he'll clean house, but he says he promises not to make massive cuts in staff and will see the department's veteran personnel as valuable resources.

He also said he'd like to build a multi-lingual staff, emphasize advocacy projects, including a victim's assistance program and a defensive driving course for teens, and encourage law enforcement to train residents to recognize and help decrease crime.

While Hunt has said that community watch plans can be beneficial, he worries the programs are often crisis-driven. Instead, he said, he will encourage residents to take responsibility in their communities and work with law enforcement to stop crime before it begins.

"We want to decrease the opportunity for crime," Hunt said at a Nov. 10 candidates' forum.

Although Huffman enjoys the advantage of being an incumbent, he has been weakened by a recent bitter races.

A messy, but close, 2002 battle for a seat in the 10th congressional district against Patrick McHenry left him disenchanted with politics, he said. An expensive and equally ruthless primary in May against Mike Ledford ended closely, with Huffman receiving only 140 more votes than his opponent and $359 in his campaign fund.

Now, as one of the North Carolina's longest-serving sheriffs, Huffman has vowed this race will be his last.

Looking back on his first race in 1982, Huffman recalls that then-incumbent Dale Johnson was well-liked. County residents, however, elected Huffman with nearly 51 percent of the vote, according to the Catawba County Board of Elections.

"People at that time saw a need for change in Catawba County," Huffman said.

Now, Hunt is hoping the same logic will work for him.

Fundraising

Since Jan. 1, David Huffman had raised $30,865.59, according to the most recent campaign finance reports, filed in July. The report shows $30,506.51 in expenditures. Steve Hunt had raised $23,708.55 since the beginning of 2006 and spent $18,527.93. The Board of Elections requires candidates file updated campaign finance reports by Oct. 31.


David Huffman

Party: Republican.

Age: 61.

Birthplace: Catawba County.

Occupation: Catawba County sheriff.

Elected offices: Catawba County sheriff, 1982-present; Catawba County commissioner, 1987-1982.

Family: Wife, Diane Huffman; daughters, Tammy West, Dawn Wagstaff, Dana Green and Tina Starnes.

Education: Associate's degree in machining and knitting-fixing, Catawba Valley Community College, 1964.

Religious/civic involvement: Deacon at Woodlawn Baptist Church; member of Catawba County Shriners and International Shriners.

Why running: To continue to serve the people of Catawba County with the best law enforcement available. To live and work in accordance with high ethical standards. To serve with integrity and respect. To treat all people fairly while safeguarding their rights. To ensure that everyone I meet receives conscientious service. To provide continuous training to our officers so they may constantly improve themselves and the Sheriff's Office.

What are the top issues facing the Catawba County Sheriff's Office?

Construction of the new detention facility and overcrowding in the jail; homeland security; local and state funding; adapting to changes that come with growth in the county, including preventing gang activity, drug problems; and diversity issues.


Steve Hunt

Party: Democrat

Age: 51

Birthplace: Catawba County.

Occupation: Criminal justice instructor at Catawba Valley Community College.

Elected offices: None.

Family: Wife, Sarah Hunt; sons Steven and William; daughter, Muriel.

Education: Associate's degree in criminal justice, Western Piedmont Community College, 1996; bachelor's degree in criminal justice, Lees-McRae College, 2001.

Religious/civic involvement: Deacon at Mt. Zion Baptist Church; past president and current member of the Sunrise Rotary Club; former cooperate board member at the YMCA; former member of the Boys and Girls Club; former board member at the Salvation Army; former board member for Corporate Christian Ministries; Local Bank board member.

Why running: It's time for a change in leadership. I can take the Catawba County Sheriff's Office to the next level, professionally. With the crimes facing law enforcement in the 21st century, the leader must be trained an well-educated in the field of criminal justice.

What are the top issues facing the Catawba County Sheriff's Office?

The main issues facing the Sheriff's Office are not unique to only that department. Law enforcement agencies across the country are facing problems with drugs, cyber crime and crimes committed by violent gangs.


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