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About The nugget. (Sisters, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (May 13, 2020)
2 Wednesday, May 13, 2020 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon O P I N I O N Would Schaier as sheriff be good for Sisters? Surveying the domain… By Greg Walker (ret) Guest Columnist PHOTO COURTESY BARRAGE STUDIOS This impressive barred owl (Strix varia) lives in Camp Sherman. Letters to the Editor… The Nugget welcomes contributions from its readers, which must include the writer9s name, address and phone number. Letters to the Editor is an open forum for the community and contains unsolicited opin- ions not necessarily shared by the Editor. The Nugget reserves the right to edit, omit, respond or ask for a response to letters submitted to the Editor. Letters should be no longer than 300 words. Unpublished items are not acknowledged or returned. The deadline for all letters is 10 a.m. Monday. To the Editor: Re: May 6, 2020, <Communications is Key as Sisters 8reopens9 by Mayor Chuck Ryan and City Manager Cory Mosley.= The last paragraph < ...that businesses... must follow which again will be dictated at the State level.= Since when are we living under a dictatorship? John Morter s s s To the Editor: I must have struck a nerve. In successive issues of The Nugget, a let- ter was published criticizing my recently pub- lished letter challenging the April 15 opinion piece of Tom Donohue on the COVID-19 pandemic. Unfortunately neither responded to the substance of what I wrote. Dale Streeter asserted that in my <vent- ing,= I <declared that those opinions (as expressed by Mr. Donohue) represented the general views of 33 to 50 percent of the pop- ulation.= I neither expressed nor implied that. I don9t know where he got that wide range of numbers. I did say that the four positions espoused by Mr. Donohue, none of which either letter mentioned, were the current right-wing talking points. I did so because they are. If you don9t believe me, you haven9t been watching Fox News, reading right-wing Internet sites, watching the pronouncements of certain Governors or listening to the cur- rent occupant of the White House. There has been and continues to be a coordinated disinformation campaign on this issue almost exclusively from those with a political agenda and no health care training. In response to my statement that I will follow the recommendations of health care professionals, Dale Streeter criticizes me for <virtue signaling.= I9m not sure what that means but I sense it is a pejorative like <showing off.= As an adult, I have tried to avoid unnecessary risks and potentially very harmful results (I wish I could say the same about my youth). Would Dale Streeter wish I act contrary to the best scientific evidence See LETTERS on page 15 Sisters Weather Forecast Courtesy of the National Weather Service, Pendleton, Oregon Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Monday Sunday PM Showers AM Showers Partly Cloudy PM Showers Thunderstorms Showers 56/40 55/37 65/43 68/43 58/38 58/37 The Nugget Newspaper, LLC Website: www.nuggetnews.com 442 E. Main Ave., P.O. Box 698, Sisters, Oregon 97759 Tel: 541-549-9941 | Email: editor@nuggetnews.com Postmaster: Send address changes to The Nugget Newspaper, P.O. Box 698, Sisters, OR 97759. Third Class Postage Paid at Sisters, Oregon. Editor in Chief: Jim Cornelius Production Manager: Leith Easterling Creative Director: Jess Draper Community Marketing Partner: Vicki Curlett Classifieds & Circulation: Lisa May Owner: J. Louis Mullen The Nugget is mailed to residents within the Sisters School District; subscriptions are available outside delivery area. Third-class postage: one year, $55; six months (or less), $30. First-class postage: one year, $95; six months, $65. Published Weekly. ©2020 The Nugget Newspaper, LLC. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is pro- hibited. All advertising which appears in The Nugget is the property of The Nugget and may not be used without explicit permission. The Nugget Newspaper, LLC. assumes no liability or responsibility for information contained in advertisements, articles, stories, lists, calendar etc. within this publication. All submissions to The Nugget Newspaper will be treated as unconditionally assigned for publication and copyrighting purposes and subject to The Nugget Newspaper’s unrestricted right to edit and comment editorially, that all rights are currently available, and that the material in no way infringes upon the rights of any person. The publisher assumes no responsibility for return or safety of artwork, photos, or manuscripts. Sheriff9s candidate Scott Schaier would have Sisters9 voters believe his work expe- rience as a hospitality indus- try worker, a car salesman, a real estate agent and patrol level law enforcement officer should earn him their support this November. How so? Candidate Schaier has not completed even a two-year general education college degree. According to OSU he is listed as a student with them but not an active one. When asked how many cred- its he has, or when he projects graduating, Schaier will not say. He has never been pro- moted at either of the two law enforcement agencies he has or is working for. He is essen- tially a high school gradu- ate and career patrol officer. Schaier offers he <man- aged personnel and budgets= for an automobile agency. He leaves out the dealership he worked for was a family- owned business, a business that failed in 2010. The deal- ership, experiencing serious financial losses due to poor business decisions, closed its doors. Per Terry Schaier <We9ve been working with Nissan and our bank desper- ately, and the bank gave us word that they will not help us.= (https://signaltribune- newspaper.com/6579/news/ schaiers-nissan-dealership- in-long-beach-no-longer-in- business/) Schaier9s tenure with the Las Vegas Metro Police Department is likewise less than impressive. In October 2011, a federal lawsuit named him and other officers in multiple charges to include violation of the Fourth Amendment. Upon the trial9s conclusion the Municipality paid out $105,000 to the damaged parties. (https:// b u s k l v. f i l e s . w o r d p r e s s . com/2019/07/settlement_ lvmpd-fiscal-affairs_april- 22-2013.pdf) In 2018, the City of Bend paid out $800,000 after Schaier shot and killed Michael Tyler Jacques. The caveat being that Bend did not accept responsibil- ity nor liability for the offi- cer9s actions. (https://www. bendbulletin.com/localstate/ bend-to-pay-800-000-to- shooting-victim-s-family/ article_dd396714-ca11-50e8- 9ab0-e4afebcb665f.html) To date, Officer Schaier9s employers have remitted $905,000 to the victims of his actions while wearing a peace officer9s badge. Schaier offers in lieu of the excellent contract just signed by Sheriff Shane Nelson with Sisters provid- ing a fully staffed patrol team to the Sisters district, that he (Schaier) would have made Sisters <a special assignment detail= instead. By defini- tion, a special assignment means <a job assignment that is expected to be temporary and is designated as a special assignment by the agency ... A special assignment may be full- or part-time and may consist of more than one part- time position in more than one tenure area.= Sheriff Nelson listened to what Sisters residents and the city council said they needed and delivered a com- prehensive patrol package at an excellent financial price point. Candidate Schaier would prefer to keep Sisters a backwater patrol concern, out of sight and out of mind. Candidate Schaier told The Nugget (<Candidates vie for sheriff9s office,= April 21, 2020) <&I [have] a unique background and experience that I think would serve Deschutes County well.= Why then not apply and compete for the chief9s posi- tion at Bend PD given Jim Porter9s pending retirement? Perhaps because Schaier9s <unique background and experience= does not match up to the job description and education required for the job. This to include having to pass and possess <&an extensive background check, Master9s degree in related field preferred. Licensing and Certification Requirements: Executive or Management Certification from Oregon DPSST or be able to obtain within two years of appoint- ment CITY OF BEND.= Two settlements totaling $905,000; a questionable fatal shooting; two patrol car crashes while with the Bend Police Department; leaving his patrol car engine running while away from the vehicle; leaving his patrol rifle in the vehicle at the end of his shift; no college degree; no super- visory or management expe- rience as a law enforcement professional& If Schaier is ineligible to even apply to the City of Bend for its chief9s position how is it that he is qualified 3 at least in his mind 3 to become the Chief Executive law enforcement officer for Deschutes County? Short answer. He is not. And if Candidate Schaier is not good for Deschutes County he is not good for Sisters, either. Opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the writer and are not necessarily shared by the Editor or The Nugget Newspaper.