William Bailey, candidate for Deschutes County Sheriff

• Party:
• Nonpartisan
• Occupation:
• Captain over Patrol Division, Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office
• Relevant Experience:
• Field Training Officer for both Corrections and Patrol Divisions
• Criminal and Street Crimes Detective, as well as member of the Critical Incident Team
• Patrol Sergeant, Administrative Sergeant, and Public Information Officer (PIO)
• Patrol Lieutenant, City of Sisters Station Lieutenant, and Administrative Lieutenant
• Veteran, US Coast Guard
• Core 3 Executive Council, and Management Team
• Tri-County Major Incident Team, Detective 
• Safe Schools Alliance
• Personal Information:
• Born: Oregon Coast
• Age: 49
• Wife: Rachel, 2 Children, 1 grandchild
• Resides in Bend

• Website: https://electwilliambailey.com/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WilliamBaileyforSheriff

What qualifications and/or experience do you believe make you the best candidate to fill this position?

I have dedicated my decades-long career to serving and protecting my community, from serving in the Coast Guard to spending the last 22 years serving the Deschutes County Sheriff Office as deputy, sergeant, lieutenant and now captain.

Deschutes County residents deserve to know that their Sheriff is focused on protecting them from day one. Because of my leadership role in DCSO, I know exactly what it takes to be Sheriff. I require no “on the job” training.

For decades now, my one and only job has been protecting Deschutes County. That’s what I’ll continue to do from day one as Sheriff.

What are the top two issues you see facing those in this role, and how do you plan to address them?

The twin crises of homelessness and drugs are the biggest threats to Deschutes County today. Homeless camping on public lands around Bend, Redmond, Sisters and La Pine is dangerous to the people camping and nearby residents. I have spent countless hours working with Forest Service and BLM leadership and our congressional delegation to make sure laws are enforced, and fire risk is abated, on federal land. I have equipped DCSO deputies with firefighting equipment so they can tamp down fires before they grow. As Sheriff, I will continue to work tirelessly to ensure DCSO has the legal means to do everything it can to stop dangerous and illegal camping on public lands.

Deschutes County has not been immune to the scourge of drugs like fentanyl and highly potent methamphetamine that has inflicted so much pain in Oregon. While the state has experimented with novel responses to the drug crisis, my goal has always been the same: enforce drug laws in Deschutes County to the fullest extent allowed. Law enforcement plays a crucial role in protecting our community from the effects of addiction, and connecting addicts to the resources they need to get clean.