Franklin Co. strips sheriff of jail control. ‘Your actions are negligent’

Franklin County Commissioners have stripped control of their jail from Sheriff Jim Raymond.

With little discussion, commissioners voted to take control of the jail and courthouse security less than 15 minutes into their regular meeting on Wednesday.

Commissioner Stephen Bauman challenged the notion that the move was being done hastily, saying he had been meeting with other county leaders for advice for months.

Corrections Deputy Jesus Garcia was one of several current and former jailers who pushed back during public comments.

”I noticed Mr. Bauman, you mentioned that this wasn’t done in secret, that you had done months of research and talked to other people, I think my question and what many of us down at the jail are questioning is, why none of this was ever mentioned to us?” Garcia said.

”Why is it that we found out yesterday in the middle of the afternoon? How come nothing was discussed, how come there’s no plan? I think that’s probably our biggest question downstairs.”

It is unclear when the three commissioners discussed the issue. The topic of jail oversight has not appeared on any previous county commission agendas.

Bauman said the move was a necessary and appropriate change.

Commissioner Rocky Mullen said a recent state auditor’s report, which was cited in the resolution as a primary driver of the change, was just the latest issue.

However, a recent state auditor’s findings said the county lacked financial controls and oversight but did not lay the blame on the sheriff as the commissioners have implied.

He thanked jail Commander Keilen Harmon for discovering last fall a quarterly disbursement error with a contract that resulted in about $1 million being returned to the county from a private company.

Later in the meeting, the commission offered Harmon the interim position of operating the corrections department.

Wednesday’s resolutions mean the county will create a new Franklin County Department of Corrections and direct staff to create new funds, transfer ownership of equipment, weapons and resources and adjust policies to reflect the new county oversight of both the jail and courthouse security.

Some of the process appears to have been started before the meeting.

Sheriff Jim Raymond told commissioners he would respect their decision, but vowed to ensure the transition was done in a lawful manner.

He said he was concerned about the courthouse no longer having armed security for the judges and would keep certain deputies in place for the time being.

“You’ve made the suggestion that private security is going to take over security for the courts and they’re not, that’s within my confines and without a court order we will continue to provide security until the courts can weigh in,” Raymond said. “There should be some kind of timely process to do this because your actions are negligent.”

As Raymond attempted to discuss lawful transfer of weapons with the county attorney during the public comment part of the meeting, Chairman Clint Didier attempted to stop him and recessed the meeting.

After a later executive session, commissioners asked the prosecutor’s office to file an injunction to force Raymond to comply. 

Without a properly accredited department now overseeing these officers, it’s unclear if a court can allow these deputies working security to continue to carry their weapons. State commissioned jailers do not normally carry firearms. It’s also unclear if a judge can order an elected sheriff to allow officers the department no longer controls to maintain their commission to be armed and make arrests.

This was addressed last year as changes to state law required bailiffs to be disarmed unless they have an active commission through the state Criminal Justice Training Commission.

Garcia pointed out that his commission to carry a weapon did not come from his jailer training, but later direction and oversight from the sheriff’s office.

Safety concerns raised

After the meeting came back into session, more Franklin County residents came forward to comment. Many of them were current or former jailers, who pushed back at the move, citing concerns for the safety of jailers and the public.

Pasco Mayor Pete Serrano said he was concerned about continuity of contracts and asked the county to work with the city’s attorneys to ensure there were no issues.

A former Benton County jailer came forward to warn commissioners that he has seen this kind of transition firsthand, and it will not be easy or smooth. Benton County took its jail from former Sheriff Jerry Hatcher in 2019.

Another former employee of both jails came forward and tearfully plead for the county to reconsider, telling commissioners they were putting the public and everyone who works in the jail at risk.

Michelle Andres, a former civil service commission chairperson who had public issues with Raymond over the testing and hiring process for law enforcement officers, told commissioners they don’t understand the scope of responsibilities the sheriff takes on.

“You have experienced some very unfortunate things,” she said. “What the sheriff needs is things to run smoothly over here.”

Andres said that despite their differences, she knows how complex managing these operations can be. She urged the commissioners to try and understand what it takes to serve the community.

“They’re telling you, I’m telling you, rescind this and go work it out ... ,” she said. “I want you to be better, I want you to be successful.”

After public comments, the commissioners offered Harmon, the current jail commander, an opportunity to continue in his role but in the new position as the interim jail administrator.

That prompted another back and forth between the commissioners and the sheriff, before Harmon ultimately accepted the position.

“I love my people. I don’t want to see them with anyone else, so yea,” Harmon said.

County contract oversight issues

The resolution to take the jail points directly to a recent state audit, claiming “a state accountability audit report by the State Auditor’s Office has caused great concern over the contract management and overall operation of the Franklin County jail by the Office of the Sheriff.”

The Washington state auditor’s office reviewed a jail commissary contract, jail medical contract and HAPO Center finances from different years.

In all three instances, auditors wrote that the county failed to properly oversee its contracts, and lacked proper financial control. It is the commissioners who approve and renew contracts. The sheriff cannot enter into these agreements without their stamp of approval. 

While the sheriff has authority over law enforcement in the county, the commission controls his budgets.

The audits are clear that it is the responsibility of the county administrator to ensure contracts are managed properly. They pointed to staff turmoil as one reason this oversight did not meet standards. 

The county hired a new administrator, Brian Dansel, last week after nine months using an interim county leader. 

Its previous administrator, Mike Gonzalez, left after being named as a whistleblower in a criminal investigation of several elected officials, including two county commissioners. No one ended up being charged with a crime.

Gonzalez was in the role for a little more than a year, after replacing an administrator who the commissioners tried to fire with no warning. That administrator eventually resigned.

In the case of the jail commissary contract, after moving into the role last year Harmon found that an automatic profit sharing payment since 2018 had stopped sending quarterly disbursements. 

That error was not a surprise during the audit report, as the resumption of payments added $1 million to the courthouse’s coffers last fall as they were discussing the county’s 2025 budget shortfalls. Issues with increasing healthcare costs at the jail have also been discussed.

The auditors wrote that the county lacked proper financial policies and contract oversight.

This story was originally published April 23, 2025 at 9:45 AM.

Cory McCoy

Tri-City Herald

Cory is an award-winning investigative reporter. He joined the Tri-City Herald in Dec. 2021 as an Editor/Reporter covering social accountability issues. His past work can be found in the Tyler Morning Telegraph and other Texas newspapers. He was a 2019-20 Education Writers Association Fellow, and has been featured on The Murder Tapes, Grave Mysteries and Crime Watch Daily with Chris Hansen.