‘Hostile takeover.’ Franklin to vote on taking jail from sheriff as feuds escalate

A week after a state audit showed that Franklin County failed to properly oversee a variety of contracts, county commissioners are moving to take the jail away from Sheriff Jim Raymond.

Raymond said in a news release Tuesday afternoon that he was not included in the process and likened it to a “hostile takeover.” He wrote that he found out about the move from this week’s county commission meeting agenda.

He said rushing to make the change will upend the orderly operation of the jail, calling it “just plain dangerous.”

Franklin County Administrator Brian Dansel told the Tri-City Herald on it would be premature to comment at this time, stressing that commissioners have not yet discussed the resolutions. It’s unclear who requested the items be put on the agenda.

“These items were placed on the agenda for discussion,” Dansel said in an email. “That discussion doesn’t happen until our regular meeting tomorrow (Wednesday). It would be premature for me to comment, as there has been no discussion or action taken.”

It’s the latest escalation in an ongoing feud between commissioners and the sheriff including a criminal investigation by sheriff’s detectives, financial disputes and tensions erupting during public meetings over who has authority in various matters.

Two weeks ago a public meeting was recessed as Commission Chairman Clint Didier shouted at Raymond about the necessity of an interlocal agreement that the sheriff said was redundant because they already worked with an agency that combats child sex crimes.

Then this week the agenda for Wednesday’s county commission meeting included two items that would have the commissioners strip the sheriff of his control over courthouse security and jail operations.

If approved by the three commissioners, the resolutions to allow the county to take full control of the jail and courthouse security from the sheriff would take effect Wednesday and did not detail a transition period.

The move is not unprecedented in Washington. Benton County removed its jail from under former Sheriff Jerry Hatcher in 2019.

Commissioners cannot take law enforcement duties away from an elected sheriff, but Washington state law does not prevent them from making the jail a separate county division under their control.

The agenda items would direct staff to create new funds, transfer ownership of equipment weapons and resources and adjust policies to reflect the new county oversight.

“Lives are at stake and being jeopardized for political reasons,” Raymond wrote in a news release Tuesday.

“It is no secret there is disagreement at times between myself and the commissioners, and I firmly believe this is politically motivated. Because of the secretive, rushed nature of this action, 50 dedicated public servants face not only employment uncertainty, but also an unknown of what authority they will have in maintaining the Franklin County Jail.”

The change in control is likely to trigger negotiations with the unions representing the jailers and other impacted employees, as it did when Benton County took over its jail.

The sheriff’s office and the jail are the county’s largest expenses. The jail makes up nearly $10 million of Franklin County’s total $51.5 million budget for 2025.

The Franklin County jail employs 36 corrections officers, five record clerks, and 13 members of command staff. The jail manages an average of 200 inmates daily.

Raymond was elected sheriff in 2014, and before that was a longtime Pasco police captain. He’s planning to retire next year at the end of his current term.

He is calling on Franklin County residents to show up to Wednesday’s meeting to make their voices heard.

County contract oversight issues

The resolution to take the jail points directly to the 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.

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, a new jail commander last year found that an automatic profit sharing payment since 2018 had stopped sending quarterly disbursements.

That error was not a surprise, 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.

Courthouse security officers

The second resolution the commissioners plan to consider Wednesday is courthouse security.

Security is currently handled by sheriff’s deputies after changes to state law required security be handled by commissioned peace officers, rather than just court bailiffs.

The sheriff and commissioners have had disputes related to courthouse security in recent years. While the courthouse is supposed to be a gun-free zone, Raymond called out commissioners for allegedly carrying concealed weapons in the building, as well as Commissioner Stephen Bauman changing the locks to his office and not providing security a key for use in emergencies.

In the whistleblower complaint investigation, no charges were filed, but the special prosecutor called their behavior “odd,” “irregular” and “concerning.”

Also, Commissioner Rocky Mullen and Auditor Matt Beaton were investigated last year following a complaint about an alleged attempt to manipulate a payment to a HAPO Center vendor.

Though Didier was never formally investigated, Beaton said in a secretly recorded meeting that he was acting at Didier’s request.

No charges were filed though a Snohomish County Special Prosecutor noted that they did not pursue a charge against Mullen for lying to investigators about Didier’s involvement because of a lack of resources.

That investigation was handled by detectives from the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office with assistance from Benton County investigators.

Can they take the jail?

A county running its jail is becoming more common in Washington.

Benton County took control of their jail in 2019 during a prolonged fight with Sheriff Jerry Hatcher, who would eventually be recalled from office.

Jails are often an administrative and logistic headaches for sheriffs.

Former Spokane County Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich told the Herald in 2017 that he wouldn’t want the jail back under his office’s control.

But when these takeovers happen, there is usually a long process involved because of the complex nature of federal regulations. Washington is one of only a handful of states without mandatory jail standards though. A proposed bill to create unified statewide oversight died in the legislature this spring.

Klickitat and Pacific counties took over their jails last year. Clark County took over jail operations in 2022.

What’s unusual in this case is the lack of a timeline.

In Benton County the issue had been raised weeks before a proposal was put on the table. Hatcher had been accused of domestic violence during his divorce proceedings, and bills weren’t getting paid at the jail.

In Clark County, the council voted to take control of the jail, but moved to put a plan in place before handing over operations.

Klickitat County commissioners made their decision following a long process and a fact-finding inquiry.

This story was originally published April 22, 2025 at 1:22 PM.

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.