Franklin sheriff doubles down. He rejects court order, claims retaliation

A fingerprint scanner, police car, security card printer and six guns are essential to keeping Franklin County residents safe, the sheriff announced Monday.

Sheriff Jim Raymond spent 2 1/2 hours at a specially-called media event reiterating his refusal to follow a court order to turn over the county-owned equipment to jail officials.

And he restated a long list of accusations dating back two years against the Franklin County commissioners, who voted to take the jail from his control and run it as an independent department.

In the nasty public breakup, the commissioners have demanded he turn over certain law enforcement equipment that they say belongs to the jail, rather than the sheriff.

The latest venomous volley in the dispute came after Raymond sent an invitation on the weekend to the media and the public for a briefing on the “chaos in Franklin County.”

He argued that turning over the disputed equipment would hamper the ability of the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office to protect citizens.

“Who they’re impacting is the deputies on the road that are out patrolling your neighborhoods,” he said. “I have two deputies getting ready to graduate out of the academy, and we do not have patrol cars for them.”

Monday’s meeting was part press conference and part public forum. It was marked by frequent tangents into unrelated and even questionable allegations by some members of the public, including one man who claimed three judges had sent thugs to lynch him.

Raymond called the session in response to an order signed last week by Judge Brandon Johnson of Walla Walla County, who has ruled that Raymond must return the county equipment.

That includes one of two fingerprint scanners in the sheriff’s office, a printer used to issue employee cards to access the courthouse, a patrol car and six guns.

“I just don’t get it, read, do it in a timeline, connect the dots and the picture is really clear that we have three commissioners and an out-of-control county administrator from Ferry County and their only mission is to try to get at Jim Raymond,” the sheriff said.

In response, County Administrator Brian Dansel released a letter from the county’s attorneys sent to Raymond’s attorneys.

The letter said the sheriff had until the end of the day on Monday to comply with the court order, or they would file a contempt motion to compel him to comply.

If he refuses, they plan to ask for emergency hearing and, “if necessary, acquire the items by way of seizure by another law enforcement agency, among other sanctions and penalties for noncompliance,” said the letter signed by attorney Megan Clark of Spokane.

“... Sheriff Raymond’s actions are unbecoming of a law enforcement officer, a derogation of his duties, and indefensible. His statements regarding his clear intent to refuse to comply with the Court’s Order are both shocking and contemptable,” said the letter.

Messy county relationship

On Monday, Raymond claimed the commissioners have a history of trying to push people out of county leadership who don’t agree with them.

He said some of the troubles with his office began during a criminal investigation into the actions of Commissioner Rocky Mullen and Auditor Matt Beaton concerning a dispute over payment authorizations.

An investigation was finished and handed over to Pierce County prosecutors, but no charges were filed.

Problems were compounded when the sheriff asserted his control over the security in the courthouse, after Commissioner Stephen Bauman changed the locks on his office door.

When an audit report found that there had been some previous bookkeeping problems in the jail, the commissioners took the opportunity to take control of the facility and security at most of the courthouse.

While it’s common for county jails to be run as a separate department in Washington state counties, Raymond has insisted that the takeover was not constitutional.

Current crisis

Raymond’s current issues stem from the takeover of the jail. While he initially took 30 guns from the jail that had been licensed under his office, he returned them.

Six other guns remained at the sheriff’s office. The county also took over issuing security cards to employees, and demanded that a patrol car and one of the two fingerprint machines at the sheriff’s office be returned.

Raymond said he needs to maintain control over the security cards to protect the security at the courthouse.

Officials said the newer fingerprint machine has features that are needed for daily use in the office and that a detective is already driving the patrol car.

The sheriff’s office still has access to the security logs for people coming and going from the courthouse.

While Raymond’s attorneys tried arguing in court that the items were necessary, the judge ruled in February that the county owns the property and the commissioners can decide what to do with it.

He also pointed out that the court system can’t weigh in on whether it’s a good or bad idea for the commissioners to remove the equipment.

The county commissioners celebrated the decision as a victory in their fight with the sheriff’s office in a Friday press release.

“This ruling is a significant step toward ensuring that county operations can proceed without interference and that our employees can serve the public in a safe and professional environment,” Mullen said in the release.

Raymond disagrees that the judge can order him to handover items and is prepared to face a contempt order.

It’s not clear what penalty Raymond will potentially face.

“I budgeted for that property. It’s owned by the people not the county,” Raymond said. “I can clearly show you where I budgeted for all those items. ...”

“What are you going to say if it’s your relative on the street corner because the cops don’t get to him or didn’t have the proper equipment to respond.”

This story was originally published May 19, 2026 at 5:00 AM.