PORT TOWNSEND — Jefferson County Commissioners will interview and select an interim-sheriff for the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office from three applicants on Feb. 24.
Their choice will be appointed by March 4.
Applicants were put forth by Jefferson County Democrats (JCD) following former Sheriff Joe Nole’s retirement in early January.
JCD were responsible for the initial vetting of candidates because Nole ran as a Democrat.
“Our sheriff is an independently elected official,” said commissioner Heidi Eisenhour by email. “The BOCC’s role in this current process is to ensure the interim period before the Nov. 2025 election is covered by a sheriff who will uphold the law, maintain order and protect all of our residents. We are lucky to have three qualified candidates who are ready to serve.”
In a Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) meeting Monday, the commissioners discussed scheduling, interview methods and which application materials to require.
On Friday, the Board of County Commissioners will send a process summary to candidates — Acting-Sheriff Andy Pernsteiner, Patrol Sergeant Brett Anglin and Deputy Art Frank.
In January, Pernsteiner was installed as acting-sheriff by the BOCC while JCD gathered applicants.
The process summary requires that candidates send their application materials in by Feb. 21 at 4 p.m.
Those materials include a cover letter, a resume and letters of recommendation.
The cover letter is expected to include answers to three questions.
The first question asks why the candidate is interested in becoming the sheriff and why they believe they are the best candidate for the position.
The second question asks for the candidate to describe where they see the sheriff’s office as thriving and where it could improve.
The third question acknowledges the likelihood of a difficult budget season and asks the candidate to describe how they would lead the sheriff’s office and the county jail through times of financial difficulty.
On Feb 24, The BOCC will interview the three candidates one-on-one, until each commissioner has interviewed each candidate — 30 minute interviews will take place at 2 p.m., 2:30 p.m. and 3:30 p.m.
Commissioner Heidi Eisenhour said in an email that she has drafted five suggested questions which she will share with her fellow commissioners, so that the interviews maintain a continuity of theme.
Following the interviews, a debrief, an executive session and a selection will be made in BOCC chambers between 4 p.m. and 5 p.m. The debrief and the selection are open to the public.
The BOCC went back and forth on their options, between holding interviews in an open public meeting, individually interviewing the candidates privately or both. Ultimately, they decided to hold one-on-one interviews.
Commissioner Heather Dudley-Nollette, who expressed an interest in maintaining transparency for the public, pointed out that the appointment is not an election. She said that her thinking process around the need for the public to get to know the candidates changed over the course of the meeting. That need will be important during the next election, she said.
“That’s a year from now,” Dudley-Nollette said. “We need to make sure that we know enough about these candidates to be able to appoint the person who is going to maintain continuity, do the best they can do for the county and for the staff, and to serve our residents.”
Since the board is interviewing candidates separately, the interviews are not required to be public by the Open Public Meetings Act, according to Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Melissa Pleimann.
The commissioners named stability, the ability to engender community trust and integrity among priority character traits they hope to vet the candidates for in their interviews.
Commissioner Greg Brotherton noted that, to him, a candidate’s stability is particularly important in a sheriff who will be appointed for less than a year.
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Reporter Elijah Sussman can be reached at elijah.sussman@sequimgazette.com
