McMahon's Motion Kills Jail

Chisago County Board Moves to Dismantle Sheriff Rivard’s “Police State”
McMahon’s Motion Kills Proposed Jail
Opinion and Political Commentary by Jonathan P. Glassel

Fulfilling a campaign promise, Commissioner Walker moved for a referendum to let the voters decide the Jail Issue in 2010. As there never was any public support for the Sheriff’s plan, the Board voted down the referendum and chose to kill the project outright without further debate.

Chairman Montzka summoned Sheriff Rivard to appear before the Commission.

In a face to face confrontation, Commissioner Montzka instructed the Sheriff as to the meaning of “no.” Paraphrasing Mr. Montzka’s comments, “No can be a sentence, no can be a word, but we are trying to be as concise as we possibly can, there will be no new jail. There will be no more money spent by your department planning for a new jail.”

Perhaps perplexed by the dumb look on Sheriff Todd Rivard’s face, Montzka reiterated, “No” again, as if to ask of Rivard, “Is there any part of “no” that you don’t understand?”

Commissioner McMahon spoke of the movement for Judicial Reform at the State Legislature, which seeks to eliminate jail time from some sentencing requirements, but was very clear when addressing Rivard.

There will be no new jail. There will be no planning for a new jail, until at which time the Board and County Administration can determine when and if funds are available.

By their actions, the Board indicated the need to seek alternatives to incarceration for non violent offenders. Costly jail space must be reserved for the violent among us, those who would harm our children and have succumbed to violence as a way of life. We cannot continue to warehouse our children, our most precious resource with criminals at the County Jail. Doing so merely creates return customers, placing undue burden on the taxpayer. We must shift our focus to prevention, run the drug dealers out of the county, while keeping drunk drivers off the road.

In very clear and concise terms, the new Board left no doubt as to who was running Chisago County. And it is no longer Sheriff Todd Rivard. It was a rare win for Chisago County taxpayers who have borne the financial burden of building Sheriff Todd Rivard’s continually expanding Police State.

Rivard was never much of a cop, but has excelled at good old boy politics, extracting millions of dollars from the taxpayers by any means available. It is believed that “J. Edgar” Rivard maintains secret dossiers on friends and enemies alike to assure a steady influx of cash into his department from those in control of the County Coffers.

However, the new board consisting of Lora Walker, George McMahon, Rick Greene and Ben Montzka are above reproach. With no “dirt” available to “persuade” the new board, a dejected Rivard left the meeting, whimpering into the night like a dog with his tail tucked between his legs.

Rivard is not accustomed to losing. Next up on Rivard’s agenda is the 2010 “Software Crisis.” Rivard is demanding the Board “shell out” upwards of 8.5 million dollars to upgrade the Sheriff’s Department Software. (Chisago City got their software for about 120K) As Rivard is up for reelection in 2010, look for this board to separate the Sheriff from his campaign contributors.

This board, with the notable exception of Rush City Commissioner Mike Robinson, has shown they will take on Rivard and do what is right for the Citizens of Chisago County. Such courage and impeccable character by a majority of Board members has been too long absent from County Government.

Thank You, Commissioners McMahon, Montzka, Greene and Walker for your integrity, courage, grit and determination. Though the road ahead be long and arduous, your moral compass will guide us to better times and a better life for the people of Chisago County.