Sheriff Candidates Front And Center For Interviews
Four law enforcement veterans — three men and a woman — vying to be appointed to fill the remainder of Riverside County Sheriff Bob Doyle’s term will be questioned by county supervisors Monday about their qualifications.
The Board of Supervisors will be conducting a public hearing beginning at 9:30 a.m. to determine which candidate should be selected for the post being vacated by Doyle, who is leaving Oct. 12 to take a job on the state Parole Board.
Individual supervisors nominated each of the five candidates — retired Assistant Sheriff John Boyd, Assistant Sheriff Valerie Hill, Los Angeles police Lt. Craig Herron, Undersheriff Neil Lingle, and former Assistant Sheriff Stanley Sniff.
Lingle, who was scheduled to retire later this month, is Doyle’s favorite, while the Riverside Sheriffs’ Association, the union representing county deputies, has endorsed Sniff.
Each of the candidates will have a chance to address the board for five minutes, according to the Riverside County Counsel’s Office. Supervisors can question the candidates at length, and members of the public interested in speaking for or against a candidate will be allowed three minutes on the podium.
More than three years remain in Doyle’s term, and the newly appointed sheriff will serve for the duration.
The county counsel’s office said the board may or may not vote on making an appointment Monday, with the possibility of candidates being asked back for follow-up interviews.
State law requires the selection process be open to public scrutiny.
