At the end of that article, I posted a flurry of well-wishes to the retiring Sheriff Mills and to his replacement, the previous Undersheriff, and the future Acting Sheriff Craig DuMond.
The well-wishers praised Mills and DuMond for their integrity, competence, and claimed that Delaware County was and is going to be in very good hands.
Of course, regular lawsuits against Delaware County police and social services for egregious violations of people's constitutional rights come non-stop, and the recent several lawsuits:
- two involving the nephew of the District Attorney's investigator Derek Bowie,
- one about starving a pre-trial detainee as punishment, and
- one about fabricating a felony child sex abuse case against a Hispanic legal immigrant, a deportable offense,
and the fact that the county has been "suffering" sudden "retirements" and "resignations" of many elected and appointed officials for the last 3 years during the audit by New York State Comptroller, investigation of the New York State Commission for Judicial Conduct and the supposedly ongoing FBI investigation of the county - brings a different perspective to this flurry of "retirements".
As to the replacement of Thomas Mills, Craig DuMond has interesting history of, let's say, integrity that shines him not as an upstanding public official, but as a self-serving corrupted thug who just got a better access at the public funds that he considers his to have.
Just two years ago, I reported that DuMond, without public bidding, "trained" the Sheriff's Department "horseback police force", while stabling the Department's horses in his own private stables.
Interestingly, but not surprisingly, The Walton Reporter that initially reported that, deleted the link to that particular article.
Other sources at the time, reported this "graduation" of Delaware County police officers, DuMond included, from a week-long "certification course" - without mentioning that the horses are stabled at DuMond's own horse farm.
Nor was the "certification" of "horseback police patrol" announced in any official news releases on the Delaware County Sheriff's website - and do we really need to wonder, why?
Once again, JUST AFTER the New York State Comptroller finished the audit pointing out to the County the inappropriateness of dishing out contracts without public bidding, Undersheriff Craig DuMond dished out a contract to stable horses for "horseback patrol" - to himself and his wife. Without public bidding.
Obviously counting on the fact that nobody will give a damn as to what he is doing as long as he pleases enough people in power to cover up for him.
Then, just recently, DuMond came up with a great statement for the Walton Reporter claiming that Delaware County Sheriff's Department had always rented its police officers to patrol the Delaware County Fair, while admitting that the fair grounds are private property (rented by the Fair Council for the duration of the fair each year).
Imagine that you, as a private individual, hire Delaware County police officers to guard your business for a little extra pay.
What if you then commit a crime - wouldn't it be a little awkward for Delaware County Sheriff's deputies, who were paid by you for their services for you as security officers, to investigate and prosecute you?
That same conflict of interest exists in Delaware County Sheriff's Department renting their officers for ground patrol of Delaware County Fair, during County time, for an extra fee.
And, you know what else was interesting at the Delaware County Fair this year?
As reported to me by people who visited it - the total lack of horseback police.
Not one of them.
While DuMond announced that horseback police (with horses stabled at his private property, obviously at the County expense, without a public bidding contract) is necessary for "crowd control" - specifically at the Delaware County Fair.
For those of my readers who do not know the specifics of Delaware County, New York, it is a very rural, very wooded, very large county with very sparse population, where there are more deer and bears than people, and where the claim of a need for "crowd control" is simply ridiculous.
The only two times that anything approximating the definition of a "crowd" happens in Delaware County is:
1) Fair on the Square in the County seat, Delhi, NY, which happens every Friday for 4 Fridays, starting with the 4th of July; and
2) the Delaware County Fair.
Yet, horseback police do not appear at either of these events, so, very likely it was just an excuse to hire a friend and pay him for a "certification" course, as well as to have the police some free riding lessons at public expense and to pocket the money for upkeep of horses.
After all, when everybody who counts loves you and thinks you are a shining star of integrity, like the Delaware County Clerk Debra Goodrich (who is supposed to be neutral since she is the clerk of the County, criminal, court, and the Sheriff's personnel testify in that court as witnesses)
who can prevent you from living the life of a corrupt thug that you are used to?
Nor was the "certification" of "horseback police patrol" announced in any official news releases on the Delaware County Sheriff's website - and do we really need to wonder, why?
Once again, JUST AFTER the New York State Comptroller finished the audit pointing out to the County the inappropriateness of dishing out contracts without public bidding, Undersheriff Craig DuMond dished out a contract to stable horses for "horseback patrol" - to himself and his wife. Without public bidding.
Obviously counting on the fact that nobody will give a damn as to what he is doing as long as he pleases enough people in power to cover up for him.
Then, just recently, DuMond came up with a great statement for the Walton Reporter claiming that Delaware County Sheriff's Department had always rented its police officers to patrol the Delaware County Fair, while admitting that the fair grounds are private property (rented by the Fair Council for the duration of the fair each year).
Imagine that you, as a private individual, hire Delaware County police officers to guard your business for a little extra pay.
What if you then commit a crime - wouldn't it be a little awkward for Delaware County Sheriff's deputies, who were paid by you for their services for you as security officers, to investigate and prosecute you?
That same conflict of interest exists in Delaware County Sheriff's Department renting their officers for ground patrol of Delaware County Fair, during County time, for an extra fee.
And, you know what else was interesting at the Delaware County Fair this year?
As reported to me by people who visited it - the total lack of horseback police.
Not one of them.
While DuMond announced that horseback police (with horses stabled at his private property, obviously at the County expense, without a public bidding contract) is necessary for "crowd control" - specifically at the Delaware County Fair.
For those of my readers who do not know the specifics of Delaware County, New York, it is a very rural, very wooded, very large county with very sparse population, where there are more deer and bears than people, and where the claim of a need for "crowd control" is simply ridiculous.
The only two times that anything approximating the definition of a "crowd" happens in Delaware County is:
1) Fair on the Square in the County seat, Delhi, NY, which happens every Friday for 4 Fridays, starting with the 4th of July; and
2) the Delaware County Fair.
Yet, horseback police do not appear at either of these events, so, very likely it was just an excuse to hire a friend and pay him for a "certification" course, as well as to have the police some free riding lessons at public expense and to pocket the money for upkeep of horses.
After all, when everybody who counts loves you and thinks you are a shining star of integrity, like the Delaware County Clerk Debra Goodrich (who is supposed to be neutral since she is the clerk of the County, criminal, court, and the Sheriff's personnel testify in that court as witnesses)
who can prevent you from living the life of a corrupt thug that you are used to?
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