“I’m the Safe Bet”
Scott Peebles sounds off on Richard Roundtree, community policing and why he fears for Augusta
After 21 years with the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office, where he’s done just about everything there is to do in law enforcement, Capt. Scott Peebles thought he’d seen it all.
Then he ran for Sheriff.
“
I had no idea they would just make up whatever they wanted to,” he says. “Whether it be that I live in public housing, I’ve never owned a car, I’ve never owned a house, I stalked my wife — you name it. They just throw it out and see if it sticks. I never believed people would just knowingly say something that they knew to be false just because they’re trying to win.”
He’s found South Augusta particularly aggressive.
“
Down in South Augusta — they’ll eat your young,” he laughs. “They don’t care. They’ll hate your guts just because.”
That sort of political naïveté goes hand in hand with his boy next door looks and his calm demeanor, but when it comes to his experience, Peebles is far from shy.
“
I’ve been on the road patrol, I’ve worked traffic and I’ve been part of the DUI task force,” he says. “I’m SWAT team commander now, I’ve worked homicide, violent crimes and I’ve put together undercover operations. I’ve got the most management experience and leadership experience and I think that’s what we’re trying to get across to people.”
The field is crowded, with four Democrats and two Republicans, but six months ago Peebles was looking at a much different race. Considered by most to be Sheriff Ronnie Strength’s hand-picked successor, he was on a clear cut, head-to-head match up with fellow Democrat and former Richmond County investigator Richard Roundtree, who fell under fire for multiple relationships with female employees and leaving behind case files, SWAT gear, a gun and ammunition when he moved out of an apartment.
In that race, the stakes were high, the battle lines were clear and the story was almost embarrassingly easy to follow: Peebles with all his accolades versus Roundtree with all his baggage. The Golden Boy versus the Tarnished One.
Then, things got complicated. Strength’s brother-in-law, Lt. Robbie Silas, decided to run, effectively handcuffing Strength’s ability to publically endorse Peebles. Things got muddier still when Strength’s closest friend, Freddie Sanders, decided to run as a Republican.
“
It wasn’t supposed to be this way,” Pebbles admits.
Augusta being what it is, conventional wisdom suddenly had the white vote split three ways, and while Roundtree faces competition from fellow African American John Ivy, Ivy isn’t expected to cut into Roundtree’s base the way Silas and, to a lesser extent, Sanders is expected to cut into Peebles’.
And the initial thought — that Sanders was in the race as a fallback in case the convoluted jumble of candidates allowed Roundtree to come out on top — passed quickly, since Sanders seems to be taking as many shots at Peebles as everyone else.
Though typically not an issue in the Sheriff’s race, party affiliation has become an issue lately, perhaps spurred on by the way it’s been used in the Congressional race.
Peebles, who is running as a Democrat, has been called out for frequently voting as a Republican.
“
I don’t know where party affiliation really has all that much to do with it,” he says. “You’re not a lawmaker. You’re charged with enforcing the law without bias, so you don’t really have a lot of options there.”
He finds it funny the way party affiliation has become an issue, however.
“
What I find comical is that Richard Roundtree is running an attack ad on me right now on the radio talking about all the times I’ve voted Republican,” he says. “Richard got up the other day and said he’s always been a Democrat and he’s never waffled, and I’m thinking — you didn’t start voting until six years ago. Even with all the times I’ve voted as a Republican, I’ve still voted more times as a Democrat than the guy who’s saying he’s the only true Democrat.”
That’s not his only issue with Roundtree.
“
I’ll just say it like it is — Richard Roundtree is exaggerating things trying to incite people and divide this community,” Peebles says. “He said that nobody outside of the jail or records bureau has been promoted above the rank of sergeant in the last 16 years — that’s an outright lie and he knows it’s a lie.”
He starts listing examples: “The highest ranking member of the Criminal Investigation Division is a black man named Ken Autry,” he says. “The highest ranking member of the road patrol — the guy who ran the road patrol for the last 12 or 14 years — was a black man named Richard Weaver, who just retired from the Sheriff’s Office.”
Though he says it’s frustrating to hear such untruths, it doesn’t change the fact that fundamentally the Sheriff’s Office is racially unbalanced.
“
The reality is this: Augusta is roughly 60 percent black and we have a workforce at the Sheriff’s Office that is 27 percent black, and that is not reflective of the community it serves.”
While the problem was known, Peebles says it wasn’t acted upon.
“
The sheriff has said many times that he’s not lowering standards just to hire someone who’s white, black, female or anything else,” he says. “And I don’t believe we got to where we are because Sheriff Strength is a racist — I know better than that. I think we got to where we are because we have an open application process.”
That process, which relies on people coming to the agency rather than the agency going out and actively seeking qualified candidates, has allowed the underrepresentation of blacks and an overrepresentation of whites, which is why Peebles says he wants to start recruiting and one of the reasons he favors seeking national accreditation.
“
National accreditation holds you to certain standards,” he says. “We should be a leader in this state.”
Neighboring forces, like the police department at Georgia Health Sciences University and the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office, have the accreditation.
“
One thing this election has taught me is this — someone who is supremely underqualified to be the sheriff could win this election, and that scares me,” he says. “With accreditation, you wouldn’t have the ability to go roughshod, and if I’m sheriff and I decide to leave, I don’t care how underqualified the guy coming in behind me is, at least he’s going to be held to the same standards. That’s a safety net for the entire community.”
It’s a safety net the community does not currently enjoy, which is one of the reasons the prospect of a Roundtree victory has been troubling for many in and out of the Sheriff’s Office. At the same time, it has been empowering for a certain vocal segment of the black population, who some deputies report have boldly bragged about a sea change should Roundtree be elected.
“
It is only some segments of the black community,” Peebles emphasizes, “but this is where Richard and I disagree. He believes that dividing the community will benefit him and that’s what he chose. I’ve got black supporters on my side who have literally been accosted by his supporters for ‘why are you over there with a white guy?’”
Ultimately, Peebles believes Augusta is trying to put that kind of racial thinking behind it, and he points to his announcement as proof.
“
A picture is worth a thousand words, and if you look at every other candidate’s announcement — nobody can come close to me when it comes to the diversity of his supporters.”
A fan of community policing, Peebles bristles against Freddie Sanders’ insistence that it can’t be done with existing manpower and budget levels.
“
It’s about leadership, and that’s where I respectfully disagree with Freddie’s vision on community policing,” he says. “He thinks it’s a catchphrase — it’s a real policing model. It is the most aggressive policing model that exists in the United States today, and if you call Clay Whittle up in Columbia County, he’ll tell you community policing didn’t cost him one extra dime and he has reduced crime with that model.”
Community policing, Peebles says, is putting together a plan to attack a specific problem and them measuring the outcome.
“
And that’s what we did with our big operations,” he says. “We put together Augusta Ink, we followed with Fox Hunt. We took this many guns off the street, we arrested this many people, and by the way — violent crime is down 40 percent and is at a six-year low in Richmond County.”
Officers now feel like they’re report takers with guns, he says. Under a community policing model, they’ll have more responsibility with what’s going on regarding their beats and they’ll have autonomy to start using problem-solving skills to solve those problems.
While careful not to criticize Strength, he says the Sheriff’s Office is ripe for change.
“
I think Sheriff Strength has done a great job,” he says. “He’s like a father to me, but having said that, I’ve got my own ideas. If I could be half the sheriff he’s been, then we’ll be okay, but I do want to take us in a different direction.”
That direction also includes forming a Citizens Advisory Board to ensure transparency and give the organization informed feedback.
“
The way you perceive yourself and the way someone else perceives you — those are two different things and you’d better value the way someone else perceives you because that tells you where there’s a miscommunication.”
Members of this board would come from each commission district, he says, and while they could be recommended by commissioners, the sheriff would have the ultimate approval.
Though he says he misses being in the field — he’s been on leave since Operation Smoke Screen ended in March — he says he’s prepared to take on that leadership role.
“
One of the candidates out there — Silas — said, ‘I chose to be out of the streets… I don’t like pushing pen and paper,’” Peebles says. “Guess what — that’s what a sheriff is supposed to do. He’s supposed to organize, he’s supposed to lead, he’s supposed to make sure people have resources. He’s not a guy out there riding in the car pulling over people for running a red light.”
That experience, he says, is what distinguishes him from Silas.
“
I have been someone who can put a very complex plan together — I’ve proven that and can follow it through and execute it,” he says. “That’s what you have in a sheriff, and I don’t believe that from where he’s been — and I know he’s done a good job where he’s been — that means you can be a good sheriff.”
What it comes down to, he says, is trust.
“
I’m the safe bet,” he says. “I’ve already proven to you what I’m capable of. Anybody else is a gamble.”
And there’s an awful lot at stake, he says.
“
The sheriff is the most powerful elected person in county government,” he says. “When you get somebody who’s seeking power and not seeking service, you’re going to create a monster. And this city has seen it before.”
Though he knows it sounds dramatic, he insists the election will set the tone for the direction of Augusta for the next 25 years.
“
Roundtree’s vision is the opposite of mine,” he says. “I’m about inclusion and not divisiveness. I’m not seeking power, I’m seeking service, and I don’t believe that’s true of him.”
That said, they have shared a lot over the years.
“
Roundtree and I have done great things together,” he says. “We’ve both been on the SWAT team together — I’ve trusted him with my life. We’ve worked homicides together. I believe he has lots of attributes, but he has to be managed properly. He needs someone who he can answer to and someone who can keep him in check.”
He points to the infamous Facebook post, where Roundtree basically told members of the black community that they were either on the train or in front of it.
“
That’s what’s at stake for this city,” Peebles says. “That’s it in a nutshell. Someone who’s going to use that power to roll over people.”
You Might Also Like:
Tagged with:
augusta,
csra,
eric johnson,
evans,
georgia,
grovetown,
martinez,
metro spirit,
news,
north augusta,
richard roundtree,
scott peebles,
south carolina
Posted in
News
He’s found South Augusta particularly aggressive.
“Down in South Augusta — they’ll eat your young,” he laughs. “They don’t care. They’ll hate your guts just because.”
That sort of political naïveté goes hand in hand with his boy next door looks and his calm demeanor, but when it comes to his experience, Peebles is far from shy.
“I’ve been on the road patrol, I’ve worked traffic and I’ve been part of the DUI task force,” he says. “I’m SWAT team commander now, I’ve worked homicide, violent crimes and I’ve put together undercover operations. I’ve got the most management experience and leadership experience and I think that’s what we’re trying to get across to people.”
The field is crowded, with four Democrats and two Republicans, but six months ago Peebles was looking at a much different race. Considered by most to be Sheriff Ronnie Strength’s hand-picked successor, he was on a clear cut, head-to-head match up with fellow Democrat and former Richmond County investigator Richard Roundtree, who fell under fire for multiple relationships with female employees and leaving behind case files, SWAT gear, a gun and ammunition when he moved out of an apartment.
In that race, the stakes were high, the battle lines were clear and the story was almost embarrassingly easy to follow: Peebles with all his accolades versus Roundtree with all his baggage. The Golden Boy versus the Tarnished One.
Then, things got complicated. Strength’s brother-in-law, Lt. Robbie Silas, decided to run, effectively handcuffing Strength’s ability to publically endorse Peebles. Things got muddier still when Strength’s closest friend, Freddie Sanders, decided to run as a Republican.
“It wasn’t supposed to be this way,” Pebbles admits.
Augusta being what it is, conventional wisdom suddenly had the white vote split three ways, and while Roundtree faces competition from fellow African American John Ivy, Ivy isn’t expected to cut into Roundtree’s base the way Silas and, to a lesser extent, Sanders is expected to cut into Peebles’.
And the initial thought — that Sanders was in the race as a fallback in case the convoluted jumble of candidates allowed Roundtree to come out on top — passed quickly, since Sanders seems to be taking as many shots at Peebles as everyone else.
Though typically not an issue in the Sheriff’s race, party affiliation has become an issue lately, perhaps spurred on by the way it’s been used in the Congressional race.
Peebles, who is running as a Democrat, has been called out for frequently voting as a Republican.
“I don’t know where party affiliation really has all that much to do with it,” he says. “You’re not a lawmaker. You’re charged with enforcing the law without bias, so you don’t really have a lot of options there.”
He finds it funny the way party affiliation has become an issue, however.
“What I find comical is that Richard Roundtree is running an attack ad on me right now on the radio talking about all the times I’ve voted Republican,” he says. “Richard got up the other day and said he’s always been a Democrat and he’s never waffled, and I’m thinking — you didn’t start voting until six years ago. Even with all the times I’ve voted as a Republican, I’ve still voted more times as a Democrat than the guy who’s saying he’s the only true Democrat.”
That’s not his only issue with Roundtree.
“I’ll just say it like it is — Richard Roundtree is exaggerating things trying to incite people and divide this community,” Peebles says. “He said that nobody outside of the jail or records bureau has been promoted above the rank of sergeant in the last 16 years — that’s an outright lie and he knows it’s a lie.”
He starts listing examples: “The highest ranking member of the Criminal Investigation Division is a black man named Ken Autry,” he says. “The highest ranking member of the road patrol — the guy who ran the road patrol for the last 12 or 14 years — was a black man named Richard Weaver, who just retired from the Sheriff’s Office.”
Though he says it’s frustrating to hear such untruths, it doesn’t change the fact that fundamentally the Sheriff’s Office is racially unbalanced.
“The reality is this: Augusta is roughly 60 percent black and we have a workforce at the Sheriff’s Office that is 27 percent black, and that is not reflective of the community it serves.”
While the problem was known, Peebles says it wasn’t acted upon.
“The sheriff has said many times that he’s not lowering standards just to hire someone who’s white, black, female or anything else,” he says. “And I don’t believe we got to where we are because Sheriff Strength is a racist — I know better than that. I think we got to where we are because we have an open application process.”
That process, which relies on people coming to the agency rather than the agency going out and actively seeking qualified candidates, has allowed the underrepresentation of blacks and an overrepresentation of whites, which is why Peebles says he wants to start recruiting and one of the reasons he favors seeking national accreditation.
“National accreditation holds you to certain standards,” he says. “We should be a leader in this state.”
Neighboring forces, like the police department at Georgia Health Sciences University and the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office, have the accreditation.
“One thing this election has taught me is this — someone who is supremely underqualified to be the sheriff could win this election, and that scares me,” he says. “With accreditation, you wouldn’t have the ability to go roughshod, and if I’m sheriff and I decide to leave, I don’t care how underqualified the guy coming in behind me is, at least he’s going to be held to the same standards. That’s a safety net for the entire community.”
It’s a safety net the community does not currently enjoy, which is one of the reasons the prospect of a Roundtree victory has been troubling for many in and out of the Sheriff’s Office. At the same time, it has been empowering for a certain vocal segment of the black population, who some deputies report have boldly bragged about a sea change should Roundtree be elected.
“It is only some segments of the black community,” Peebles emphasizes, “but this is where Richard and I disagree. He believes that dividing the community will benefit him and that’s what he chose. I’ve got black supporters on my side who have literally been accosted by his supporters for ‘why are you over there with a white guy?’”
Ultimately, Peebles believes Augusta is trying to put that kind of racial thinking behind it, and he points to his announcement as proof.
“A picture is worth a thousand words, and if you look at every other candidate’s announcement — nobody can come close to me when it comes to the diversity of his supporters.”
A fan of community policing, Peebles bristles against Freddie Sanders’ insistence that it can’t be done with existing manpower and budget levels.
“It’s about leadership, and that’s where I respectfully disagree with Freddie’s vision on community policing,” he says. “He thinks it’s a catchphrase — it’s a real policing model. It is the most aggressive policing model that exists in the United States today, and if you call Clay Whittle up in Columbia County, he’ll tell you community policing didn’t cost him one extra dime and he has reduced crime with that model.”
Community policing, Peebles says, is putting together a plan to attack a specific problem and them measuring the outcome.
“And that’s what we did with our big operations,” he says. “We put together Augusta Ink, we followed with Fox Hunt. We took this many guns off the street, we arrested this many people, and by the way — violent crime is down 40 percent and is at a six-year low in Richmond County.”
Officers now feel like they’re report takers with guns, he says. Under a community policing model, they’ll have more responsibility with what’s going on regarding their beats and they’ll have autonomy to start using problem-solving skills to solve those problems.
While careful not to criticize Strength, he says the Sheriff’s Office is ripe for change.
“I think Sheriff Strength has done a great job,” he says. “He’s like a father to me, but having said that, I’ve got my own ideas. If I could be half the sheriff he’s been, then we’ll be okay, but I do want to take us in a different direction.”
That direction also includes forming a Citizens Advisory Board to ensure transparency and give the organization informed feedback.
“The way you perceive yourself and the way someone else perceives you — those are two different things and you’d better value the way someone else perceives you because that tells you where there’s a miscommunication.”
Members of this board would come from each commission district, he says, and while they could be recommended by commissioners, the sheriff would have the ultimate approval.
Though he says he misses being in the field — he’s been on leave since Operation Smoke Screen ended in March — he says he’s prepared to take on that leadership role.
“One of the candidates out there — Silas — said, ‘I chose to be out of the streets… I don’t like pushing pen and paper,’” Peebles says. “Guess what — that’s what a sheriff is supposed to do. He’s supposed to organize, he’s supposed to lead, he’s supposed to make sure people have resources. He’s not a guy out there riding in the car pulling over people for running a red light.”
That experience, he says, is what distinguishes him from Silas.
“I have been someone who can put a very complex plan together — I’ve proven that and can follow it through and execute it,” he says. “That’s what you have in a sheriff, and I don’t believe that from where he’s been — and I know he’s done a good job where he’s been — that means you can be a good sheriff.”
What it comes down to, he says, is trust.
“I’m the safe bet,” he says. “I’ve already proven to you what I’m capable of. Anybody else is a gamble.”
And there’s an awful lot at stake, he says.
“The sheriff is the most powerful elected person in county government,” he says. “When you get somebody who’s seeking power and not seeking service, you’re going to create a monster. And this city has seen it before.”
Though he knows it sounds dramatic, he insists the election will set the tone for the direction of Augusta for the next 25 years.
“Roundtree’s vision is the opposite of mine,” he says. “I’m about inclusion and not divisiveness. I’m not seeking power, I’m seeking service, and I don’t believe that’s true of him.”
That said, they have shared a lot over the years.
“Roundtree and I have done great things together,” he says. “We’ve both been on the SWAT team together — I’ve trusted him with my life. We’ve worked homicides together. I believe he has lots of attributes, but he has to be managed properly. He needs someone who he can answer to and someone who can keep him in check.”
He points to the infamous Facebook post, where Roundtree basically told members of the black community that they were either on the train or in front of it.
“That’s what’s at stake for this city,” Peebles says. “That’s it in a nutshell. Someone who’s going to use that power to roll over people.”
You Might Also Like:
