Political and business leaders from every corner of the CSRA are begging, pleading and imploring Strength to run again, and while he remains as popular as any elected official we have in the region, he is not being courted because he is loved. He is being pressured to stay because of the concern that one of his announced prospective successors is 100 percent incapable of professionally leading the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office.
Serious-minded big wigs are convinced that if former RCSO Detective Richard Roundtree were to succeed Sheriff Strength, there would be a mass exodus of the top leadership in the department, creating a void in talent and experience that may never be filled.
It is a strange situation to be sure, because Roundtree, currently working with the Richmond County Board of Education Public Safety Department, was always personally popular with many he worked with under Sheriff Strength. But virtually every veteran cop I know tells me the same thing when it comes to their impression of Roundtree: He is a nice guy to be sure, and a decent enough detective, but his reputation as a lazy record keeper and a completely inept administrator makes him persona non grata.
In 2008 Roundtree’s rap for professional sloppiness was validated with the discovery of valuable case files and a rifle (his own personal property) left behind in his former apartment. He was busted in rank and suspended without pay for five days and put on probation for a year.
It was also learned that he improperly checked a female prisoner out of the jail on several occasions, a known prostitute who was later involved in a kidnapping and murder case. The woman denied any improper contact with Roundtree, but was reportedly was involved in another jailhouse relationship with another officer. It was said she was too sweet on Richard Roundtree to throw him under the bus.
With the demotion, Roundtree lost his coveted spot on the violent crimes investigation team, and the high profile that went with it. His days of showing up with the TV cameras at murder scenes, wearing his trademark fedora, were over. Even though he was always lower in rank than Major Ken Autry, it was clear that at the time Roundtree ran into trouble, he had become the highest profile black law enforcement officer in Augusta.
Perhaps he was seeking validation or, maybe, just a bigger paycheck when he left the department with hopes of becoming the chief for the RCBOE Public Safety Department. He was personally pushed for the spot by long-time Trustee Marion Barnes, but then Superintendent Dana Bedden opted for retired FBI agent Pat Clayton instead.
Roundtree has been biding his time as Clayton’s second, and now he sees Strength’s possible retirement as a way to get back to his old stomping grounds, not as a cop, but as the No. 1 man.
In an earlier column I explained the behind the scenes tug of war between long-time lawmen Robbie Silas and Scott Peebles for the coveted role of heir apparent, but when I did that, it is was not clear at the time how vehemently opposed the business and political leadership in the area was opposed to the idea of “Sheriff” Roundtree.
It is clear now.
With the emergence of black attorney Harry James, announcing for the seat of retiring Probate Judge Nathan Jolles, and other minority candidates being encouraged to run in the Solicitors and State Court Judge races, Roundtree knows his time is here. The combination of President Obama’s re-election bid and Richmond County’s majority black population lining up to support him is just too much of an attraction for Roundtree to pass up.
He has said there is only one man that can keep him out of the race this year, and that is Sheriff Strength himself.
I said it in December, and I have to say it again now: I do not see the Sheriff leaving his team in the hands of this particular successor. The notion of Roundtree running the department has Augusta’s upper echelon in a tizzy, and it has Sheriff Strength on the edge of another run.
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Sheriff Strength Between a Rock and a Hard Place
by Austin Rhodes
I made the prediction in this space a few months ago that I believe Richmond County Sheriff Ronnie Strength would go against the conventional wisdom and take four more years as the city’s top cop. While that decision has yet to be officially made, and while the sheriff wants nothing more in the world than to retire, I can honestly say that he is being put under more pressure to stay than I have ever seen in a local political race.
Political and business leaders from every corner of the CSRA are begging, pleading and imploring Strength to run again, and while he remains as popular as any elected official we have in the region, he is not being courted because he is loved. He is being pressured to stay because of the concern that one of his announced prospective successors is 100 percent incapable of professionally leading the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office.
Serious-minded big wigs are convinced that if former RCSO Detective Richard Roundtree were to succeed Sheriff Strength, there would be a mass exodus of the top leadership in the department, creating a void in talent and experience that may never be filled.
It is a strange situation to be sure, because Roundtree, currently working with the Richmond County Board of Education Public Safety Department, was always personally popular with many he worked with under Sheriff Strength. But virtually every veteran cop I know tells me the same thing when it comes to their impression of Roundtree: He is a nice guy to be sure, and a decent enough detective, but his reputation as a lazy record keeper and a completely inept administrator makes him persona non grata.
In 2008 Roundtree’s rap for professional sloppiness was validated with the discovery of valuable case files and a rifle (his own personal property) left behind in his former apartment. He was busted in rank and suspended without pay for five days and put on probation for a year.
It was also learned that he improperly checked a female prisoner out of the jail on several occasions, a known prostitute who was later involved in a kidnapping and murder case. The woman denied any improper contact with Roundtree, but was reportedly was involved in another jailhouse relationship with another officer. It was said she was too sweet on Richard Roundtree to throw him under the bus.
With the demotion, Roundtree lost his coveted spot on the violent crimes investigation team, and the high profile that went with it. His days of showing up with the TV cameras at murder scenes, wearing his trademark fedora, were over. Even though he was always lower in rank than Major Ken Autry, it was clear that at the time Roundtree ran into trouble, he had become the highest profile black law enforcement officer in Augusta.
Perhaps he was seeking validation or, maybe, just a bigger paycheck when he left the department with hopes of becoming the chief for the RCBOE Public Safety Department. He was personally pushed for the spot by long-time Trustee Marion Barnes, but then Superintendent Dana Bedden opted for retired FBI agent Pat Clayton instead.
Roundtree has been biding his time as Clayton’s second, and now he sees Strength’s possible retirement as a way to get back to his old stomping grounds, not as a cop, but as the No. 1 man.
In an earlier column I explained the behind the scenes tug of war between long-time lawmen Robbie Silas and Scott Peebles for the coveted role of heir apparent, but when I did that, it is was not clear at the time how vehemently opposed the business and political leadership in the area was opposed to the idea of “Sheriff” Roundtree.
It is clear now.
With the emergence of black attorney Harry James, announcing for the seat of retiring Probate Judge Nathan Jolles, and other minority candidates being encouraged to run in the Solicitors and State Court Judge races, Roundtree knows his time is here. The combination of President Obama’s re-election bid and Richmond County’s majority black population lining up to support him is just too much of an attraction for Roundtree to pass up.
He has said there is only one man that can keep him out of the race this year, and that is Sheriff Strength himself.
I said it in December, and I have to say it again now: I do not see the Sheriff leaving his team in the hands of this particular successor. The notion of Roundtree running the department has Augusta’s upper echelon in a tizzy, and it has Sheriff Strength on the edge of another run.
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Political and business leaders from every corner of the CSRA are begging, pleading and imploring Strength to run again, and while he remains as popular as any elected official we have in the region, he is not being courted because he is loved. He is being pressured to stay because of the concern that one of his announced prospective successors is 100 percent incapable of professionally leading the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office.
Serious-minded big wigs are convinced that if former RCSO Detective Richard Roundtree were to succeed Sheriff Strength, there would be a mass exodus of the top leadership in the department, creating a void in talent and experience that may never be filled.
It is a strange situation to be sure, because Roundtree, currently working with the Richmond County Board of Education Public Safety Department, was always personally popular with many he worked with under Sheriff Strength. But virtually every veteran cop I know tells me the same thing when it comes to their impression of Roundtree: He is a nice guy to be sure, and a decent enough detective, but his reputation as a lazy record keeper and a completely inept administrator makes him persona non grata.
In 2008 Roundtree’s rap for professional sloppiness was validated with the discovery of valuable case files and a rifle (his own personal property) left behind in his former apartment. He was busted in rank and suspended without pay for five days and put on probation for a year.
It was also learned that he improperly checked a female prisoner out of the jail on several occasions, a known prostitute who was later involved in a kidnapping and murder case. The woman denied any improper contact with Roundtree, but was reportedly was involved in another jailhouse relationship with another officer. It was said she was too sweet on Richard Roundtree to throw him under the bus.
With the demotion, Roundtree lost his coveted spot on the violent crimes investigation team, and the high profile that went with it. His days of showing up with the TV cameras at murder scenes, wearing his trademark fedora, were over. Even though he was always lower in rank than Major Ken Autry, it was clear that at the time Roundtree ran into trouble, he had become the highest profile black law enforcement officer in Augusta.
Perhaps he was seeking validation or, maybe, just a bigger paycheck when he left the department with hopes of becoming the chief for the RCBOE Public Safety Department. He was personally pushed for the spot by long-time Trustee Marion Barnes, but then Superintendent Dana Bedden opted for retired FBI agent Pat Clayton instead.
Roundtree has been biding his time as Clayton’s second, and now he sees Strength’s possible retirement as a way to get back to his old stomping grounds, not as a cop, but as the No. 1 man.
In an earlier column I explained the behind the scenes tug of war between long-time lawmen Robbie Silas and Scott Peebles for the coveted role of heir apparent, but when I did that, it is was not clear at the time how vehemently opposed the business and political leadership in the area was opposed to the idea of “Sheriff” Roundtree.
It is clear now.
With the emergence of black attorney Harry James, announcing for the seat of retiring Probate Judge Nathan Jolles, and other minority candidates being encouraged to run in the Solicitors and State Court Judge races, Roundtree knows his time is here. The combination of President Obama’s re-election bid and Richmond County’s majority black population lining up to support him is just too much of an attraction for Roundtree to pass up.
He has said there is only one man that can keep him out of the race this year, and that is Sheriff Strength himself.
I said it in December, and I have to say it again now: I do not see the Sheriff leaving his team in the hands of this particular successor. The notion of Roundtree running the department has Augusta’s upper echelon in a tizzy, and it has Sheriff Strength on the edge of another run.
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Posted in Austin