Trooper leads ousted deputy for sheriff
Published 9:00 pm Tuesday, November 7, 2006
Retired Washington State Trooper Mark Brown appeared to be beating fired Island County Sheriff’s Deputy Jay Wallace in the race for Island County sheriff.
Brown, a Republican, holds a substantial lead over his Democrat challenger, early vote returns showed Tuesday night.
Brown, 59, and Wallace, 64, sparred in a colorful race for the seat vacated by Sheriff Mike Hawley.
After being fired earlier this year, Wallace was charged with false swearing, a misdemeanor, in Island County Superior Court. He maintained his innocence and called the charges “political assassination.”
Both candidates vowed to make some organizational changes to the sheriff’s office. Brown has pledged to establish weekly office hours on Camano Island and form a drug task force with other law enforcement agencies.
Other Island County races:
* Democrat Dave Mattens held a large lead over Republican Don Mason in the race for county assessor. The current assessor, Tom Baenen, did not run for re-election.
* Newspaperman John Dean, a Democrat, appeared to have seized a county commission seat from Republican incumbent William Byrd. Dean was winning handily.
* Incumbent Prosecuting Attorney Greg Banks, a Democrat, appeared to have staved off a bid from Republican Steve Selby.
* County Treasurer Linda Riffe, a Democrat, holds a large lead over Republican businessman John Morrow.
