Education
Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice and Criminology
Campaign Email
culpforsheriff@gmail.com
Occupation/Current Position
Captain
Campaign Phone
5742755182
Crime and keeping the public safe are always challenges that must be addressed. Individuals and their families must know that their sheriff’s office will stay mission-focused on keeping them safe and secure. Violent crime and property crimes are often driven by drug abuse/addiction and repeat offenders. The agency needs to collaborate with our communities and our fellow law enforcement partners to identify and intervene effectively across all areas within our county-wide jurisdiction. Politics and budgets may change, but the focus on serving and protecting our people cannot waver.
The sheriff's office currently works with ICE (as well as other state and federal agencies) and is in regular communication with them regarding detainers placed on inmates housed in the jail. Honoring the 48-hour detainers allows for a transfer of custody in a secure environment and reduces the likelihood of dramatic federal operations in our local communities. This has been our policy for as long as I have been with the agency. This effective cooperation is critical in law enforcement and is something I will continue as sheriff.
Our state laws protect the Second Amendment rights of our citizens and their right to protect themselves. Law-abiding gun owners are not the problem, and I will defend their rights. The government needs to focus on the criminals who possess and traffic firearms for the commission of crimes, not our law-abiding citizens.
Elkhart County is a fast-growing county, with much of the growth focused within areas where the sheriff’s office has primary police jurisdiction. We will create strategic planning groups to implement programs and teams to improve public safety in areas where metrics indicate a need for focus. This allows us to utilize the depth of knowledge we have developed within our agency in all ranks and divisions, and gives officers the opportunity to further their careers through special teams and assignments. Including but not limited to:
Community relations / community-oriented policing
Traffic safety
Warrant service
Gangs
Criminal intelligence
The public needs to see their sheriff’s deputies out and about, and they need to know the work we do. We will revamp and re-deploy our community-focused public relations campaign to increase awareness of the services we offer and ways to connect with sheriff’s deputies. This allows for better community connection and dialogue with the public. My staff and I will focus on getting officers into the community, attending local events, and engaging with the public in person to continuously build trust and conversation.
Like many service-oriented jobs where standards are high and the work is difficult, recruitment can be a challenge. We will identify trends in effective law enforcement and corrections recruitment that can be initiated within the first year in office. My command staff will assess and implement strategies to increase staff retention and encourage long-term investment. We will create a structured program focused on developing future leaders within the office. Re-emphasize the internal honor award structure. Divisions will evaluate current career development policies, identify improvements and changes, and will explore ways to improve officer wellness, resilience, and support from hiring through retirement. Throughout this process, we will not compromise the professional standards the public expects from our men and women in uniform.
As I have talked with voters in every corner of the county, I have had people asking about how we can continue to support corrections programming and the jail ministry. We will complete a review of all jail programming to identify what works, what doesn’t, and how we can improve inmate programming to reduce recidivism. This will include an analysis of our training programs, jail ministry, educational efforts, and addiction intervention. The community needs to know our work on this, so we will release to the public information on results and improvements, to help better explain why these efforts are important to all in our community. We will continue to push to expand jail programming opportunities, including the jail ministry, in the face of state budget cuts and unfunded state mandates.
Education
Master Criminal Justice-Boston University
Campaign Email
BHolloman@holloman4sheriff.com
Occupation/Current Position
Patrol Division Captain
Campaign Phone
574-575-1364
The Sheriff’s Office—and our community as a whole—faces several important challenges.
Internally, we do not have a hiring problem; we have a retention problem. As a practitioner
of deliberate leadership, I am prepared to address this issue directly. Improving retention is
not only the right thing to do, but also a significant cost-saving measure. When we retain
our most valuable assets across all divisions, we preserve experience, stability, and the ability to better meet the needs of the community we serve.
Externally, our community faces real challenges related to substance misuse and gang activity. These issues have existed for years, yet they have often gone unacknowledged by elected officials. Meaningful change begins with an honest acknowledgment of the
problem.
There are certain requirements by law and certain prohibitions by law. I am a rule of law person. Part of that should require a willingness to educate on the realities of law. By honoring detainers lodged against those in custody for violations of law, much of the widespread discourse we saw play out in other jurisdictions can be reduced.
I believe in the importance of having the legal right to protect oneself. Who would I be to deny your right and yet exercise mine?
I believe in the value of meeting people where they are. If change is a desired outcome, this is a necessity. Through education of staff with recognition as well as consideration for the resources available, we can better walk with those willing to change. This does not remove legal accountability from the table, however. When cooperation toward change ends, legal consequences may then follow. Numerous jurisdictions have successfully implemented such mindset programs with levels of success.
First and foremost by recognizing it has to start at the top. I am committed to honest, open, and face to face dialogue and interactions, both internally and externally. This has served me well over my 31+ year career.
By first demonstrating my trust and support to current staff. I practice deliberate leadership which means seeking out and involving staff in day to day decisions. When you demonstrate value of and toward your employees, they become your greatest mechanism for recruitment and retention.
We first must focus efforts on employee retention. When under constant stress and strain due to staffing issues, it truly makes the rest of the job that much more difficult. Beyond that, again, looking at ways to better meet people where they are. For those willing to invest in effort to change, we should focus on opportunities to encourage and support it. This is not only the right thing to do, but becomes a cost-saving measure in the long run through reductions in recidivism.
