Mutz is the man

The stakes are high in the upcoming June 5th primary election for Sonoma County Sheriff. A contested election for this position hasn’t taken place in over twenty-five years. The stakes in this election are high and its implications are clear. On June 5th, the voters of Sonoma County have a clear choice between progress or the dysfunctional and failed status quo.

The two conservative candidates for the post, Mark Essick, and Ernesto Olivares, represent that failed status quo. However, John Mutz stands out as the progressive candidate who represents the new model of police work as public service. He believes that the purpose of law enforcement is to keep the peace, not to just enforce order. His experience as a station commander in the LAPD and a consultant who transformed the culture of police departments with troubled practices shows that he has the skills and experience to make real progress happen.

Unlike status quo candidates Essick and Olivares, John Mutz provides a much-needed critique of the structural issues that shape modern law enforcement. He promotes community-based policing that focuses on rehabilitation rather than punishment, emphasizes cooperation more than draconian discipline and advocates for the development of concrete relationships between the community and the department.

John Mutz will be a leader in implementing common-sense gun safety measures. He supports an all-out ban on assault weapons, preventing unlawful gun ownership, and stronger restrictions on firearms purchases. Olivares has been satisfactory on this issue, but the Republican-endorsed Essick has timidly skirted the issue so as not to infuriate his militant right-wing voter base.

Sonoma County residents know that we need a new approach to law enforcement in this county and in the country. We do not need more of the failed Republican ‘law and order’ militarized law enforcement that unnecessarily ruins young lives for minor offenses and destabilizes the social fabric of poor communities. John Mutz will professionalize and humanize the Sheriff’s department. John Mutz says that staying with the status quo means “the faces will change, but the traditions won’t.” Vote for the change, vote John Mutz for Sheriff.

— Mark Malouf, Sonoma