TAZEWELL, Va. — Four candidates are vying Nov. 8 for the sheriff’s badge in Tazewell County.

The candidates include Democrat Brian L. Hieatt of Tazewell, Republican J.T. “Jim” Campbell Jr. of North Tazewell, independent Jeff T. Brintle of Tazewell and independent Tonya V. Wicks of Cedar Bluff. Two of the four candidates were interviewed last week by members of the Daily Telegraph’s editorial board.

Campbell was unable to participate in the editorial board session due to a previously scheduled work commitment, but did submit information concerning his candidacy. Wicks didn’t show up for a scheduled editorial board interview. Hieatt and Brintle attended, and were questioned on a number of issues ranging from drugs and officer manpower to metal detectors at the courthouse and copper thefts.

The candidate biographies, and their responses to the questions, follows:



• Brian Hieatt

Hieatt, the current chief of operations for the Tazewell County Sheriff’s Office, has served in law enforcement for more than 20 years working at both the sheriff’s office and as the chief of police for the town of Tazewell.

Hieatt said winning the county’s drug war is a top priority for the sheriff’s office.

“We are tackling the drug problem hard if you look at the arrests we’ve made and the indictments we do,” Hieatt said.

Hieatt said a growing threat is the emergence of new methamphetamine labs, adding that authorities have investigated 180 possible meth labs in Southwest Virginia within the last year.

Hieatt believes prevention, and reaching children at an early age, can help.

“It is good to reach the kids when they are in elementary school, and start them on that track,” Hieatt said. “Drugs don’t come from the school.”

Hieatt said recent indictments and prosecutions have targeted those individuals who are selling drugs.

In terms of improving relations with the local governing body, Hieatt said a new sheriff, and at least two new Board of Supervisors members and possibly three, will be on the job come January.

“What the issue was before was finding a new room for a 911 center,” Hieatt said of an earlier debate between Sheriff H.S. Caudill and the supervisors. “We needed room and capacity to do that. That was the issue there before. The board voted to give us the building we are in now to renovate and fix it up. We did that well under the costs. Since that there hasn’t been a whole lot of friction. We have a great place now. The 911 center has plenty of room. The board members we have talked to and the board members who have come in have been very happy to see what the building has turned into.”

In terms of funding, Hieatt said the sheriff’s office has been very fortunate tin recent years to secure asset forfeiture funds.

“It stays in one account and we use it as we need it for things that are not normally funded in our county budget,” Hieatt said. “Then on the other hand we’ve also been able to secure a few hundred thousand dollars in grant money and that is how we’ve been able to get our 911 center up and running and to another phase.”

Hieatt said copper thefts remain a significant problem in the region. He said the sheriff’s office is working real closely with companies in the county, as well as those businesses that purchase scrap metal to ensure stronger documentation and compliance.

“We’ve worked with them and we actually got our police radios in their security office so we can communicate with them,” Hieatt said. “We are also working with places outside of the county who take in metal. Many are now putting video cameras up.”

Hieatt said Tazewell County is fortunate to have an aggressive and hard-working Commonwealth Attorney in Dennis Lee. According to Hieatt, Lee and his assistants are available 24 hours a day to assist the sheriff’s office with investigation.

“When we had our last murder in Pocahontas, Mr. Lee was there,” Hieatt said. “He comes down in minutes.”

Hieatt said he is often asked if elected as sheriff of Tazewell whether or not  he will remove the metal detectors from the courthouse in Tazewell.

“I’ve been asked will you take the security machines out if you get elected, and I go — no,” Hieatt said. “You don’t go backwards. We didn’t install it, but it’s there. My plan is not to move backwards. It’s there for a purpose. You have to make sure the people who come into the courthouse have a feeling of safety knowing that no one has a gun or knife.”

Hieatt said patrols are strategically planned across the county, adding that for example Richlands is an area that requires two deputies on patrol due to current crime statistics. He believes the establishment of neighborhood watch programs in communities such as Amonate and Bishop can help.

“They can become the eyes and ears of the sheriff’s department,” Hieatt said. “In the neighborhood watch, we teach things like getting the tag number (of suspicious vehicles). My goal  is to start more programs like that.”

• Jeff Brintle

Brintle has worked for the past 22 years as a probation officer serving Tazewell County. He too sees the county’s drug problem as a top concern for the sheriff’s office.

“I’m not saying we aren’t doing a good job now, but we have to try to find a way to do a better job,” Brintle said.  “I do think that in 22 years of surveying a lot of families in Tazewell County the problem is persistent. I think we are waiting on these people to become full blown addicts and abusers. The cycle of addition doesn’t start normally when someone wakes up at 32 years old and says ‘I don’t think I have to work today — I’m going to go and try to find some pain medication.’ The cycle starts young. “

Brintle believes national attention such as the Time magazine article a decade ago didn’t help with the county’s drug problem.

“So perhaps that national magazine may have brought negative attention to Tazewell County,” Brintle said. “We have a lot of people infiltrating Tazewell County from North Carolina. Perhaps it wouldn’t be at the level it is today  if the nation didn’t become aware of the problem Tazewell County has as far as the OxyContin epidemic.”

Brintle said he believes as sheriff he would be able to work well with the governing body.

“I think one of my assets and one of my attributes is to communicate with people openly regardless of their political affiliation,” Brintle said. “I’m not getting into this actual campaign per say or marathon of sorts for anyone. So you have to be willing to go to bat for people you work for. I went on the record as early as February of this year saying I will work with the Commonwealth’s Attorney’s office and Mr. (Jim) Spencer and all of the other entities that may be on board if I’m elected sheriff of Tazewell County.”

Brintle said he doesn’t have access to sheriff’s department data to comment on budgetary issues. However he believe things such as having a grant writer on staff can help.

Brintle said educating the public is another tool toward stopping copper thefts.

“We want to educate the community and the people,” Brintle said. “I think we dropped off on community watches in the county, and I think that’s very important. If you see something going on, pick up your phone and call 911.”

Brintle said having a good working relationship with the Commonwealth Attorney, whoever he or she may be come January, is important.

“Again, we need to have to develop a rapport with every agency and every person involved with law enforcement, including the Commonwealth Attorney’s office, and all of the police departments,” Brintle said. “Even though we work together there is a point when a case is turned over to the Commonwealth Attorney’s office, and we will become a witnesses.”

Brintle said he agrees with Hieatt that the metal detectors will have to stay in place at the courthouse.

“That is the way things have become in society — the unpredictability of people and outrageous behavior of people who don’t have a problem going out and causing great harm to people,” Brintle said. “Once you have something like that and there is a need for it you don’t remove it. However, perhaps there is something better than the two security entrances we have now. Don’t go backwards. I think that is what was already said. But make it more user friendly.”

Brintle said he believes a sheriff’s department substation may be necessary in Claypool Hill — particularly if a long discussed annexation of Claypool Hill occurs between either the towns of Richlands or Cedar Bluff.

• Jim Campbell

Campbell, the current Northern District Board of Supervisors member, is a candidate for sheriff and a former Virginia State Police trooper. He was unable to attend the editorial board session interview due to a work conflict, but did provide requested information to the Daily Telegraph concerning his campaign.

“I currently am the Northern District representative on the Tazewell County Board of Supervisors, chairman of the Tazewell Emergency Services Committee, a member of the Southwest Virginia Regional Jail Authority and a member of the county budget committee,” Campbell said. “I love calling Tazewell County my home and serving the citizens in it. At the age of 13 I joined the Baptist Valley Fire Department and by age 16 I was one of two of the department’s Emergency Medical Technicians. I feel that since the 911 center is currently under the control of the sheriff that it is extremely important that the next sheriff have experience in not only law enforcement, but fire and EMS as well. I enjoyed serving in that capacity.”

As a trooper, Campbell said he worked in Tazewell, Russell, Buchanan, and Dickenson counties while also completing several special assignments, including a security detail for the governor. Campbell said he was sent to Washington following the events of 9/11. Campbell left the state police in 2006 for a promotional opportunity with the Department of Motor Vehicles.

“As the next sheriff of Tazewell County I will improve communications and working relationships with county law enforcement agencies and other emergency service providers,” Campbell said in the prepared statement. “I want to create a working environment and morale at the sheriff’s office that will promote retention of deputies and not excessively high turnover. I will utilize monies such as asset forfeiture to lessen the financial burden on taxpayers. I will start a county drug interdiction team that will be proactively working our neighborhoods to help rid our communities of our drug epidemic. This team will consist of two experienced drug investigators and two narcotics K-9 (units). While I realize that we may not clean up our drug problem in its entirety, I plan to send a very clear message that this type of activity will not be tolerated in Tazewell County. Many if not most of our area crimes are either directly or indirectly drug related. In my opinion, it is past time that we take a more proactive approach to enforcement and rehabilitation of people who have become addicted. I want to work closely with recovery programs including those that are faith based to help people get their lives back on track.”

• Tonya V. Wicks

Wicks, an independent candidate for sheriff, is also a member of the Cedar Bluff Town Council. She didn’t attend her scheduled editorial board session interview, and didn’t respond to a request by the Daily Telegraph for information concerning her candidacy, or a photograph. An Internet or Facebook website dedicated to her campaign wasn’t found.

— Contact Charles Owens at cowens@bdtonline.com