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Lain wins sheriff's race
BY KEN KOSKY
nwitimes.com on Wednesday, November 8, 2006 1:33 AM
CST
After eight years of being second-in-command of the
Porter County Sheriff's Department, David Lain will
get a chance to run the department.
Lain, in defeating county police Sgt. Susan Resteau
in the sheriff's race, said the citizens must be
pleased with the job he and outgoing Sheriff Dave
Reynolds did in professionalizing the department.
"I really believe Porter County is a safe county. We
do have tremendous talent and we put out a good
product," Lain said.
Lain, a Democrat, didn't believe his victory was a
result of the anti-Republican backlash. Rather, he
said the people trust in his administrative record
and his campaign.
The race did turn bitter, with department members
lining up behind the two candidates. But Lain said
that's the nature of an election and he plans to
focus on serving the public, not worrying about who
supported him and his opponent.
"We're just going to go back to business as usual.
... Our focus is on the people we're out there to
serve," Lain said.
Lain said he will talk to two or three members of
the Sheriff's Department during the next few days
before choosing who will be his chief deputy when he
takes over on Jan. 1.
Lain, 52, of Center Township, said a lot has been
accomplished during the eight years he's been part
of the leadership, but he still has some top
priorities to tackle, like the substance abuse
problem in the county. Lain favors fighting drugs by
staffing the Porter County Drug Task Force and by
assigning manpower to the U.S. Drug Enforcement
Administration Task Force. He said the county has
benefitted from cash and vehicle seizures to the
tune of "six figures" by linking with the DEA.
He also wants to do drug interdiction to intercept
drugs on area roadways, and to continue providing
drug and alcohol programs for jail inmates since
studies show 95 percent of them are behind bars
because of substance abuse.
School safety is another big issue for Lain. He
would like to have a summit with the county's school
superintendents to talk about increasing safety,
including permanent school resource officers in
school systems.
Lain said Internet predators are another issue he
will focus on. He would like to educate parents and
children about the dangers lurking in cyberspace and
have the Sheriff's Department continue to do
Internet stings.
Along with those ideas, he would like to create a
separate Traffic Division comprised of officers who
could devote their time to traffic enforcement. |
