On Monday Sheriff Kandy Fatheree, Summit County Sheriff, will discuss her role and responsibilities as Sheriff, an elected position she's held since January 4, 2021.  Sheriff Fatheree will cover current issues facing Summit County and plans for improvement. Her presentation will be followed by a Q&A session. The event is sponsored by the League of Women Voters of Hudson and the public is invited. 

Sheriff Fatheree supervises the Summit County Jail, the Summit County Training Bureau in Green, and oversees 330 deputies and 120 civilian employees. Fatheree graduated from the Ohio Police Officer Training Academy in 1992, earned an Associate degree in criminal justice, was an officer with the Lakemore Police Department as well as a security officer for Sterling Jewelers. Fatheree started with the Summit County Sheriff’s Office in 1995, achieved the rank of captain and graduated from the FBI National Academy for Executive Leadership in 2008. Though Summit County has numerous women in elected offices, Kandy Fatheree is the first woman Sheriff in Summit county and only the fourth female sheriff in Ohio.

Fatheree says that her main goals are focused on continuing improvements at the Summit County Jail and hiring a more diverse group of employees, including Black and Hispanic people and new citizens.  Fatheree asserts that she seeks more interaction with these groups, and “first and foremost rebuilding the trust between Blacks and the Sheriff’s Office.”

Another priority is restoring community confidence in the jail by hiring a professional jail manager to ensure compliance with state and federal laws and that there are no violations of inmates’ civil rights. She also plans to provide all jail staff with advanced training in mental health, addiction, critical incidents, and de-escalation techniques. The training will also be offered to all other employees.

“What we did in the past will no longer work, and to make sure we have a minimum number of issues, training in de-escalation techniques and mental health will help deputies learn what they can and cannot do, “ Fatheree said, “and what the options are in interacting with the public.”

Fatheree also said that she wants to examine the efficiency of the entire organization to become more effective. She will also discuss how her office offers a broad scope of outreach programs which are designed to bring law enforcement together with community to foster relationships and to serve and educate the public. For more details see  https://sheriff.summitoh.net.