May 19—CADILLAC — Wexford County Sheriff Trent Taylor, who is running for re-election, says his office faces the same challenges as other sheriffs across the state: mental health treatment that lands people in jail, opioid abuse, recruitment and retention of officers.
However, most sheriffs in Michigan’s rural counties do not receive calls from CNN asking about any of their opponents.
“It’s a distraction,” Taylor, 56, said of the attention the race has attracted since Eric Molitor, who was previously acquitted of taking part in a plot to kidnap the state’s governor, announced his candidacy.
“Seventy percent of the people in our jail are here on new drug charges or for violation of bail or parole on old drug charges,” Taylor said. “We have a mental health crisis and we need to think of ways we can help.”
Over the past three decades, Taylor has risen from deputy highway patrol officer and community police officer to undercover narcotics officer, 911 director, undersheriff and was first elected sheriff in 2016 and then re-elected in 2020.
Molitor and Taylor are running as Republicans and will face off in the August 6 primary; the winner will face Libertarian candidate Jake Bassett, 32, in the Nov. 5 general election.
Molitor, 40, said he has a different perspective on the attention he brings to the race.
“It’s one of the things I’m super excited about,” Molitor said. “This is going to show people if this guy can do it, you can do it too. I want to get people out and running for these seats.”
Molitor, who was acquitted of terrorism and weapons charges by an Antrim County jury on September 15, says he sought therapy for symptoms of the complex post-traumatic stress disorder he continues to experience after his arrest and the three-year trial.
Attorney General Dana Nessel’s office prosecuted fourteen defendants in state and federal court, nine of whom agreed to plea deals or were found guilty of evicting Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s vacation home in the Elk Rapids area and planning of a plan to kidnap her ahead of the November 2020 elections.
Molitor was tried in 2023 in the 13th Circuit Court along with Michael Null and William Null. They pleaded not guilty and after a month-long trial, a jury acquitted the three men of all charges.
Molitor, who testified in his own defense, acknowledged that he had participated in firearms training and was driving from the Cadillac area to Elk Rapids, but was unaware of the plot.
“When I went up with Adam, I thought we were going for good things,” Molitor said, referring to Adam Fox, who prosecutors say is an anti-government extremist and one of the leaders of the plot. “I didn’t go into it with criminal intent.”
Fox was later found guilty in federal court, a judge sentenced him to 16 years in prison for conspiracy, and in his ongoing appeal, Fox alleges constitutional violations.
“The biggest thing I can bring to the office is my honesty and integrity,” Molitor said. “Something I think I’ve shown over the three years of the hoax trial is that I’m willing to act against great odds when I feel like I’m right.”
Molitor, who described himself as an outspoken supporter of the Second Amendment, said stories in state and national media of him solely opposing red flag laws do not accurately reflect his political goals.
“If you want to summarize: I advocate less government interference with people,” Molitor said. “I don’t think the police should treat the public like a piggy bank.”
Red Flag laws allow a judge to order the confiscation of a person’s firearms if officials believe the gun owner poses a threat to themselves or others.
In Michigan, new red flag laws called Extreme Risk Protection Orders went into effect in February, allowing law enforcement, health care providers or family members to petition the court for a hearing in which a judge will make a decision.
Molitor said his views on the sheriff’s office align with a growing movement of constitutional sheriffs — supporters believe an elected sheriff’s authority trumps that of state and federal officials — and that, if elected, he would not raise a red flag would enforce or any law which he determined to be good. unconstitutional.
Taylor said that could be problematic.
“I am a supporter of the Second Amendment, I am a gun owner and I have no problem with armed citizens,” Taylor said. “But it is in the constitution that I (as sheriff) exercise all court orders.”
The word “sheriff” does not appear in the U.S. Constitution, although it appears six times in the Michigan state constitution, which directs counties to elect a sheriff to a four-year term, which the sheriff holds “at the county seat” . and “assure the people that he or she will fulfill the duties of the office.”
Bassett, the Libertarian candidate, has studied criminal justice, teaches CPL classes to aspiring gun owners and works as a delivery driver for a regional construction company. He said he is not in favor of red flag laws, and believes they are an unlawful search and seizure that violates the Fourth Amendment.
The increased attention to the sheriff’s race that has inspired Molitor’s candidacy isn’t a problem for Bassett, who says, “The media coverage of him is a great exercise in (candidates) becoming servants of the public they came from .”
Bassett said he would like to see the relationship between local law enforcement and the public return to what he called the “good old days,” when most policing was community policing, officers were more visible and an emphasis on public service.
“We’ve lost that good, old-fashioned relationship between law enforcement and the public,” Bassett said. “We can turn this around. There’s a lot of division in the country right now… we can change that.”
Improving law enforcement’s relationship with the community, ending qualified immunity for law enforcement officers and focusing on visibility, not secrecy, of sheriff’s vehicles are priorities for Bassett, he said.
Red Flag laws became a talking point in the race after Molitor raised the issue on social media and in media interviews, although Taylor said there are a wide range of other issues facing Wexford County residents.
“I work with a board of commissioners that is very pro-public safety and despite some turnover issues, we have officers and staff here that are second to none,” Taylor said. “I have a great relationship with the community and I love serving Wexford County and the city of Cadillac from the bottom of my heart. I truly do.”
Michigan currently has minimal requirements for candidates for county sheriff, other than that they be duly elected by voters.
Sheriffs must also live in the area where they are seeking election and be eligible to vote, and while no law enforcement training or experience is required, that could quickly change.
House Bill 4981, sponsored by Rep. Brian BeGole, R-Antrim Township, requires candidates for county sheriff to have at least five years of law enforcement experience.
BeGole served six years as sheriff in Shiawassee County and said in an online post that he was not trying to discourage people from running for election, but that law enforcement experience would give candidates a better understanding of the varied responsibilities of the position.
Molitor and Bassett, neither of whom have this kind of experience, said they do not support such a requirement; Taylor said he would support it.
“I understand it’s the People’s Bureau,” Taylor said. “However, I support any form of increased demands.”
“Education, experience and training will allow members of this field to take on more responsibility, which will lead to better services,” Taylor said.
