CLEVELAND, Tenn. – Bradley County Sheriff Tim Gobble’s term is ending after a failed bid for the Republican nomination in the 3rd Congressional District. Jim Ruth takes office as sheriff Wednesday. Gobble spoke with the Times Free Press about his four years in office and why he thinks he lost the election.
Q: How has the sheriff’s office transformed under your tenure?
A: I came from a professional, well-equipped, state-of-the-art career in the Secret Service to a sheriff’s office behind the curve in equipment and training, plus significant budget difficulties. They needed help as far as fair wages. Vehicles and equipment were in bad shape, cameras were in few cars, bullet-resistant vests were all just about expired, most officers didn’t have Tasers and some of the guns were so old that their use was questionable.
Q: What were your best accomplishments as sheriff?
A: Well, we addressed all of those shortcomings without a tax increase. … When I arrived there were times three deputies would be trying to cover the county. By cutting 10 office positions, we’re now able to keep a minimum of nine deputies on the road around the clock. That means response time has gone from 11 minutes to seven in an emergency. The average law enforcement agency solves 30 percent of reported crimes. We solve 55 percent.
Q: What challenges did your department face?
A: We had to cut the budget by $600,000 this year. It’s going to be tough on the new sheriff. I’d encourage the County Commission not to expect the sheriff to operate with the budget as reduced as it is for an extended period of time; it’s not a sustainable level. We would actually save money by paying our employees more to keep them here than by putting a new officer through the same training all over again.
Q: What advice do you have for the new sheriff?
A: Good luck. I encourage him to keep morale up in the department. While we called attention to many problems, we haven’t made as much progress as I’d like. We need to increase patrol numbers and boost judicial security. Right now, all five divisions are operating at an absolute minimum staff. In the last two years no one has received a raise. Due to budget cuts, the progress we made is starting to erode again. I don’t want to see us lose the investment and the good people we’ve got here.
Q: What did you learn while running for Congress?
A: It boiled down to money in a lot of ways. We didn’t have the amount needed to buy enough TV time to really get the message out. If I had been able to raise another $300,000 or so, I think I could have very well won the race.
Q: Is the election system broken?
A: It’s very difficult for an average everyday person like me to successfully make a bid for the top levels of federal government. You either have to have enough money or you have to have enough of an inside track with lobbyists and party insiders. Ideally, the amount that candidates can raise and spend should be limited. That would allow more people to take a chance.
Q: What are your plans now?
A: I’ve got two children in college, a mortgage and car payments, so I’m quickly trying to find a job, even though this isn’t the best time to be out looking. I’m not sure if I’d ever run for public office again. I always thought I might make a good businessman, and if the right opportunity means moving elsewhere, that’s what I’ll do.