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Jim Winder is a 20-year veteran of the Salt Lake County Sheriff’s Office, where he led Special Operation, Training, Investigative and Community Oriented Policing Units. Jim developed the curriculum and trained all Sheriff’s Office Deputies to the use the Incident Command System.
Jim Winder also is responsible for the design and implementation of the law enforcement component of the Planned Response to Emergencies Programs for schools, a program currently used by the Jordan School District and over 300 schools in Utah.
Jim has extensive knowledge of best practices in law enforcement, graduating from a German State Police School, as well as an anti-terrorism program in Northern Ireland. Jim instructs leadership classes for public safety administrators through the University of Utah, and is a nationally and internationally recognized law enforcement consultant.
From 1999-2002, Winder was assigned to the Utah Public Safety Command where he developed and implemented training for 6000 public safety officers assigned to the 2002 Olympic Games.
As Salt Lake County Sheriff, Jim Winder will employ his leadership skills and knowledge to ensure that any modification of law enforcement in Salt Lake County is: well conceived; thoughtfully executed, ethically managed, and fiscally responsible.
Many problems currently exist within the Salt Lake County Sheriff’s Office including:
A poorly managed county jail –
Recently, during the policy discussion on Alternatives to Incarceration, the Sheriff’s Office was unable to use the jail data collection system to give other Salt Lake County Officials accurate information about who was in the jail and why. Instead this information had to be tabulated by hand. The Sheriff has had years to put such as system in place, but never adequately demonstrated the need for it to the Salt Lake County Council.
In order for the newly implemented Alternatives to Incarceration system to work it is imperative that an effective, efficient data management system be in place. Jim Winder is committed to implementing data management systems at the Salt Lake County Jail that allow for comprehensive analysis of jail management including all the costs associated with prisoners, and analysis of prison population trends at the jail. Jim is also committed to providing accurate information about the management of the jail to other county officials and taxpayers.
A fragmented public safety service system –
The current Sheriff has supported initiatives that will create even more fragmentation of public safety services throughout Salt Lake County and hasn’t been willing or able to build the relationships necessary to improve public safety services. Jim will work closely with jurisdictions throughout Salt Lake County to identify ways to provide high quality public safety services to all the citizens of Salt Lake County. He will use his leadership skills to bring people together, instead of dividing them.
A demonstrated lack of fiscal accountability –
The Sheriff consistently makes budget requests to the Salt Lake County Council without the appropriate data, and analysis to back his requests. And, until recently was unable to provide accurate information regarding the cost of public safety service delivery to jurisdictions throughout the county. As a result of this, contracts between municipalities receiving law enforcement services from the Sheriff’s Office were not signed. In contrast, Jim Winder will conduct a comprehensive analysis of the budget for the Sheriff’s Office, building the budget based on the real costs of service. This analysis will be made available to the Salt Lake County Council, Mayor and taxpayers. Jim will also work with Mayor Corroon and his staff to develop a contracting process for municipalities receiving service from the Sheriff’s Office that results in competed, signed contracts.
Morale among the employees of the Sheriff’s Office is at an all-time low –
The current Sheriff has neglected the basic management responsibilities of the office. Employees often do not find out about changes in management or policy until the last minute, and many feel the current Sheriff does not support or care about their work. Jim will solicit input from employees regarding ways the Sheriff’s Office can provide better service to the citizens of Salt Lake County. And he will use his years of experience as an officer in the field, and as a consultant to law enforcement agencies nationally and internationally, to identify and implement innovative, effective solutions to the law enforcement challenges we face in Salt Lake County.
Jim Winder will bring a new level of accountability and efficiency to the office of Salt Lake County Sheriff. He will clean up the budget and effectively communicate with other police and public safety agencies throughout the county.
The Winder family tradition of service dates back to 1857 when John R. Winder founder of the Winder Dairy, served the citizens of Utah in numerous capacities. His efforts modernized politics in Utah territory and led to a two-party system. He also serves as a delegate to the state constitutional convention and was instrumental in helping Utah Territory achieve statehood.
The tradition of service continues with Jim’s father, U.S District Court Judge David K. Winder, who when nominated to the federal bench, was the fifth person to hold this post in Utah history.
Jim’s wife Shawn also provides public service as a full-time Firefighter/Paramedic.
Jim will continue this tradition as Salt Lake County Sheriff. He will take politics out of the office of Salt lake County Sheriff and instead will focus on providing the highest quality public safety services to the citizens of Salt Lake County. |
