Voters decisively ousted Sheriff Lance FitzGerald in the county’s first recall election, after a bipartisan effort to remove him from office succeeded a nd he was unseated in a landslide.
Unofficial election results show 2,527 votes, or 93 percent of the ballots cast in the recall election, were in favor of removing FitzGerald as sheriff. There were 196 votes in favor of keeping him in his position.
Voters elected Justin Perry, the former Ouray police chief and city administrator, as the new sheriff. The unaffiliated Perry received 1,725 votes, while Republican Ted Wolfe, the current undersheriff, received 964 votes.
The embattled sheriff was removed from office by an exponentially wider margin than he was originally elected. The unaffiliated FitzGerald won his office in 2018 by 11 votes, an underdog newcomer who challenged the Republican undersheriff for the position and narrowly won election by campaigning as a “sheriff for the people.”
FitzGerald’s personal problems plagued him over the past year, which led to members of his own department declaring they had no faith in his leadership and to calls for him to resign. Ultimately Republicans and Democrats joined forces to launch the recall.
FitzGerald was arrested in November on suspicion of driving under the influence after he called one of his own deputies to report his girlfriend, Jamie johnson, hit him in the face during an argument. The deputy arrested Johnson for suspected domestic violence and later returned to FitzGerald’s home after confirming the sheriff had been driving after drinking at local bars. FitzGerald initially refused to perform roadside tests and was arrested, and later agreed to have his breath-alcohol level tested at the Montrose County Jail, where it was nearly twice the legal limit, according to court documents.
At the time, FitzGerald criticized his staff for the way his case was handled. Wolfe said the department followed protocols as it would for anyone accused of a crime and kept its integrity intact.
FitzGerald’s pending DUI case is scheduled for a jury trial in September. He previously asked voters to wait until his case was resolved before making further judgment.
FitzGerald’s domestic problems continued and ultimately led the local Republican Party leadership to decide to pursue a recall in January. News of an incident in which FitzGerald and johnson called 911 on each other during a law enforcement convention was the last straw for some, who decided to join a recall effort after details became public. FitzGerald had taken johnson to Loveland for the sheriff’s convention, at which they argued after drinking. No one was arrested after police responded to their hotel room.
Members of the local Democratic Party followed suit after the Republicans announced they no longer had faith in FitzGerald’s ability to serve in his position, and they formed a bipartisan committee to recall the sheriff.
FitzGerald had two other prior arrests. The most recent was another DUI in 2017 when he was working as a deputy for the Ridgway Marshal’s Office, before he was elected sheriff.
He was also arrested in 2009 when he was working as an officer for the Pueblo Police Department. That arrest also involved alcohol and fighting with a girlfriend, and he was arrested for alleged third-degree assault, harassment and domestic violence, but his case was never prosecuted.
Recall organizers circulated petitions and gathered 914 signatures in favor of putting the question on the ballot. Organizers originally said they hoped they wouldn’t have to hold the election and that FitzGerald would resign after the petitions were turned in. Sheriff’s Office staff members also met with FitzGerald in January, asking him to resign and save face. Instead, he campaigned quietly to keep his position as Wolfe and Perry battled for the job.
FitzGerald did not respond to a request for comment from the Plaindealer on Wednesday. But he posted a reaction to the election results Tuesday night on Facebook.
“Karma has a funny way of coming back on people,” he wrote. “U all take care.”
A constituent wrote, “Your mature response to this just reinforces we made the right decision in removing you.”
He responded, “U will c.”
Wolfe, who joined FitzGerald’s staff a year ago as undersheriff, came to the department after the previous undersheriff was indicted by a grand jury in a child sex crimes case. The law enforcement veteran, who has worked in the field for more than 35 years, announced he would run for sheriff and announced Tony Schmidt would be his undersheriff if he won the race.
Wolfe did not respond to a request for comment by deadline on Wednesday.
Perry said he was humbled by the support he received and plans on “bringing police back to the public and the public back to the police.”
He said he thinks voters picked him because of his experience in reforming the Ouray Police Department after he became chief in 2012. He said citizens are ready for changes that “will create integrity in the sheriffs office, ethical decision-making and accountability on the highest levels.”
“I believe our citizens are ready to see a change that includes them in the decision-making, and that’s what they’re going to get,” he said.
Perry also revealed he has selected former Ridgway Marshal Tammy Stroup to be his undersheriff. Stroup, who currently works as a patrol deputy for the Montrose County Sheriff’s Office, served as the town marshal for two years before leaving last year over differences with then-Town Manager Jen Coates.
The election results have to be made official before Perry can be sworn in. It’s likely that will happen on July 14 or 15, according to County Clerk Michelle Nauer.
Mike Wiggins contributed to this report.
