In a Sheriff’s Office as Troubled as This One, Skepticism Comes with Every Turn

Maybe the allegations levied by Sheriff Ty Rupert against his Deschutes County sheriff opponent, Lt. James “Mac” McLaughlin, are no big deal. Or maybe they’re grounded in facts and evidence. Based on recent revelations uncovered by this paper, it seems that the latter could very well be true. But when it comes to the sheriff’s office today, with as many skeletons as this one, forgive us if the whole thing comes with a lot of skepticism — and a renewed call for third party oversight.

In the latest intrigue, Sheriff Rupert – appointed after the crash-and-burn of previous sheriff Kent van der Kamp, and fast on the heels of multiple scandals involving the sheriffs before that — put the other guy running for the sheriff position on leave this month, alleging that McLaughlin acted inappropriately while out executing a search warrant. It’s now under investigation, but the person choosing who will look into the matter is none other than the sheriff himself, who can’t possibly be considered unbiased in this case.

When we interviewed candidates for the Deschutes County Board of County Commissioners for the May primary, we asked each of them their thoughts on overseeing the sheriff’s office, and how much oversight the commission should offer. Some candidates said they thought the ship had been righted at the sheriff’s office, and they hoped for a more uneventful working relationship moving forward. That was obviously wishful thinking.

Of the May primary candidates, candidate Morgan Schmidt suggested the creation of a County ombudsman’s office that handles County investigations without the need to have the sheriff hire an outside person. Candidates Lauren Connally, Jamie Collins and Amanda Page suggested controlling the sheriff’s office budget as a way to align the broader County’s goals with that of the sheriff’s office. Page (who didn’t advance to the November election) gave examples, such as moving dollars from the sheriff’s office budget to mental health services or crisis services, as ways to pull the levers of oversight and accountability.

These would be a good start, but it’s clear the candidates still in the race need to give the issue more thought before the general election, and talk about the issue more articulately and in more detail. When two more commissioners are officially added to the ranks of the Commission following this next election, the Commission will have more bandwidth to give this matter the attention it so badly needs.

In recent years, the Deschutes County Commission has been reticent to rein in the sheriff’s office, and it’s resulted in millions of dollars in lawsuits, disgruntled employees and a culture in the office that many describe as “toxic.” Perhaps most importantly, the public continues to display a high level of mistrust for the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office.

Far too little ink has been spilled on this issue, and we hope the coming election is a time to elevate it to the level of importance that it deserves.

This article appears in the Source June 18, 2026.