Bob Fletcher Holds Off Jack Serier For Ramsey County Sheriff
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – It was a race that wasn't lacking in controversy, but Bob Fletcher defeated Jack Serier in the race for the Ramsey County Sheriff.
Serier, 50, was appointed sheriff in December 2017 after Matt Bostrom resigned to accept a position at Oxford University. Fletcher accused Serier of assuming the sheriff role illegally, since he doesn't live in Ramsey County. Fletchers said Serier was living in Washington County when he took over the post.
Serier has been in law enforcement for 28 years and seeks to expand diversity for women and people of color, create high level of trust with the community and local government and continue implementation of cameras throughout agencies.
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Body cameras have been a hot topic among law enforcement agencies with local officer-involved shootings making national headlines. In St. Paul, officers were not charged in the fatal shooting of Billy Hughes on Aug. 5. Officers responded that morning to a report of someone shooting a gun inside a triplex in the Rondo neighborhood.
Officers arrived to find Hughes with a gun on the 900 block of St. Anthony Avenue. The body camera footage shows officers approaching the house and entering an enclosed porch. Officer Vincent Adams knocks on an interior door in the front porch. Hughes can be heard in the footage saying, "I will kill you," and raised a weapon at officers before he was shot and killed.
Fletcher, 63, is the current mayor of Vadnais Heights, but chose not to seek re-election so he could run for Ramsey County Sheriff. He had served as sheriff for 16 years and is a lifelong Ramsey County resident. He's also a former St. Paul Police Commander and former St. Paul city council member.