Jay Sheffield interview

Incumbent Jay Sheffield is running for re-election for the consolidated Lincoln County Justice of the Peace position.  

Sheffield, 52, has a 27-year background in law enforcement. He began his first term as Justice of the Peace in 2009.

Sheffield is married to his wife, Kathleen, and has one son, Hunter.

What professional experiences do you have that directly relate to your ability to perform the duties of this position?

I think my 30 years in law enforcement. The last five years that I spent in San Diego working in the superior courts. I know the system inside and out from dealing with victims to dealing with suspects. I understand the law enforcement perspective. I have a good understanding of the county attorney’s perspective. I think it gave me a tremendous amount of insight into how the whole thing operates.

Also the importance of the position and the fact that you have to have the credibility from both sides.  I am the referee. I decide it down the middle and I think that first year there was some suspicion. I think that I have earned all the trust of the defense lawyers in town, knowing that they are going to get a fair shot.

Why do you consider yourself to be the best candidate?

One is my experience. Two, I have a proven track record. I have been here five-and-a-half years. I have handled anything that came through this office. I am very proud of the record that I have achieved. Like I said, I think I have the credibility of both the law enforcement officers in this county and I also have a lot of credibility and support from the attorneys. I know I have a lot of support from the community members. That is very telling, I think.

Was it an easy choice to run for re-election?

It was. I enjoy the position. I find it very challenging. I actually enjoy the research. It gets kind of gross here a little bit, but I enjoy reading. I have a number of cases that have come through that require a lot of study and a lot of critical thinking. I enjoy that aspect of it.

What is the justice of the peace?

They are incredibly multi-faceted. We hear not only the criminal cases, but we also have a tremendous civil case load. We handle small claims. We are a court of record in the state of Montana for small claims cases. We handle the gamut. In my case, I do the initial appearances.

You know, we have had several deliberate homicides in this county. I am the first judge that those defendants see. I set the bail. I set the conditions. I advise them of their rights. I appoint the public defenders. I basically get those cases started. I am the one who receives the county attorney’s complaints on all charges, be they misdemeanor or felony. I review them. Make the findings of probable cause and then determine if they can proceed forward. If that is the case, then I go ahead and sign the arrest warrants, set a bail bond amount when those defendants are arrested and brought in.

When most people talk about going to court in the state of Montana it is a justice or a city court.

What would you consider you greatest accomplishment so far? What would you consider your greatest self-criticism?

Starting with accomplishments, the number one thing is that this court is night and day from where it was five-and-a-half years ago when I walked in the door of this office. I think one would only have to talk to the staff members or anyone that came through this court a few years prior to my arrival to tell you what the differences are. Night and day.

I have had a few testimonials from people who were back in the courtroom that came forward and said, ‘You know what, I was one of the people that had an issue before.’ I literally had a woman break down and start crying and said, ‘We are so happy you are here and glad that things are not the way they were the first time we came through this building.’

That is a powerful testimony. I am very proud of the way I have brought this court up and modernized it. From standardizing and modernizing all of the forms. From the initial appearance forms to the sentencing documents we use. They are now all compliant with statute and case law.

What can you do better?

You can always learn more. I study and learn things everyday. We do two weeks out of the year, the mandatory Supreme Court training you have to go to. I try to stay up-to-date and very active on an online judges’ website where we post questions and answer questions. I communicate and am pretty active on that.

What do you find to be the greatest public peace threat in Lincoln County?

It is always alcohol related. Always. DUIs, minors in possession, assaults. They almost always have an underlying alcohol abuse issue. That is something that we have to deal with. That is in every community.

How tough are you on crime? Do you look at things on an ad hoc basis, or do you look more of a black and white kind of way?

I try and call it down the middle. Holding people accountable is my position here. That is my duty. I understand that there are a lot of issues, people grouse and say everything is a plea agreement. If a plea agreement works properly, then that means that you did the offense. You take a couple days in jail on your DUI or assault or whatever it is and then you get the rest of that suspended. Well, if you comply with the order and get through that probationary period without issue, then it was successful.

However, in many, many, many cases they don’t do that. They are not taking care of their fines. They reoffend. They don’t take their classes or don’t do required counseling. In that case, where I have gotten very harsh with this, is that we issue an order to show cause. Basically that is an order sent out to you that requires you to come in and appear before me and explain why it is you haven’t done whatever it is that you are required to do. We either resolve it right there and get you back on track. If you don’t comply or don’t appear at that point then the court clerks prepare what is called a request for revocation.

Essentially, what that does is the county attorney prepares a document that says you haven’t complied with the terms. Bring you back in and I have the ability at a very simple hearing to reimpose the sentence and actually give you the jail time that was there. In 2013 we issued 235 orders to show cause, and a lot of those got resolved. It is an amazing motivation. Basically, it was a kick in the rear to get them motivated. However, I had about 40 that actually went to revocations. Where we brought them back in and actually handed them the sentences. Those don’t get printed.

Just last month I had a young man that has been on two partner family member assaults. He reoffended and got caught with a person he shouldn’t have been with. I gave him the rest of his sentence. He had done about 30 days on a year sentence. Gave him the whole thing. He’ll be over there until next spring.

Did you ever appear yourself as a defendant in a justice court?

No. Never been arrested and never had a ticket. I am trying to be careful and do the right thing.