WW courthouse security privatization is tabled
By Griffin Beach on Tuesday, September 30th, 2025 in Columbia Basin News Columbia Basin Top Stories
WALLA WALLA – A proposal from Walla Walla County Sheriff Mark Crider to privatize security at the Walla Walla County Courthouse led to an active discussion among the county’s Board of Commissioners, with each of the three commissioners seeming to have a different take.
The proposal from Crider states that due to recent retirements for the county’s court security, which is staffed through the sheriff’s office, they are down to two full-time and one part-time security officers. A proposal in commissioners meeting packet available online said that Crider was proposing keeping the two full-time officers until they resign while using a private company to staff the remaining positions, but Crider updated the proposal to say they will transition to a completely privatized staff by Oct. 31. He said the three current officers have already been notified of this decision.
“The services are still going to be the same if not better,” Crider said. “What we’re trying to do is optimize our service to the courthouse. If I can privatize and have four to five positions and seven to eight people to draw on in order to fill those positions every single day, we are in a better security posture then we would be currently.”
Commissioner Bertha Clayton stated her opposition to the proposal and was steadfast in it throughout discussion.
“Your proposal is five sentences long Sheriff,” she said. “I don’t see any supporting evidence provided that this will result in cost-saving. The main argument for this proposal is that we can’t keep these positions staffed, yet the last three people that we hired are still employed there.”
Commissioner Gunner Fulmer was the only one of the commissioners who seemed to be ready to vote yes on the proposal.
“We are going to stay on this hamster wheel with how we’re doing it now for a lot of different reasons and it’s a very complex thing,” he said adding that he felt there are a lot of things about private security companies that most people don’t understand.
“It is the Sheriff’s job to deliver the mission, and the mission at the courthouse is not working and that’s the point I think he’s trying to make here.”
Although Commissioner Todd Kimball didn’t agree with Clayton’s overall objection to the proposal, he stated he would also like to see cost figures.
With no firm consensus being reached the board decided to table the issue to the Tuesday session when Crider said he could come back with the requested financial projections.
