Politics & Government

Shaun Golden Challenged For Monmouth County Sheriff's Bid

Voting begins at 6 a.m. Tuesday in statewide primary elections

Voters in Monmouth County will be asked to choose a Monmouth County Sheriff to run in November’s general election in Tuesday’s primary election polling. 

Incumbent GOP Sheriff Shaun Golden, of Howell, is seeking his second full term in office. Golden is challenged by former Perth Amboy police officer Daniel Peters, of Middletown.

Peters is making is second run for Monmouth County Sheriff. Peters withdrew his candidacy for Sheriff in 2007 because he did not meet residency requirements.

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Golden, who was first appointed to the Sheriff's Post in 2009, is running with Freeholder Director Thomas Arnone and Freeholder Serena DiMasso.

Golden, 45, is a lifelong resident of Monmouth County and a .

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Golden pointed to a budget that has held at no increase and plans and success during Hurricane Sandy as high points in his tenure with the office.

More than 70,000 residents were evacuated from the county during the October storm and his office helped run two shelters, he said.

"That's something I'm very proud of,'' Golden said.

If elected, Golden said holding or reducing the budget, homeland security issues and continued shared services would top the list of issues he'd tackle.

"We'll continue to focus on homeland security, with an emphasis on school security," Golden said.

The office recently brought 14 towns into the 9-1-1 county-run emergency dispatch, a shared service that Golden said would save money and increase efficiency. The county Police Academy, also an example of the office's emphasis on shared services, also recently graduated officers from three other counties, Golden said.

"We will continue to look at increasing shared services," Golden said.

Peters is one of a slate of challengers running under the “Republicans for Conservative Leadership’’ banner.

Peters, 48, said that pension reform within the Sheriff’s Office, overtime at the Monmouth County jail and school security are among the issues he’d tackle if elected.

Peters, who collects a disability pension, said he that if elected he would deduct from his salary the money he receives from his pension, and hoped to institute that police throughout the office.

“I would ask all officials receiving a salaried position to deduct their pensions,’’ Peters said.

Peters said “excessive overtime’’ at the county jail was also on his list of issues to correct if elected. Overtime among corrections officers was something that should be curbed, he said. Peters said jail employees are receiving overtime in large part due to some federal prisoners being incarcerated at the Freehold Township facility.

That program is being phased out, he said, but that effective management of jail personnel would be a top issue under his watch.

“This is a management issue that has to be addressed,’’ Peters said.

Peters also said he would work to make available from the Sheriff’s Office a larger variety of security options to school districts that have expressed interest in hiring or augmenting their security personnel.

“(School districts) will be able to make the choice of what they want to keep costs to a minimum and prevent duplications,” Peters said.


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