Jefferson County Sheriff's Second Week On the Job

JEFFERSON COUNTY, WV- There's a new face in the Jefferson County Sheriff's Department, but a familiar one within the community

"My job is to make Jefferson County Sheriff's Department the envy of the country for being the finest, small, local law enforcement division in the country, says Jefferson County Sheriff, Pete Dougherty.

Pete Dougherty has taken on the role of sheriff after former sheriff, Bobby Shirley, stepped down after a video surfaced that questioned excessive police force placed on a suspect.

"I'm not a rearview mirror person, I'm a windshield person," says Sheriff Dougherty. "What's happened in the past is something I have no control over and I'm not going to dwell on the past."

And while many residents questioned the training of deputies, Sheriff Dougherty says he's confident in his staff.

"Law enforcement is here to protect the community from people who do bad things, they are not here to do bad things," says Sheriff Dougherty. "They're here to protect you and that's what my role as sheriff is to do. To make sure we're playing the proper role."

Sheriff Dougherty plans to move the department forward and although he's only had the position for two weeks, he says his schedule has kept him busy.

"The most significant thing I've done is I've sat down with the staff," says Sheriff Dougherty. "Some of them individually, but I've had an all staff meeting to let them know a little bit about me, about who I am."

Sheriff Dougherty has big plans for the department and he's already thinking ahead. He says he's planning on defending his seat in the 2014 elections

"I told my deputies that my plan was to be here as long as the voters would keep me here," says Sheriff Dougherty.

Sheriff Dougherty hopes to be re-elected in 2014 and plans to defend his seat until his term is over in 2017.