Ray Hayse

Ray Hayse has announced his intent to see the office of sheriff of Franklin County in the June primary election.

Hayse grew up in Franklin County where he attended Russellville High School and Northwest-Shoals Community College. He also attended Wallace State Community College and Jacksonville State University.

Hayse has worked in law enforcement for the past 15 years and believes his experience in this field would be an asset as sheriff.

“I worked my way through the ranks of law enforcement, and I became the chief of police in Leighton,” he said.

“Prior to working in law enforcement, I worked for 12 years in the ambulance services in Franklin County and in the city of Birmingham.

Hayse said if he were elected, he would have several goals and practices he would put into place.

“If elected, I will take $25,000 of my salary per year to put back into the Franklin County Sheriff’s Department budget to fund deputy placement in our county schools,” Hayse said.

“This is a major need in our county. I have heard many people comment on how they don’t believe that school shootings are likely to happen in Franklin County, but it could very well happen; however, placing deputies in schools drastically decreases the likelihood of an incident like that.

“Decreasing call response times is also very important to me. I don’t believe that an hour spent waiting on a deputy to answer a call is acceptable, because all the deputies working are on the same end of the county. I will work to make sure the call response times are appropriate.

“If elected, I will be a working sheriff. To me, this means getting out countywide, answering calls within a timely manner, and addressing citizens’ complaints and concerns.

“I promise that if I am elected I will run the sheriff’s department with integrity, dignity, and efficiency.

“I believe that it is time for our sheriff’s department to move forward. Our current sheriff has had his chance to fix the issues at hand, but has failed to do so. I think that it is time to put someone in the sheriff’s position that will see to it that positive changes are made in our county’s sheriff’s office.

“If you are not satisfied with the ways of the current Franklin County sheriff, then let your voice be heard by electing Ray Hayse as your next Franklin County Sheriff. I appreciate your support.”