The San Juan Islands are fortunate to have two very qualified candidates for sheriff. Each is a good, solid, experienced cop. Deputy Rob Nou and Lead Detective Brent Johnson have had similar career experiences — Nou in an rural environment, Johnson in an urban environment — and both are involved in the community. Nou is 51 with 29 years of law enforcement experience; Johnson is 55 with 35 years of experience. Both have undergraduate degrees in law enforcement-related fields. Both have been administrative sergeants who led special assignments and details. But Nou has more advanced education and relevant management experience — as an FBI National Academy graduate, as a de-facto police chief in two communities that contracted for sheriff’s services, as a municipal chief of police, and as director of a 911 center serving one of the largest counties geographically in the U.S.
Nou would bring fresh leadership and a fresh perspective to a job that has been held by the same occupant for 24 years. We urge islanders to vote for him on Nov. 2.
