Lonoke Police Chief Patrick Mulligan is mounting his third campaign for Pulaski County sheriff against 10-year Democratic incumbent Charles "Doc" Holladay, who won roughly 70 percent of the vote in 2008 and 2010.
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Mulligan, who has 26 years of law enforcement experience to Holladay's 45, said he is brimming with ideas.
"I have nothing but respect for Doc Holladay," Mulligan said. "He's done what he can do, and I just think that I can do a lot more and take what he's done and expand upon it."
After getting routed by Holladay twice while running on the GOP ticket, the Pulaski County Republican Party lost confidence in his odds of winning and did not offer its support this cycle, Mulligan said. So this year will be his first run as a Libertarian candidate.
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"When they look at you and say 'you can't win, we're not going to support you,' what do you do?" Mulligan said. "It's important to have more choices. If I'm not there telling you what I think, then you only have one point of view."
Holladay, who is campaigning for what he has said would be his final two-year term before retirement, said he has wide-ranging support.
"I've been blessed over the years with a lot of financial support, a lot of good friends," Holladay said. "They continue to vote for me, and I'm pleased to say that I have good friends from all political parties."
And because this isn't his first election bid, he's been able to run a less-expensive campaign than in the past, he said.
The "re-elect Doc Holladay" signs scattered throughout the county are recycled from his previous campaign. Between 12 ads purchased on city buses and the filing fee, he has spent roughly $8,000 this cycle -- a significant drop-off from his $50,000 initial campaign in 2006.
Before joining the Pulaski County sheriff's office 12 years ago, Holladay served with the Little Rock Police Department for 33 years, retiring as a captain. In his time in Little Rock, he commanded the largest municipal narcotics unit in Arkansas. He also supervised patrol and special-investigations units, and served as the department's public information officer from 1990 to 1995.
Having this multi-departmental background, Holladay touts his relationship with the local and federal law enforcement agencies throughout central Arkansas.
"Because I had been involved in law enforcement for many years before I came here, I know and have worked with many of those who are here," he said. "For a new person, it might take longer to establish those relationships."
Mulligan has 26 years of law-enforcement experience of his own, including working in the Pulaski County sheriff's office under former Sheriff Randy Johnson as a supervisor of patrol and narcotics and working for more than two years as an FBI special investigator.
Mulligan's platform closely resembles that of his previous runs. One of his primary ambitions would be addressing the jail's capacity. Since Holladay took office in 2007, the capacity has increased by 400 beds. But as of last week, the jail was about 90 percent full.
As chief of police in Lonoke, Mulligan oversees the city's jail, a 30-bed facility with a bunk house that holds 11 trusties. His Police Department is composed of 25 officers, both part time and full time. By comparison, the Pulaski County sheriff oversees a 1,210-bed jail and 530 employees, operating on a $34 million annual budget.
Mulligan believes his vision can be implemented at scale. Many of the communities in the unincorporated areas of the county are small, he said, like Lonoke -- a town with a population of about 5,000. Pulling from his experience as a patrol sergeant in the College Station community under Johnson, Mulligan said, he would connect the county's patrol officers with those smaller communities as he has in Lonoke.
In his nine months as police chief in Lonoke, Mulligan has hammered out strategies for reducing recidivism rates, including providing job training opportunities for inmates and helping them find employment before they're released.
"We just had a guy who walked out of our jail and had a full-time job," Mulligan said. "I have a whole list of places that will hire convicted felons."
Additionally, Mulligan said that as sheriff he would like to encourage more discretion when dealing with first-time, nonviolent misdemeanor offenders.
"We need to use more discretion," Mulligan said. "Writing tickets is not what law enforcement is about. I don't want to ruin a 17, 18-year-old's life by giving them a citation for marijuana."
Holladay said he has a few more things he hopes to be able to wrap up as sheriff before retirement, including purchasing body cameras for the force.
He also aims to raise the $34,000 starting salary for sheriff's office recruits. By comparison, salaries for Little Rock officers start around $40,000.
"It's important that we still recruit the best available people out there, it's important that we win that recruitment battle," Holladay said. "Because we're all recruiting from the same pool of candidates."
The Pulaski County sheriff receives a salary of $99,067 per year, however that amount is currently being considered for a $4,661 raise for next year.
Metro on 10/23/2016