CLEVELAND — 16 months after taking the job as Cuyahoga County Sheriff, Christopher Viland announced over the weekend that he will be leaving the job at the end of May.
“Oh, an absolute shock,” said Colin Sikon, Laborers Local 860 Union Representative for Cuyahoga County Sheriff's deputies. “The guys I heard from, they’re still trying to wrap their head around how, how and why.”
“I kind of thought that Sheriff Viland was in it for the long haul,” Ohio Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association Union Representative for county corrections officers, Adam Chaloupka said.
The Cuyahoga County sheriff position is an anomaly.
“[It is] the only one in Ohio that isn’t elected,” Chalpoupka said.
That changed back in 2010, when a charter amendment changed the sheriff position from an elected one to an appointed one.
Since then, there are have been six Cuyahoga County sheriffs.
- Robert Reid: May 2009 through February 2013
- Frank Bova: February 2013 through March 2015
- Clifford Pinkney: March 2015 through Augsut 2019
- David Schilling (interim): August 2019 through January 2021
- Joe Greiner (interim): January 2021 through March 2021
- Christopher Viland: March 2021 through May 2022
Viland marks the fourth sheriff to come and go since Cuyahoga County Executive Armond Budish has held office.
“We’ve had a bit of a revolving door of sheriffs,” Sikon said.
Chaloupka and Sikon, and those they represent, said the confusion that revolving doors creates is a constant battle of domino effects.
“If we don’t even know who the leader is of the sheriff’s department, sometimes we don’t even know who to go to,” Chaloupka said.
“It does impact morale among the deputies and among the department and not in a good way,” Sikon said.
The county jail has been a hot topic for leaders as they challenge overcrowding, a rash of deaths, and the need for expansion. With another sheriff departing, Chaloupka said this will inevitably bring slower solutions.
“We’re learning all over again. We’re relearning expectations. We’re relearning what, who is going to have decision making authority,” Chaloupka said.
Chaloupka called on citizens of the county to help enact change, working with the Charter Commission to bring back the elected status for the sheriff.
A county spokesperson told 3News there is no word on who the interim sheriff will be.
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