Pierce County voters elected the sheriff from the county’s founding in 1852 until 1980. That’s when a new Home Rule Charter — passed in the wake of a scandal involving the elected sheriff — made the post appointed.
In 2006, voters approved a charter amendment that made the sheriff elected again.
Now, some members of the Pierce County Charter Review Commission propose switching one more time. An amendment introduced by Jake Hunter, a Charter Review commissioner from Tacoma, would empower the county executive to appoint the county’s top law enforcement officer…