Darren White (politician)

Darren White
Sheriff of Bernalillo County, New Mexico
In office 2002 – November 30, 2009
Personal details
Born	1963
Political party	Republican
Residence	Albuquerque, New Mexico

Darren White is a former Sheriff of Bernalillo County, New Mexico, having been elected that post in 2002, and re-elected in 2006. Prior to his election as Sheriff, he served as Secretary of the New Mexico Department of Public Safety in the Cabinet of Governor Gary Johnson.^[1] White resigned his Cabinet position after Governor Johnson began advocating the legalization of drugs. White was appointed to the position of Chief Public Safety Officer for the City of Albuquerque on December 1, 2009 ^[2] by the newly-elected Albuquerque Mayor Richard J. Berry.

Biography

Darren White was born in Suffern, New York, in 1963 and moved to New Mexico in 1987. White holds a B.A. in Management from the University of Phoenix.^[1]

White started his career as a street cop with the Houston Police Department and later joined the Albuquerque Police Department. Before entering law enforcement, White served in the U.S. Army as a member of the elite 82nd Airborne Division. As Bernalillo County Sheriff, White has targeted fugitives from justice by holding regular warrant sweeps, which result in hundreds of arrests throughout the calendar year.

Sheriff White's honors include the Jefferson Award from the coveted American Institute for Public Service in 1983. In 2006, following an eight-month search of more than 1,400 business, political, and civic leaders, the Aspen Institute recognized Sheriff White as one of the nation's top 24 young elected officials and selected him for a new fellowship program honoring public leaders. The Aspen Institute identified White as a "true rising star" in American politics.^[3]

After stepping down from his Secretary position, he worked in 1999 as a reporter for KRQE-TV, Channel 13, denouncing the isolationist religious sect Aggressive Christianity Missionary Training Corps (ACMTC) for their treatment of members children.^[4]

White was the Republican Candidate for Congress in New Mexico's 1st congressional district in the 2008 elections, facing Albuquerque City Councilman Martin Heinrich. The race was initially considered one of the hottest in the nation due to White's popularity in a Democratic-leaning county. However, in the end, White lost by a fairly convincing 11-point margin. He was likely swamped by Barack Obama carrying the district with 60 percent of the vote.

Sheriff White has one son.^[1]

On March 2009, White began efforts to reinstate the New Mexico's death penalty. The campaign is called repeal the repeal.^[5]

In September 2010, the Albuquerque Journal reported that as Sheriff of Bernalillo County, Darren White was found to have evaded state law in a class action case that could cost the county millions. District Judge Nan Nash found that the County and Sheriff White practiced stopping motorists on state highways and seizing funds they may have had, usually under $10,000, but the persons were never charged with a crime nor was their money returned but found its way to the Sheriff's department. The City of Albuquerque already settled the class action suit for over $800,000. The Mayor of Albuquerque, Richard Berry appointed Darren White to oversee the Police Department as the Chief Public Safety Officer, the highest law enforcement position in the City.^[6]

References

1. ^ ^{a b c} http://www.darrenwhiteforcongress.com/bio.html
2. ^ . http://www.kob.com/article/stories/S1250600.shtml?cat=504. Retrieved 2009-11-29. 
3. ^ http://www.bernco.gov/live/departments.asp?dept=2318&submenuid=4800
4. ^ Mike, Taugher (2000-02-16). "Attempt to Seize Kids Criticized". Albuquerque Journal. http://www.rickross.com/reference/aggressive/aggressive8.html. Retrieved 2007-08-29. 
5. ^ [1]
6. ^ http://www.abqjournal.com/news/metro/0801335684newsmetro09-08-10.htm

Persondata
Name	White, Darren
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	1963
Place of birth
Date of death
Place of death