Jackson County, Ore. — After the county released a 108-page report Wednesday afternoon of a preliminary investigation of a complaint filed by Sheriff Corey Falls, NBC5 spoke with Sheriff Falls.
He says the county’s statement is misleading and inaccurate and the review it released is biased and one-sided.
“The investigation resulted in a preliminary report and conclusion that Sheriff Falls had not been discriminated against or harassed,” read Commissioner Rick Dyer at Wednesday morning’s Commissioner meeting.
Back and forth between Jackson County Commissioners and Sheriff Corey Falls.
Tuesday, Falls stated one of the reasons he’s leaving the county is the treatment he received.
Wednesday, the county released the confidential draft of the review into Falls’ original complaint.
In an exclusive interview with NBC5, Falls said the move took him by surprise.
“And I was specifically told that they would not release this report unless it was ever completed because I said how can you have any finding when you haven’t spoken to anybody within our organization or any stakeholders part of this,” Sheriff Corey Falls said.
Among the opinions and preliminary findings in the review are claims Sheriff Falls lacked the experience to recognize he was not being well-perceived by the budget committee.
It also states because of Sheriff Corey Falls identity and his own life’s experiences, he may perceive events different than others.
Therefore there was no evidence of microaggressions or bullying.
For Sheriff Corey Falls, this third party did not have enough information to form conclusions.
Falls says the findings shouldn’t be taken at face value and the report is just a part of a preliminary review.
“If you look at my withdrawal letter, It also calls this a review. This was never an investigation,” Sheriff Corey Falls said.
In addition to the lack of investigation, Falls says the report is riddled with conflicts of interest.
“So it’s very biased and one sided. And I think it was a huge mistake for them to release this,” Sheriff Falls said.
Even the authors of the report recommended that the report not be released to the public.
It reads, “citizens want to see their government officials working together, not in turmoil. Release of this report could undermine public trust and confidence and severely diminish any hope of successful attempts to build relationships with the County’s and the Sheriff’s Office’s strategic partners.”
Falls says this report came with a $40,000 price tag.
And the third party who performed it was given special treatment by the county.
NBC5 has also obtained an email sent from Falls to commissioners Wednesday morning, saying commissioners are misrepresenting what happened to the community.
Meanwhile, we reached out to county commissioners by phone tonight.
Commissioner Rick Dyer responded by saying, “I am out of town and have not been able to listen to Sheriff Falls’ statement in full. Therefore, I will not issue a response tonight.”
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