Ron Hain, Kane County Sheriff: Candidate Questionnaire

KANE COUNTY, IL — Two candidates are vying off to hold the sheriff's seat in Kane County.

With early voting underway in Kane County, voters will be asked to pick between Ron Hain, a Democrat and the current county sheriff, and Jeffrey Bodin, a Republican.

Hain recently responded to a Patch.com election survey. Take a look at his answers below:

Campaign website: www.hainforkanesheriff.com

What county do you live in? Kane

City or town of residence? Elburn

Education: Ron has served in law enforcement for 28 years and has been credited with hundreds of major criminal arrests. Ron has worked in varying capacities, including; narcotics officer, canine handler, SWAT Team Leader, and developed, implemented, and supervised the Sheriff's Office Criminal Interdiction Team. In addition, Ron is a nationally recognized expert in interstate criminal and terrorist interdiction. Ron Hain has received five meritorious service awards and two Deputy of the Year awards for several successful major criminal investigations. He was also twice nominated for the Kane County Officer of the Year Award. Ron also received the nationally-presented "Relentless Award" in 2013 for his work in criminal interdiction. In his career, Ron Hain has seized over 4,000 lbs. of dangerous drugs and over $3,000,000 in illicit currency, along with hundreds of illegally possessed firearms associated with those crimes. Ron was elected as Kane County Sheriff in November of 2018, and his team immediately implemented employment diversion programs in the jail, along with medically assisted treatment to support and redirect inmates with drug addiction issues. Sheriff Hain's focus is to take a zero-tolerance approach to street crime while providing positive life paths for incarcerated Kane County residents in an effort to drive down recidivism and crime rates. As a result, after over three years of work and close data collection, Kane County has seen a reduction of returning citizen opioid overdose deaths by 89%, recidivism reduction from 49% to 18%, a reduction of jail violence by 35%, a decrease in countywide crime of 16%, and overall savings to taxpayers of 4.9 million dollars. Additional roles include Chairman of the Illinois State TRIAD Association, Chairman of the Kane County DUI Task Force, Marie Wilkinson Food Pantry Board of Directors, Juvenile Justice Council Board of Directors, and Kane County CASA Board of Directors.

Occupation: Kane County Sheriff

Family: I am married to my beautiful wife, Ashley, and we have five wonderful children, ages 19, 18, 17, 10 and 6.

Does anyone in your family work in politics or government? No

Age: 46

Previous public office, appointive or elective: Elected to Sheriff of Kane County in 2018

Why are you seeking this office? We have accomplished everything we promised when in 2018. Now it is time to keep the mission going to keep driving down recidivism, crime, and saving our taxpayers millions of dollars through innovative programs.

What are the major differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post? I have extensive leadership experience and have served in many areas within the Sheriff's Office, giving me the required global knowledge to effectively lead this large operation. I have also demonstrated my ability to lead this Office over the last four years. With evidence: I received 88% of the endorsement vote by the Kane County Deputies Union and am also endorsed by our Corrections and Court Security Officer Unions, as well as all three surrounding, sitting Sheriffs.

What other issues do you intend to address during your campaign? Expanding our addiction and re-entry support services within the jail to continue to reduce crime and recidivism. Full implementation of the SAFE-T Act requirements without financial or safety impact to our public. Continue our fiscal responsibility, coming in 6 to 7 figures under budget, while sharing funds with other county offices to help them accomplish their goals.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job? By fully implementing our plan and mission over the last four years, we have reduced the opioid overdose deaths of the formerly incarcerated in the Kane County jail by 89%. We dropped recidivism from a 6-year average before my term of 49% to 18%, ending in 2021. We cut our jail population in half, while countywide crime is also down 16%. We reinstituted the county's electronic monitoring at no additional cost to taxpayers while saving them over $5M during the last four years through all of these innovative services.

What was your first paying job, and what did you learn from it? Dishwasher at the Silverado Grill in Wasco/Campton Hills. I learned that working in a kitchen ain't much fun.

What is the best advice anyone ever gave you? "Your re-election campaign starts your first day in office" and "you can't ride two horses with one butt." - Sheriff (ret.) Pat Perez.

Is there anything else you would like voters to know about yourself and your positions? I have all of the qualifications, experience, and proven results to continue to be your Sheriff. This November 8th, I hope you back the blue and vote Ron Hain for Kane Sheriff.