Bullets flying in Mahoning County sheriff’s race

There is potential for a few explosive primary match-ups, but the Mahoning County sheriff’s race is already standing out.

Randall A. Wellington, the nine-year incumbent, faces David P. Aey, who left his job as a deputy to run for the seat in the March 4 Democratic primary.

Wellington is challenging Aey’s qualifications to run for sheriff in an attempt to get his challenger off the ballot.

As one Aey supporter wrote in an e-mail to me, there are less qualifications required to run for president of the United States than for a county sheriff in Ohio.

Failure to follow the qualifications process for sheriff led to the county board of elections disqualifying Rick Alli, an ex-Youngstown police sergeant, as a candidate.

Wellington filed an objection to Aey’s eligibility with the elections board.

An eligible candidate must either have at least two years of supervisory experience as a peace officer at the rank of corporal or above, or to have served at the rank of sergeant or above in the five-year period before the filing deadline.

If a candidate has neither of those, he must have at least two years of post-secondary education from an accredited college or university.

A straight interpretation of those minimum qualifications would show that Aey doesn’t meet the requirements.

He doesn’t have post-secondary education from an accredited college or university.

Also, during his 15 years with the sheriff’s department, Aey never rose above the rank of deputy.

But that’s a straight interpretation of state law.

Supreme Court ruling

A 1996 Ohio Supreme Court ruling on that law calls for elections boards to “liberally construe in favor of the person seeking to hold office.”

The board decided that Aey’s time — 17 months full-time and 23 part-time — as a field supervisor with a federal task force was good enough for him to meet that minimum requirement.

Wellington’s attorneys counter that a 2000 Supreme Court decision states the requirements to be sheriff are not subject to “interpretative rules.”

The Supreme Court should have a decision as early next month on Aey’s eligibility.

Aey wants Wellington to concentrate on the issues involved in the race. Wellington said his main issue is to prove Aey isn’t qualified to run for sheriff.

If Aey remains on the ballot, Michael Budd could play a factor in the primary.

Selected by Wellington as his right-hand man and promoted to major, Budd was later sentenced to 97 months in prison for violating the civil rights of three jail inmates and for obstructing justice.

Wellington has said he had no evidence of Budd’s crimes while the then-major was under criminal investigation and that everyone is innocent until proven guilty.

During Budd’s April 2005 criminal trial, Wellington was asked: “Sir, isn’t it a fact that your personal credibility is on the line because of the things that are being alleged in this case?”

Wellington’s response was: “Things that are being alleged, yes.”

Aey is also tied to Budd.

When offered the opportunity by Budd to lead the sheriff department on the federal task force, Aey turned it down.

Aey said he was making too much money on side jobs and didn’t want to give them up. Budd made a deal that Aey accepted.

“He said I’d be made the senior deputy on the force and that a federal grant would give me carte blanche for any overtime I needed to make up the money lost on side jobs,” Aey testified during last week’s elections board hearing.

Actual overtime

Aey said the money was for actual overtime and he made about $15,000 to $17,000 annually in overtime for close to three years.

Aey said he slid his time sheets under Budd’s office door so only a few select people would know how much overtime money he was earning.

Aey also said Budd told him that he would be promoted to corporal when the county was on more sound financial footing; something that didn’t occur.

Aey said this was done with Wellington’s blessing, something the sheriff disputes.