In November, Popkin was elected sheriff of Montgomery County. For the past 12 years, he was second in command of the force made up of nearly 150 sworn law enforcement officers. Why did you want to be sheriff? I’ve been at this office for 26 years. So it certainly was a natural progression for me. We’ve done some very good things here over the years. It may not always be noticed, but we provide a lot of silent services. We helped facilitate the 2,100 domestic violence victims who sought help at the Family Justice Center. I just want to make sure that funding for things like that continues.
How are budget cuts affecting your work?
You start to hear that people have more work with less staff. The deputies have really done an exceptionally good job knowing that we haven’t been able to hire anyone in the last couple years. And now we’re looking at another 5 percent budget reduction. We’re trying to focus on our core services, such as protection of the courthouse.
How are duties split between your office and the police department?
If there’s a 911 call, the police go out and do the initial investigation. Once it gets into the court system, then it becomes our responsibility. We also handle a lot of evictions. We have both criminal and civil responsibilities.
What has been the biggest change since you started in law enforcement?
I’d say technology has helped us tremendously with our search for fugitives. The world is a smaller place now. If somebody left Maryland, it previously took a lot of work to track them down. Now we can e-mail things directly to mobile cruisers. It has made a huge difference.
Is your family calling you sheriff yet?
No, I’m still Dad at home. Actually, it’s more along the lines of “Dad, can I borrow money?”
Brian Hughes
