Sheriff candidates tackle public safety issues

Published 1:30 am Friday, July 17, 2026

Island County sheriff candidates shared their plans to safeguard the communities of Whidbey and Camano islands before a full house at a candidate forum Tuesday.

The forum, organized by the Clinton Community Council, featured incumbent Sheriff Rick Felici, an independent, and Langley Police Chief Tavier Wasser, a Democrat and Felici’s only challenger.

Felici said the county’s biggest public safety challenges are mental health and narcotics. He explained that, while a solution will not be simple, it should feature a combination of education, enforcement and accountability.

“We have to educate people on the dangers of drugs early on in their lives, and people who are in the system have to receive some level of treatment that they are willing to do,” Felici said. “But they also need to be held accountable for their actions, and that’s honestly the best model that I can come up with in my brain of how we’re going to address this.”

Wasser emphasized the need to make deputies more available so they can better respond to the individual needs of community members.

“That includes checking on the homeless person at the bus stop,” he said. “That includes the domestic violence victim who hasn’t been heard from in three weeks. That includes the children who are left unattended while their parents are working.”

However, both Felici and Wasser agreed the current coverage of Island County by deputies is insufficient for addressing the needs of the public.

Felici pointed to the office’s tight budget and lack of staff grants as the reason behind the present understaffing issue. He explained that his office has “been making it work for years,” but the situation is not sustainable long-term as the county population and cost of deputies continues to grow.

Wasser suggested some calls currently handled by deputies could instead be assigned to other professionals. For example, he said a social worker could respond to a behavioral health crisis.

Another major public safety issue candidates discussed during the forum was related to how local law enforcement should respond to the presence of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers in the community.

Felici and Wasser both acknowledged that the Keep Washington Working Act restricts local agencies from collaborating with ICE, and expressed their intent to adhere to that law.

Wasser said the sheriff’s office should be used to support and offer resources to community members affected by ICE raids.

Felici stressed that the current situation presents a conundrum for local law enforcement, as there is no legal precedent to determine whether they can intervene when ICE carries out federally lawful actions that are illegal in Washington.

He ultimately expressed his intent to ensure the safety of all community members regardless of citizenship status, and clarified his motivation for running as an independent in this election rather than a Republican.

“One of the biggest reasons I decided to run as an independent is I ran into a situation where people were being trafficked in this community who were afraid to talk to me because of the letter I had by my name,” Felici said, “and I think that’s not a good situation to be in.”

Candidates were also invited to comment on the “constitutional sheriff” movement, which asserts that county sheriffs are the supreme law enforcement authority in the United States and have the right to refuse to enforce any laws they deem unconstitutional.

Felici said he does not support the movement. He noted that “the people are the ultimate authority,” and a sheriff refusing to enforce certain laws is beyond the scope and authority of the job.

Wasser previously described himself as a constitutional sheriff but said he later learned the broader meaning of the term and no longer identifies with the movement. At the forum, Wasser reasserted his opposition to the movement, saying he owed an apology to those impacted by his words.

“No one is above the law,” he said. “I am not above the law. Everything that I have done is about doing it as a team for the best interests of the people, by the people, for the people.”