SAN ANTONIO – Newly reelected Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar has vowed to uphold a tightened hiring process to “continue to hold people accountable” during his second term as the county’s top law enforcement officer.
During a news conference on Wednesday, a day after he was reelected, the sheriff said he took election night’s “overwhelming victory as a stamp of approval" for him to continue the policies he has since implemented.
Salazar, a Democrat, defeated Republican challenger Gerry Rickhoff with 62% of the vote, or 454,529 total votes. He is the first Bexar County sheriff to be reelected since 2004.
“It’s been that long since we’ve had some stability even through a second term,” he said.
Salazar said he will not relax hiring standards despite the need for personnel in the department, including a vacancy of 200 deputies.
Additional goals include decreasing overtime, updating infrastructure to the jail and making better use of jail space.
“We need to quit incarcerating the mentally ill at an unprecedented rate,” he said. “We need to be building mental health beds.”
“As a system, we definitely need to get better at what we’re doing.”
Watch: Salazar discusses officer-involved shooting, plans for next term
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