Interim sheriff Forté meets, greets and dodges questions about Jackson County jail

In his six years as Kansas City's police chief, Darryl Forté led a department that routinely sent prisoners to the troubled Jackson County Detention Center.

But on Saturday, during an inaugural "meet-and-greet" at his Lee's Summit headquarters, the new interim Jackson County sheriff had nothing to say about the blistering grand jury report, released Friday, that detailed horrific conditions and failed leadership at the jail.

"This is my third day and I didn't focus on what was in the media before this," he said during a brief interview. "I need to get first-hand facts. I'll meet with (detention center) director (Diana) Turner. We'll talk and we'll do anything we can to help.

"But again, I don't have any comment on something I haven't looked at nor have I paid attention to up until this point," he said.

Forteé's reticence may have something to do with the fact that the man who swore him in on Wednesday, Jackson County Executive Frank White, is responsible for jail operations and has been widely criticized for mismanaging what corrections experts call a crisis.

White issued a statement late Friday charging that County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker, who requested the investigation, used the report "as a political opportunity to point out decades-old problems of deferred maintenance and attribute them to the current administration."

Asked if he regarded himself as qualified the run the jail — a possible county charter amendment would shift control from the county executive to the sheriff — Forté said: "It would be premature for me to say who's qualified and whose not qualified not knowing any of the facts."

Instead, Forté preferred to talk in generalities about "taking the sheriff's department to another level when it comes to looking at how we provide services, systems, use of technology, things like that."

He replaces Mike Sharp, who resigned last month after disclosures of an intimate and financial relationship with a female sheriff's office employee who had a pending lawsuit against the county for harassment. The lawsuit was settled this week.

Forté was selected by White for the $103,000-a-year job from a list of finalists recommended by a nominating committee. Just as he was Kansas City's first African-American police chief, he is the first black sheriff. He will be on the Aug. 7 primary ballot in a bid to finish out the remaining two years of Sharp's term.

He'll be competing against two other finalists for the interim job: retired Kansas City police Maj. Rosilyn D. Allen and Capt. Michael Rogers, who heads patrol enforcement at the sheriff's office. Also running is former Kansas City police Sgt. Ramona Arroyo.

Dressed in a dark blue suit and open-collared blue shirt, Forté seemed relaxed in campaign mode as he chatted with a steady trickle of visitors Saturday. The sound of smooth jazz wafted from speakers.

Among the supporters he greeted was Leah Banks, who is in charge security at University Academy Charter School. On a visit a few years ago with grade-schoolers learning to tie their shoes, Forté brought a spare pair of his, which he autographed. Banks came Saturday to ask him to sign again.

"His presence meant a lot to me," Banks said.

Forté's portfolio as sheriff will be vastly different from his duties as police chief, where he was at the front lines of law enforcement, leading the fight against record waves of homicide and other violent crime.

During the interview, he described his initial swing through parts of unincorporated eastern Jackson County, which his deputies patrol.

"I heard yesterday when we were out about ATVs on the street, about barking dogs, about grass not being mowed, things like that," he said. "I know there's other serious issues out there. But thus far in where I've been to, there's been no really, really serious criminal contact issues."

Which touches on a question surrounding Forté's return, a little more than two years after his retirement. What is the appeal of a job with far less impact.?

"Most people I talked to encouraged me to do this. I didn't want to do it initially," he said.

Forté, 55, said he'd never really disengaged from police work. He recently acquired his private investigator's license and was planning to work on cold homicide and missing person cases while also attending UMKC law school. He said he would continue his legal studies part-time if he was elected.

"I still respond to homicides," said Forté, who was eligible for nearly $500,000 in accrued vacation, sick and compensatory time after 30 years in the Kansas City Police Department.

His most recent homicide scene was in March near 39th and Main.

"It's been my passion," he said. "People ask me all the time, 'Why did you get back into this?' Because I care. And I've cared all my life."

This story was originally published May 12, 2018 at 4:36 PM with the headline "Interim sheriff Forté meets, greets and dodges questions about Jackson County jail."