Sheriff cries 'wolf’ one more time

Don't look now, but Portsmouth Sheriff Bill Watson is holding his breath again. Unless he gets more money from the city, he says he’s going to stop providing deputies to monitor metal detectors at courthouse entrances.

Watson’s threats are as predictable as they are tiresome. Last year, in a fit of pique over salary levels at the sheriff’s office, he had inmate work crews stop washing city vehicles and performing other duties for several weeks.

This time, the sheriff is upset over state budget cuts that will result in the layoffs of 11 deputies by the end of the year. So, as The Virginian-Pilot’s Matthew Bowers reported Monday, Watson says he’s going to leave it up to city officials to guard courthouse entrances. “Jan. 4, they better have some security,” the sheriff says, “or people will walk through that courthouse like it was Central Park.”

No, they won’t. And Watson knows that. It’s absurd on several levels, beginning with the fact that his deputies — who will be guarding courtrooms — aren’t going to want people waltzing into the building unchecked for weapons. Judges and witnesses wouldn’t be too happy about that, either.

Moreover, state law is clear on who’s responsible for providing security inside courtrooms and at the courthouse entrances. It’s not a subject for discussion or negotiation. As Norfolk Sheriff Bob McCabe says, “The bottom line is … that the sheriff is responsible. Period.”

To a degree, Watson’s consternation is understandable. Like other officials throughout the city, region, state and nation, he’s being forced to make cuts he’d rather not make. And, like all those other officials, he can point to expenditures outside his department that he thinks are unneeded and could be more wisely spent by him.

This fall, The Pilot editorial board endorsed Watson, a Democrat, for a second term in spite of his controversial behavior and grandstanding. His challenger in the general election was an independent who appeared capable of growing into the job but lacked enough law enforcement experience to justify displacing the incumbent.

Watson won handily. If he hopes to maintain the public’s support long term, however, he needs to rethink how he handles disputes like this. The economy isn’t singling him out for tough times.

Threats — particularly over something as serious as courthouse security — aren’t a responsible way to set Portsmouth’s spending priorities, and neither the City Council nor the city’s judges should tolerate it.

Watson already has said he’s eliminating a division he set up to write traffic tickets. That’s fine; those duties are ordinarily handled by the city police.

As city officials review how to deal with Portsmouth’s fiscal constraints and those imposed on it by the state, they should look closely at other overlaps in services by the police and sheriff’s department, too.