I don’t know my local sheriff, but I would assume, as I’m sure most people do, that my city’s chief law enforcer is primarily focused on police work and maintaining order.
Not in Washtenaw County.
Over in Ann Arbor, the newly elected Washtenaw sheriff has a much broader vision for her role. It includes tackling “air pollution,” raising awareness about “mental health,” and fighting for “social justice.” In fact, she doesn’t seem all that interested in the typical responsibilities assigned to her office, such as knowing the law, enforcing it, and arresting those who break it.
But what more could we expect from the communist aspirants running things in the University of Michigan’s hometown?
Sheriff Alyshia Dyer, a Democrat, was sworn in earlier this month after winning her election in November. Her agenda was never a secret—her campaign website lists her pronouns on its front page and brags about her past work with the “Washtenaw County Community Mental Health’s BLM task force” as an “Anti-Racist Advocate.” The website also made clear her priorities as sheriff would be drafting a “climate action plan” for the county and working toward “racial justice” and increased “police accountability” by… well, we all know how.
Now Dyer is starting to implement that agenda. In a recent interview with the Daily Wire, the sheriff said she will launch an “Environmental Crimes Unit” that will focus on “air pollution, water contamination, and hazardous waste management.” She also plans to cut the department’s carbon emissions—starting with its patrol cars, which she said she’d like to switch over to electric vehicles.
In the meantime, however, Dyer said she’ll just reduce the number of patrol cars out on the road. Never mind the fact that Washtenaw County has one of the highest crime rates in the state, logging its most violent year in the past decade in 2023. What’s really important, according to Dyer, is the county’s carbon footprint and making sure her officers aren’t “out here sleep-deprived with a gun, angry, driving around,” all of which is somehow related.
“It’s all connected. Looking at, number one, I talked a lot about officer mental health and wellness. Officers can’t effectively do their jobs if they’re not taking care of themselves. Looking at the environment, looking at corporate polluters, looking at the quality of life for residents, it has a really big impact on wellbeing,” Dyer told the outlet.
Dyer’s concern for her officers’ wellbeing only goes so far, though, since she also laments that most of them are “male, white, and not representative of our LGBTQ+ population.” To solve this little problem, Dyer said she plans to ensure the department’s “hiring practices are inclusive.” Again, we all know what this means.
In sum, Dyer sounds and thinks like an ideologue whose sole goal is to import California’s policies into Washtenaw County. To be fair, Ann Arbor is already halfway there. But the county also includes many rural Michiganders who don’t share Dyer’s vision of a Leftist utopia in which the laws enforce themselves and those in charge are left to focus on the noble task of “environmental justice.”
They’re right not to. California is a prime example of what happens when leaders let ideology get in the way of reality. Much of the blame for the current wildfires can be placed at the feet of Democratic state officials, who gave their overarching climate agenda priority over more practical policies such as water conservation, forest management, and making sure the county’s fire department was fully funded and staffed by the best of the best.
Washtenaw County residents might not have to worry about a similar natural disaster wreaking havoc in their communities, but Dyer’s agenda is sure to bring consequences of its own. For example, if the sheriff reduces the number of vehicles out patrolling in an effort to cut fleet emissions, should county residents expect delayed response times?
And let’s say she moves forward with an electric transition for the department’s fleet. What happens when it’s negative 12 degrees in the dead of February and officers can’t get their shiny new electric vehicles to start?
The hard-working men and women of Washtenaw County, who pay their taxes and ask for sensible governance in return, will end up paying the price.
Kaylee McGhee White is editor-in-chief of Independent Women Features, a Steamboat Institute media fellow, and a columnist for Michigan Enjoyer. Follow her on X @KayleeDMcGhee.
