White accuses Hounshell of being behind his recall

By Kathy Helms
Diné Bureau

WINDOW ROCK — Apache County Sheriff Brian Hounshell is challenging District 2 Supervisor Tom White Jr. to join him in a live radio broadcast where callers can decide for themselves where the truth lies.

Sheriff Hounshell said that, after reading Friday's Independent, it was no surprise that White accused him of being behind the recall against him.

The Committee to Recall Supervisor Tom M. White Jr. filed a request for a serial number Jan. 11 so they can circulate a legally recognized petition for White's recall. The request was made by two former employees who say they were denied due process.

White insists that Sheriff Hounshell is behind the recall. He also alleges the sheriff and Citizens Emergency Response Team Coordinator Hugh Lynch have been going around to various chapters soliciting resolutions of support.

"He was accurate on one thing," Hounshell said. "Hugh Lynch and I do attend chapter meetings and White very rarely does. I'm sure it hurt when his home chapter listened to him try to discredit me and turned around and unanimously approved a resolution in support of my office."

"I'm glad White is disappointed with me. It's better than the voters being upset," Hounshell said. "White needs to be careful what he wishes for. If and when I decide to join forces with the effort to recall him, he will feel the political pressure he deserves."

The sheriff said he was disappointed that White had "stooped to the level of criticism he has by making accusation against Lynch. "Mr. Lynch is a hard worker and popular among all people," Hounshell said.

White needs to be held accountable for interfering with the safety and welfare of the people, Hounshell added.

"We will remain positive and continue to be visible, fighting for what is right. As the people's elected sheriff, I will continue to take the long journey to justice," he said.

"I invite White to join me on KTNN Live, let the people call in and voice their concerns. I'll be nice and pay for the air time," the sheriff said.

Apache County Manager Delwin Wengert said Friday that the county worked through "lots of problems" with the two employees who filed for a recall.

"We could have taken action against them but we chose to work with them and at a certain point, I believe, we allowed them to resign," Wengert said. White called the filers "disgruntled" former employees.

"As far as his comments about the sheriff," Wengert said, "I don't know what I could add to that. I think Tom spoke his own opinion there and the way he sees things happening in the chapters. I don't know what I could add to that. However, I will say this:

"I think in the recall, the employee said he (White) is doing poorly on the roads. That is absolutely untrue. Tom has spent many hundreds of thousands of dollars putting gravel on roads that had never been graveled before.

"He has improved, I believe, 80 miles of road with gravel and that's unheard of on the Navajo Nation. He started that," Wengert said.

"He also has put a chemical on there called magnesium chloride, which improves a road, kills dust and melts ice. So his road program should be considered an example, not only on the Navajo Nation, but any county."

Wengert said White has always spent money on new equipment and gravel. "Nobody has purchased the amount of gravel that Tom White has, and it's not cheap to buy it off the Navajo Nation.

"We've never been able to purchase gravel on the Navajo Nation. It's all purchased off, and hauled on," he said.