There’s a New Sheriff in Town. But Buffalo Area Jails Remain as Dangerous as Ever.
“When John Garcia was elected sheriff of Erie County, New York in 2021, he was eager to distinguish himself from his combative predecessor, Tim Howard. Howard, who had been sheriff since 2005, faced criticism for, among other things, appearing in uniform with pro-Trump demonstrators holding flags and signs with Confederate and Nazi imagery, and attending the trial of a deputy convicted [politicalresearch.org] of assaulting a young man outside of a Bills game. Under Howard, the sheriff’s office also faced lawsuits by federal and state officials over degrading treatment of people inside the county’s deadly jails and his handling of allegations of sexual misconduct by corrections officers.”