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Date: 9/12/2022
NORTHAMPTON – After an arduous night, and an even longer campaign, current Hampshire County Sheriff Patrick Cahillane officially defeated challengers Caitlin Sepeda and Yvonne Gittelson to win the Hampshire County Sheriff Democratic primary on Sept. 6.
While Cahillane was anticipated to cruise to a victory in the Nov. 8 general election because there was no Republican candidate, Gittelson announced in a press release on Sept. 8 that she would be running a write-in campaign for the general election.
As of press time, Cahillane received 48 percent of the county’s vote, while Gittelson and Sepeda nearly split the rest of the votes, at 27 and 25 percent, respectively.
The Hampshire County Jail and House of Corrections and its associated programs features a $15 million budget and is located on 205 Rocky Hill Rd. in Northampton. The Sheriff’s Department itself has seven divisions including civil process service and oversees the jail as well as its in-house regional police lockup. The sheriff also represents 20 Hampshire County communities.
Cahillane has worked in the Hampshire County Jail for over 35 years. During his tenure, the sheriff has been a correctional officer, captain, major in charge of security, deputy superintendent, as well as special sheriff of Hampshire County, before then being elected as sheriff in 2016.
“I think in many communities, people understand what we do here and why we do it,” Cahillane told Reminder Publishing, in an interview after the election. “I think that resonates with people that we treat everyone with dignity and respect, and we try to move [justice-involved individuals] back into the community in a safe environment for both them and the community.”
Throughout the last several months, both Sepeda and Gittelson – who worked at the jail in some capacity – claimed that the coronavirus pandemic response at the jail was varied, and they would have responded faster if given the chance. Cahillane, however, argued that he maintained a safe environment during the challenging time.
“We kept our population safe, and we kept our staff as safe as possible,” said Cahillane. “By doing that, we didn’t overflow the hospitals with patients, and so that kept the community safe. I think those types of things resonate with people.”
Despite the victory, Cahillane said that he “has not missed a beat” when it comes to planning for the coming months at the jail. He said that the sheriff’s office is currently working on their spending plan for the upcoming year, including figuring out some cost-prohibitive measures they need to consider.
Additionally, they are waiting to hear on a $750,000 grant application through the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, which aims to expand their medication-assisted treatment for opioid use disorders and for more community reentry services.
“I’ve talked all along, corrections is going to be more community-based and less and less brick-and-mortar buildings as time goes on,” said Cahillane, adding that the grant will also allow them to do more outreach in the community. If the grant does not come through, then Cahillane said they will use that grant narrative to work on some of the projects they have going, like their intensive treatment program.
“I plan to continue to do the work we do every day,” Cahillane said. “It’s a team approach … I’ve always viewed the way we treat people with kindness and respect is the way to go. I’m proud of this agency, but I’m also proud of those voters who thought my viewpoint on how corrections should be handled in Hampshire County decided to vote for me.”
Thoughts from Gittelson
“Although I’m disappointed in the outcome, I’m incredibly proud of the effort that my team and I put forth,” said Gittelson, in a statement to Reminder Publishing. “We put up a very good fight, and we ran a clean campaign.”
Gittelson, a Goshen resident and corrections program specialist for the state’s Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE), cited throughout her campaign that educational programs are one of the key components of reducing recidivism among justice-involved individuals. She worked in the Hampshire County Jail as a corrections education program coordinator from 2017 to 2021.
“The issues that were raised in this campaign are still present at the Hampshire Sheriff’s Office, and are not going away,” Gittelson added. “I’m calling on the incumbent to provide Hampshire County with the transparency, accountability and community we deserve, and I am going to be reminding [Cahillane] that he received a plurality and not the majority of the votes that were cast. We’re watching and will be continuing to ask for some answers.”
After the election and with her announcement of her write-in campaign, Gittelson said, “It was clear that having two challengers running against the incumbent split the opposition vote, but when you look at the total numbers, more voters chose someone other than the incumbent.”
Gittelson also said the race was “compressed,” citing that the first forum was just under a month before the election.
“Many people just did not have time to learn about the race or why choosing a county sheriff is so important to local residents. This gives us more time to meet voters and get the message out,” she said. “We need to clarify why the status quo is unacceptable at this time.”
After bringing up concerns about the jail during the primary campaign, including staff shortages, antiquated technology and infrastructure, safety questions and more, Gittelson said she and residents “received no satisfactory answers.”
“We deserve answers and I’m continuing my campaign so we can find out what is really going on in the Hampshire County Jail and that voters can truly decide if they have been well served by the incumbent. I submit that we have not been,” she said.
Thoughts from Sepeda
Sepeda served as a correctional nurse under former Sheriff Patrick Garvey for over nine years at the Hampshire County Jail and House of Correction in Northampton until taking a job at the Berkshire County Jail and House of Correction in Pittsfield last fall. She stated throughout her campaign that she was instrumental in the Hampshire County Jail’s opioid treatment programs and criticized the facility for antiquated technology and a lack of in-house mental health services.
Despite the outcome, Sepeda told Reminder Publishing that she is proud of her efforts. “I’ve had some wonderfully supportive people working with me, and I’m very appreciative of that,” she said. “I’m proud that this race served as an education tool for the public to be aware of this race and more aware of this position. I hope going forward [the race] spurs a higher level of accountability in this office than we’ve seen. I hope the public stays mindful of what the sheriff is doing in this position and holds him to account.”
Sepeda also added that she hopes this election is a wakeup call for the sheriff, especially since she and Gittelson received more votes than him combined. “I hope he recognizes the fact that there are more people dissatisfied with how the position has been run,” said Sepeda. “I hope that a lot of the issues that Ms. Gittelson and I brought forward are taken to heart.”
Sepeda said that she will not be running for the position again, claiming that the candidacy part of the race “was not fun.” She did, however, enjoy the voter engagement she participated in, which included meeting and educating people in the community.
She told Reminder Publishing that she plans to continue these community discussions.
“I just want to thank everyone who helped me and voted for me,” said Sepeda. “I’m very appreciative.”
Interested readers may visit www.thereminder.com for past coverage on the race, including what each candidate thought on specific topics.
Managing Editor Dennis Hackett contributed to this report.