Editor:
“Where are the 9/12ers and tea partiers who tried to and wasted our money to impeach our city council members?” Mr. Berger asked on July 23. Here I am.
To equate a recall (not “impeachment”) for violations of the City code with a sheriff obeying his constitutional oath is not just a huge stretch, but also a colossal display of ignorance of the situations.
The sheriff does not take an oath to the law nor the legislature. His oath is to the Constitutions of the United States and the State of Colorado.
When a law does not conform to its respective authority, state or federal, it is ‘null and void and of no effect’ (constitutions, Federalist Papers, and contract law). Sheriff Spruell is actually fulfilling his oath of office and his duty by not enforcing the new anti-gun laws. Any fair and open-minded reading of H.B. 13-1224 and H.B. 13-1229, in context of the above-mentioned constitutions, would lead to the inevitable conclusion of their unconstitutionality and unenforceability.
Without getting further into detail about the functioning of the sheriff’s office, let’s first remember that any elected official takes over an agency with policies and personnel already in place: In this instance all but the undersheriff, who was thoroughly vetted through normal channels as well as a citizen committee interview. Given the fallen nature of man, this will never yield a perfect result. What matters more than any problem which may arise is whether effective efforts are made to correct the problem. Sheriff Spruell has performed admirably in this area.
May I humbly extend an invitation to residents of the area, come to the 9-12 meeting (third Monday, Elks Lodge, 7 p.m.) to learn these constitutional issues as well as how some laws apply and others do not. But even more importantly, before you hurl personal insult towards elected officials, learn the issues in the context of our founding documents, attend their meetings, check the web, (http://www.co.montezuma.co.us, https://www.facebook.com/MontezumaSheriff, https://www.montezumasheriff.org), or (gasp) call them.
Finally, and again, well done, Sheriff Spruell.
Bud Garner
Cortez
