Schuman bids for Sheriff

David Schuman has announced his bid for Boundary County sheriff for the 2024 election. He will run as a Republican.

Schuman previously ran for sheriff in 2020, facing off against current Sheriff Dave Kramer and former long-term Sheriff Greg Spurngl.

Schuman started his peace officer career in 1979, with the U.S Army and traveled the world from Alabama, Utah, Korea, Kansas, Germany, Texas and Washington, with multiple combat deployments, the last being Desert Storm, Saudi Arabia.

He first started his law enforcement career with Boundary County Sheriff’s Office in August 1999, starting as a guard in the county jail. He has since moved up the ranks and is now a corporal in the patrol section.

When asked why he was running for sheriff now, he said it was the right point in his 44-year law enforcement career and that he has the knowledge, experience and training needed for the role.

“This is a trusted position, which you take under oath,” he said. “It shouldn’t be taken lightly and I took this oath to uphold the Constitution back in 1979.”

Boundary County is a great place and it should not just be maintained but should be made better, he said.

After serving 20 years in the Army, Schuman retired in July 1999. During his service, he received overseas service awards, non-commissioned officer developmental awards, Kuwait liberation medal, good conduct medals, Army Achievement awards, Army Commendation awards, and a Meritorious Service Medal, he retired in July 1999.

When it comes to the position as sheriff, Schuman said he is ideal for the job since he has successfully run agencies of equal or greater size to the Boundary County Sheriff's Office in the past.

“I have many plans that if elected will be in place that will improve efficiency and stay within our budget, such as increasing training for employees and reducing overtime expenditures,” he said.

Among the ideas he has for the office, include a citizen advisory board. Schuman said he envisions the board, not as something to oversee BCSO or to write policy, but a place to learn what does the public think of law enforcement and how can education and a relationship be fostered. Moving forward, he is interested in establishing a citizen education program with BCSO to teach the law and educate the community on enforcement.

“I cut my teeth on operations maintenance from my military experience,” he said, speaking on when he would have to explain the decisions he made in front of generals.

“You have to have your ducks in a row. I’m looking to be an elected official, not a politician,” he said.

When it comes to government mandates, he said the governor can send down mandates, but if they are unconstitutional or unlawful, as sheriff, Schuman said he would not obey since it would be a violation of his oath.

Other ideas he has for BCSO include management of shift scheduling in order to regulate time off, decrease overtime and buffer work time for additional training and court appearances. He also wants to add more checks and reviews on case files to collect all necessary information before passing them onto the prosecutor or the corresponding agency.

He said he wants to implement more quality control and add more follow up to contacts from cases.

In addition he wants to designate and delegate tasks to specific individuals to ensure tasks are done, such as vehicle maintenance and to steward a cohesive team.

When it comes to staff recruitment, Schuman aims to establish a hiring pool, with applicants ranked and anonymous to ensure the top candidates are seen for their skills.

“This is one of the last places a cop can be a cop […] and make a difference,” he said. “I hope that never changes, but there’s writing on the wall if things don’t change it will.”

“What the sheriff does, impacts the community,” he said, noting that he wants his own grandchildren safe.

Schuman is also the local Commander for American Legion Post 55, the Junior Vice Commander of Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 3622, a member of the Eagles, Masonic Lodge and the Moyie Shriners.

For more information or to request a full resume, email boundaryidaho20@gmail.com.

Schuman will be at Good Grief for a Q&A session on July 23 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.