By Sheila Brummer (Radio Iowa)
For the first time in over a century, a woman is serving as a county sheriff in Iowa.
The Sac County Board of Supervisors picked Katie Stange to be the new sheriff last month. The deadline for citizens to ask for a county-wide vote has ended — so the job is officially hers. “It’s really an honor to be a trailblazer in this position,” she said. “…I hope that it’s known that I didn’t get this spot just because I’m a woman. It’s because of the skills that I have as a law enforcement officer.”
Stange started with the department seven years ago and was the deputy sheriff. “I was appointed to this position not just because, ‘Oh, you know, it would be a good idea to finally put a woman in a position like this.’ It was because I’ve proven myself,” she said.
One of her top priorities is persuading voters to approve building a new jail. Sac County residents will be voting a bond measure to build a new county jail in November. Last year, a $10 million bond proposal to build a new Sac County Jail fell 1% short of reaching the needed 60% support for passage. “I can feel, like, the anxiety rising, knowing that vote is coming up here shortly,” she said. “That’s going to be a really pivotal point for this office. I hope the community decides that it’s a necessity not only for the Sac County Sheriff’s Office and the other law enforcement agencies in our county, but also for the community as a whole.”
The current jail is more than 80 years old and officials say it doesn’t meet current safety standards.
Stange is the first woman to serve as sheriff since Gunda Martindale. She was appointed in Allamakee County in 1921 when her husband, who was sheriff, died in office. That was common practice at the time because sheriffs didn’t have pensions that transferred to survivors.
Stange replaces Jonathan Meyer, who had been appointed Sac County Sheriff in July when the county’s long-time sheriff announced his retirement. In early September, Meyer resigned and asked to return to his position as sergeant.
