By Karl Bickel
Bringing Back Our Community Advisory Board
For over 25 years, our county had something many communities never get: a real seat at the table with our Sheriff’s Office. Created in the 1990s, the Citizen Advisory Board gave residents a direct line to raise concerns, weigh in on policy, and help shape how our department served the community it works for.
That board was disbanded by the current Sheriff. Since then, we’ve lost a proven channel for accountability and two-way communication, right when trust between law enforcement and communities matters most.
If elected, I will reinstate it, and expand it.
I’m committed to bringing back a Sheriff’s Community Advisory Board that reflects the full diversity of who we are: every neighborhood, every background, every voice. Race, gender, age, sexual orientation, disability status, language, geography, a board that actually looks like the community it represents.
This isn’t about tying the Sheriff’s hands. It’s about transparency, trust, and better outcomes for everyone, deputies included. A strong advisory board means policy gets community input before it’s finalized, concerns get heard before they become crises, and residents have a real, structured way to be part of public safety in their own neighborhoods.
For 25+ years, this worked. Under my leadership, it will work again, better than before.
Karl Bickel Puts Frederick First.
Read the full white paper: Sheriff’s Community Advisory Board (PDF)
Karl Bickel
Candidate for Frederick County Sheriff
The Sheriff’s Community Advisory Board was prepared as a planning and discussion document. All capacity, construction, operating-cost, and savings figures are preliminary estimates that must be independently verified through a formal feasibility study.
