ON
ON DOORS
ON DOORS AND SETTING UP STANDS IN FRONT OF GROCERY STORES IN DECEMBER.
LOCAL LEADERS DID SOMETHING
THAT'S NEVER BEEN DONE SINCE
WYOMING BECAME A STATE THEY
APPOINTED AN AFRICAN-AMERICAN
MAN AS SHERIFF.
HE TAKES OVER A DEPARTMENT
UNDER FIRE AFTER THE PREVIOUS
SHERIFF LEFT IN THE MIDST
OF QUESTIONS SURROUNDING A
FATAL SHOOTING.
REPORTER NELSON GARCIA
INTRODUCES US TO A MAN WILLING
TO BLAZE A NEW TRAIL OF THE
WEST IN THE HISTORY OF THE WILD
FRONTIER.
WYOMING HAS NEVER HAD A SHERIFF
LIKE AARON HAPPYLAND.
I DIDN'T HAVE ANY UNDERSTANDING
.
IT'S LIKE HE FIRST CAME TO
LARAMIE TO ATTEND
THE UNIVERSITY OF WYOMING WHERE
HE LEARNED OF THE STATE'S
COWBOY CULTURE AND THE WEATHER.
EVEN THOUGH I'VE BEEN HERE FOR
MORE THAN 20 YEARS, I STILL
THINK THAT'S PROBABLY THE ONE
THING I'M STILL TRYING TO GET
USED TO.
APPLICANTS GRADUATED THAT
WORKED FOR THE SCHOOL
ADMISSIONS, RECRUITMENT,
MARKETING, COLLEGE COUNSELING
BASICALLY FOR THE UNIVERSITY
OF WYOMING AND THEN ENDED UP
GETTING INTO LAW ENFORCEMENT
APPLICANTS WAS A COLORADO KID.
I BASICALLY GREW UP IN
WESTMINSTER BROOKFIELD AREAS.
HE SAYS HIS FAMILY SUPPORTED
HIM THROUGH SCHOOL GRADUATING
FROM STANDLEY LAKE BUT HE KNOWS
SOMETIMES PEOPLE NEED HELP
GOING INTO COLLEGE.
YOU KNOW, I DIDN'T I DIDN'T
HAVE LIKE A WHOLE LOT
OF RECRUITERS KIND OF LOOKING
AT ME AND UM A LOT OF IT I HAD
TO FIGURE OUT ON MY OWN.
HELPING PEOPLE IS WHY
APPLICANTS APPLIED TO BE CALLED
THE ALBANY COUNTY SHERIFF WHEN
THE PREVIOUS ONE LEFT THE POST
.
SO IT IS A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT
OF A PHILOSOPHY AND I'VE ALWAYS
ADDED FOR A LONG TIME WYOMING
WAS THE WILD WEST WITH A LONG
HISTORY OF SHERIFFS.
WE LOOK THROUGH THOSE PHOTOS
AND WON'T SEE A WHOLE LOT
OF PEOPLE LIKE ME.
APPLICANTS WANTED TO CHANGE
THE IDEA OF WHAT WYOMING
SHERIFF SHOULD BE EVEN THOUGH
I DON'T HAVE THE BIG HAT AND
YOU KNOW THE SIX YEAR I'VE ONLY
BEEN ON A HORSE LIKE TWICE AND
I COULD STILL IDENTIFY WITH A
LOT OF PEOPLE BECAUSE I'M STILL
PAGE WHAT HE'S DOING IS MAKING
HISTORY AS THE FIRST EVER
AFRICAN-AMERICAN SHERIFF IN
THE STATE BEING THE FIRST.
SO THERE'S A LOT OF FACETS TO
IT.
I'M HAPPY OBVIOUSLY BECAUSE I'M
HERE.
YOU KNOW, IT'S SAD THAT IT TOOK
A WHILE TO GET HERE.
I THINK IT'S ABSOLUTELY
IMPORTANT NOT JUST HERE IN
WYOMING BUT ACROSS THE COUNTRY
.
STEPHEN LATHAM AS PRESIDENT
OF THE NAACP CHAPTER IN
CHEYENNE IN A STATE THAT DOES
NOT HAVE A LOT OF PEOPLE
OF COLOR AS A BLACK PERSON AND
WHEN I WORK FOR THE HIGHWAY
DEPARTMENT, YOU KNOW, A LOT
OF THESE PEOPLE HADN'T EVEN
SEEN BLACK PEOPLE BEFORE WHEN
WHEN I WAS IN COLLEGE AND I'M
BEING TRUTHFUL ABOUT THAT.
THIS ONCE FROM SPOKANE NOW
THOSE PEOPLE THIS ONE'S FROM
COLLIERVILLE, TENNESSEE.
ALL PEOPLE INCLUDING THE ONES
SENDING WELL-WISHERS FROM
AROUND THE COUNTRY ALABAMA,
MISSISSIPPI, MARYLAND COULD BE
A BLACK SHERIFF IN WYOMING.
I'VE HAD A TON OF PEOPLE THAT
WANTED TO PRAY FOR ME.
HE'S A GREAT PERSON.
HE KNOWS HIS JOB.
SO RIGHT THERE IS JUST THIS
CHARACTER SHOULDN'T BE ABOUT
THE COLOR HIS SKIN IN FIRST
PLACE HE BUT YOU KNOW, WE HAVE
TO START SOMEWHERE AND
THE FIRST IS IMPORTANT UM BUT
THE SECOND THE THIRD THE FOURTH
THE FIFTH ALL ALONG DOWN
THE LINE ALL THOSE PEOPLE ARE
IMPORTANT TO APPLICANTS WANTS
TO TEAR DOWN RACIAL BARRIERS
FOR OTHERS HE'S IN CHARGE
OF MORE THAN FORTY DEPUTIES AND
THE COUNTY JAIL DURING A TIME
WHEN LAW ENFORCEMENT IS UNDER
SCRUTINY.
HE REALLY JUST WANTS TO SERVE
PEOPLE WHO NEED HELP LONG TERM
AND NOW IT'S DEFINITELY SHORT
TERM.
A LOT OF THOSE CALLS, UM,
ESPECIALLY FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT,
EVERYBODY'S JUST KIND OF HAVING
A BAD DAY.
EVERYBODY IS IN CRISIS AT THAT
TIME THOUGH HE SAYS NOT
EVERYBODY LIKES THE IDEA OF A
BLACK SHERIFF AND I'VE DEALT
WITH RACISM MY WHOLE LIFE AND
SO I SAID I KNEW COMING IN TO
JUST KIND OF THE WAY THINGS ARE
IT'S GOING TO COME UP MORE
OFTEN.
HE SAYS HE'S WELCOMED BY
THE COMMUNITY IN AND AROUND
LARAMIE.
I'VE HAD A LOT OF PEOPLE IN
THE COUNTY COME TO BE IN THERE
JUST SAY HEY, WE'RE GLAD THAT
YOU'RE OUR SHERIFF.
THAT'S OUR NEW SHERIFF.
AND SO THAT'S IT'S BEEN PRETTY
SIGNIFICANT FOR ME, A SHERIFF
THAT OUR NEIGHBORS TO THE NORTH
HAVE NEVER SEEN.
IT'S A PIECE OF WYOMING HISTORY
AND IT'S I HAD A FRIEND TELL ME
TO THAT IT'S A PIECE OF BLACK
HISTORY AS WELL.
NELSON GARCIA 9NEWS
THE PREVIOUS SHERIFF DAVE
O'MALLEY RETIRED AFTER
CONTROVERSY OVER A DEPUTY WHO
SHOT AND KILLED A THIRTY
NINE YEAR OLD MAN DURING A
TRAFFIC STOP APPLIANCE WAS
APPOINTED IN DECEMBER