The Klamath County Board of Commissioners on June 6, 2023. From left to right, Vice Chair Kelley Minty, Chair Derrick DeGroot and Commissioner Dave Henslee.
Jane Vaughan / Jefferson Public Radio
Sheriff Chris Kaber is currently under investigation by the Oregon Government Ethics Commission for possibly breaking state law when managing his son Ryan, who is a sergeant.
Now, after a separate investigation by the county, commissioners have voted to revoke their agreement that allowed the sheriff and his two sons to work in the same department together, despite county policy that forbids the direct or indirect supervision of family members.
That agreement meant that Kaber’s sons would be supervised by other people in the department, including when they would be considered for promotions.
County Commissioner Derrick DeGroot, who filed the state ethics complaint in June, said Sheriff Kaber reassigned his son Ryan to another division to fill critical staffing shortages. DeGroot said the sheriff did that despite warnings from county staff.
“Not only does it violate our policy, our agreement, but also this is an ethics violation,” DeGroot said. “So, [he] made the decision to do it anyway against every intent to try to protect him.”
Kaber did not respond to requests for comment. In a statement given to the ethics commission on Aug. 25, he said he didn’t believe it was unethical at the time.
“In essence, I was asking him to take back his previous responsibility with no additional pay for the needs of the office and that was something he was willing to do,” Kaber said.
Reassigning son to fill in staffing need: Kaber’s lawyer
Kaber reassigned his son Ryan as the sergeant supervising the detective division, following a conversation with one of the detectives who was considering leaving the department. Ryan has worked at the department since 2008, long before Sheriff Kaber was elected in 2016.
In documents obtained by KAGO News, Kaber’s lawyer said the detective division’s capabilities were deteriorating, and he needed to make a decision to fill in the staffing need. That reassignment was done without opening the position to other applicants.
Despite not getting an increase in pay, the ethics commission also believes there could be a perceived financial gain because of a 4% clothing stipend that comes with the sergeant position.
At the ethics commission meeting in late August, Commissioner Jonathan Thompson said he doesn’t believe what happened was done with ill intent.
“It’s my hope that with the investigation here we can give guidance to Sheriff Kaber and other sheriffs in this position on how they can fill these positions and not run afoul of ethics laws,” he said.
That state commission is still investigating Kaber, but the county has already made a decision, based on an independent investigation it requested.
“It is extremely unfortunate that the sheriff made choices that left us without any,” DeGroot said. “That put us in a position where we were required to make decisions that try to protect the best interests of the county.”
Because the county’s agreement has been terminated, Kaber and his two sons, Ryan and Erick, will have 90 days to decide who will stay at the department.