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Applicants sought to replace Sheriff Falls Sheriff Corey Falls is stepping down to become Gresham's new director of police services and 21st century policing. Mail Tribune file photo Tuesday Dec 6, 2016 at 1:23 PM Dec 6, 2016 at 2:48 PM Vickie Aldous Mail Tribune @VickieAldous The Jackson County Board of Commissioners will seek applications through Dec. 23 from people interested in replacing outgoing Sheriff Corey Falls, but the board has yet to decide whether to create a community panel to make a recommendation on his replacement. Commissioners agreed Tuesday to accept resumes with letters of interest. They will decide in early January whether to also convene a community panel or appoint a new sheriff on their own. Falls' last day at work is Dec. 30, said Jackson County Administrator Danny Jordan. Falls, who took office at the beginning of 2015, has accepted a job as director of police services and 21st-century policing with the city of Gresham east of Portland.  The county charter tasks county commissioners with choosing a replacement sheriff. Residents can vote on a sheriff during the next general election in November 2018. Jackson County Commissioner Rick Dyer said commissioners should form a community panel to provide a nonbinding recommendation about a new sheriff. "There's value from different perspectives," Dyer said, adding he believes a panel could make a recommendation quickly. The panel could include representatives from law enforcement, the business community, the District Attorney's Office, the general public and Jackson County Health and Human Services, which deals with mental health and substance abuse issues, Dyer said. Commissioners Colleen Roberts and Doug Breidenthal said the appointment could be made without a community panel. Roberts said forming the panel would slow down the process and commissioners are capable of making the decision without a panel. Breidenthal — who lost a re-election bid — will be replaced in January by Bob Strosser, a real estate broker and former police officer who won the November election. Like Dyer, Strosser said he supports the idea of a community panel. Strosser said he would ask members to name their top picks, not a single individual. He said the perspective of the broader community could prove valuable. Jordan said about a dozen names have been floated as possibilities to replace Falls. The Jackson County Sheriff Employees Association, a union representing sheriff's office employees, issued a letter calling on commissioners to choose a replacement who will continue Falls' progressive policies and cooperative approach with the union. The union is not endorsing an individual, but the appointment of one of the three captains in the sheriff's office would provide continuity, JCSEA President Noah Strohmeyer said. Strohmeyer said a community panel could provide a way for the public to give an opinion in relatively short order. The three captains are Nathan Sickler, in charge of the operations bureau; Dan Penland, in charge of the corrections bureau; and Tim Snaith, in charge of the support bureau. Sickler, who attended the commissioners' Tuesday meeting, confirmed he will apply for the sheriff position. Sickler said he can understand both perspectives about whether to convene a community panel. "In this day and age, having community buy-in is important. I can also see the perspective that the community has voted for the commissioners as their representatives," Sickler said. "When talking about a job like this of such significance, involving the community is never a bad idea." Other names bandied about by audience members at the meeting included retired Medford police Chief Tim George, former Jackson and Josephine county sheriffs, and Bob Sergi, who was third in a race with Falls and then-Sheriff Mike Winters in a May 2014 primary.  Like the sheriff's office employees' union, many community groups are also calling for a replacement who will continue Falls' progressive policies. Amanda Singh Bans, a Medford member of a Rogue Valley racial equity coalition, said a new sheriff should be knowledgeable and supportive of community policing strategies and anti-bias training. "It's sad to see Jackson County's first black sheriff leave," she said. "If there were a qualified person of color to replace him, that would be awesome. But regardless of whether the new sheriff is a person of color or white, knowledge of anti-racist practices is critical. It's more important that the candidate have values of racial and gender equity." — Reach staff reporter Vickie Aldous at [email protected]. Follow her at www.twitter.com/VickieAldous.