Constitutional County Sheriff

Missouri County Sheriffs are elected for a term of four years and have no limit on the number of terms they can serve. At the time of filing, sheriff candidates must be 21 years old, a high school graduate or equivalent, have a valid peace officer license, be a resident of the county for at least one year and not be convicted of a felony or domestic violence. Missouri Sheriffs are constitutional sheriffs and are elected to the office of sheriff (not hired or appointed). Therefore, they are accountable first and foremost to the Constitution of Missouri, then to the Constitution of the United States and finally to the citizens of his or her county.

The sheriff is the chief law enforcement officer of the county.

The sheriff and deputies duties include serving court papers, eviction notices, and issuing concealed carry permits. The sheriff is responsible for providing courthouse and courtroom security. Additional duties include arresting offenders and conducting criminal investigations.

The office of county sheriff gained national attention when the Clinton Administration tried to force county sheriffs to enforce the 1993 federal firearm law, known as the Brady Bill. Sheriff Richard Mack of Arizona and Sheriff Jay Printz of Montana sued the federal government. In 1997, the Supreme Court issued the decision confirming it is unconstitutional to require state and local officials to enforce federal laws.

The U.S. Supreme Court declared the Brady Bill to be an unconstitutional attempt by the federal government to commandeer state officials to carry out federal programs. This intrusion on state sovereignty is prohibited by the Tenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

“We need law and order for liberty to survive; however, since we also know that humans are flawed and in need of government, we know that those same humans in government are also in need of some higher power to confine their power and protect us from government itself. Here enters the office of the sheriff… Do you see the fascinating juxtapositional position sheriff’s hold? We need them to enforce the law to ensure peace, stability, safety and therefore liberty. Yet, we need them to be deeply aware of their constitutional powers and the constitutional powers of the governments making the laws they are tasked with enforcing so that they can, in turn, protect their citizens from an arbitrary, unconfined government that may want to subject these citizens to unconstitutional, unjust laws.” — C. McMasters The office of the sheriff truly is the last line of defense in the American republic.

Choose carefully who you vote for sheriff of your county.

Missouri voters will get to decide their parties’ candidates for Governor, Lt Governor, Secretary of State, Attorney General, Treasurer, all 163 state reps, 17 of 34 state senators, and many local offices including Sheriff on August 6, 2024.