DAYTON – For 11 years, Joe Helm has been Chief Deputy for the Columbia County Sheriff's Office, and he is now running for sheriff in the 2018 election.

If elected, Helm said he would like to restore the fundamental functions of law enforcement which are to enforce, educate, prevent crime. And he wants to make sure deputies are more than mere community guardians, but are also active community members.

As Sheriff, Helm said he will strengthen community-oriented policing programs and collaborate with other agencies to pool resources, which can prevent many crimes from happening.

"Our communi...