Dukes Casts Himself As Change Agent In Race

Editor’s note: This is the third in a four-part series giving Kosciusko County’s four candidates for sheriff a chance to recap their campaigns. Part four continues Saturday.

Kyle Dukes has been calling for change in the Kosciusko County Sheriff’s Department since last summer and continues to trumpet that theme heading into next week’s primary election.

Dukes, 41, finished second last summer when he and five other candidates sought to win a Republican caucus called to fill the void after Sheriff Aaron Rovenstine was forced from office.

After five ballots, Dukes – who called for a fresh start –  ultimately finished second behind Rocky Goshert, a former two-term sheriff and ally of Rovenstine.

As he left the courthouse that night, Dukes said he sensed others also felt the need for change.

Dukes is the outsider as he faces opposition from Goshert and two other candidates with strong ties to the department: Tony Ciriello, a former deputy who now serves as county coroner; and Chris Rager, a deputy in the drug task force who has 19 years with the department.

“If I truly didn’t believe in my heart that this county is in dire need of outside leadership, I would not have even run,” Dukes said while having coffee at Three Crowns Coffee in downtown Warsaw.

Family Tradition

Dukes grew up in Kendallville, graduated from East Noble High School and didn’t have to go far to find a role model in law enforcement. His father, Doug, started with the Indiana State Police, then joined the Noble County Sheriff’s Department, where he served two terms as sheriff.

As a kid, he stood with his father in campaign events and parades. This year, his father has been doing the same kind of thing for his son’s campaign.





He said he likes the roles of working with the community and solving problems.

The importance of police became more clear for Dukes during his dad’s role as a sheriff.

“I was young enough that I knew my dad was a state police officer, but I didn’t appreciate what he did as much until I saw him in a brown uniform,” Dukes said. “Realizing exactly what policemen do on a daily basis and the dangers of that and the stresses of that, that’s when I really appreciated what my dad did.”

Dukes earned a bachelor’s degree in business management from Tri-State University and had initially planned to be a conservation officer. The lack of openings, though, led him to Noble County, where he worked as a reserve officer before joining the Indiana State Police as a trooper more than 17 years ago.

He said he’s heard people point out that he has never been promoted during his time at ISP and says he prefers being a patrol officer and working with communities instead of desk work that would likely come with a promotion.

Reason For Change

Dukes is the only candidate to focus some attention on the Rovenstine scandal and the apparent division between the sheriff’s department and Warsaw Police Department.

Rovenstine resigned last year after agreeing to plead guilty. That came after he faced 10 counts in a complex case involving allegations of improper conduct.

The court case exposed a division between the sheriff’s department and Warsaw police over the apparent lack of cooperation, communication and trust.

Ten months later, Dukes said he believes relations among patrols of different agencies have improved, but problems persist with leadership. A renewed sense of teamship, he said, needs to come from the top.

Dukes said he has a lot of respect for Goshert, but adds, “It’s just time that law enforcement is a team again in Kosciusko County. If not, we’re in trouble.”

“This is the chance for an outsider to come in – we  have got to have an outsider come in with some fresh ideas, some new ideas (and) bring everyone back into a working relationship in law enforcement,” he said.

Dukes was endorsed by seven out of nine police chiefs and town marshals and has support from the local conservation office and the state police.

He contends the endorsements from a majority of law enforcement leaders in the county underscores the existence of problems associated with the department.

In numerous meetings over several months with the police chiefs, Dukes said they have expressed concern with the sheriff’s department.

Dukes contends the issue is more than just a rift between the county and city.

Asked how big of a rift exists between the two department on a scale of 1  to 5, with five being the greatest, Dukes gave it a 4.75.

“I’ve talked with citizens of this county from Mentone to Syracuse and they're ready for our police departments to start working together.”

Specific Plans

Law enforcement in the county work under two drug task forces – one through the sheriff’s department and one led by Warsaw police – and Dukes supports merging them.

He said he’s been told that most agencies choose to work with Warsaw’s drug task force rather than the county’s.

He said he’s reached out to Warsaw Police Chief Scott Whitaker, representatives of ISP and other leaders about a unified drug task force, which he said would be better in combating opioids and meth.

“We’ve got to be on the same page,” he said.

Dukes also said he would make the public information officer a full-time position.

Such a move would help promote the good things police do that are often overlooked. He said he could envision the job including a fair amount of social media work and interaction with the community.

He also wants to work with schools to see if more armed officers can have a presence in schools.