A lot of elected officials talk about being accessible. It sounds good in a campaign speech. But when a resident actually tries to reach someone, they hit a receptionist, a voicemail, a scheduling assistant, and a two week wait.
That’s not what public service is supposed to look like.
The Problem With Most Open Door Policies
Most leaders who say they have an open door policy mean it in theory. In practice, their calendar is full, their staff acts as a filter, and the people they’re supposed to serve end up feeling like they’re bothering someone just by showing up.
In a county like ours — where people know each other, where a concern about your neighborhood or your family’s safety feels personal — that distance between a resident and their elected sheriff isn’t acceptable.
What Sheriff Rigby Is Putting in Place
Starting with himself and building it into the culture of the entire office, Sheriff Rigby is establishing formal office hours every weekday from 9am to 11am.
No appointment. No staff filter. Just walk in.
During those hours, the number one priority is the people who show up — residents with concerns, employees with ideas, anyone in Wasatch County who has something they want to bring directly to the sheriff. Not a deputy. Not an assistant. The sheriff.
That’s not a small thing. That’s a commitment to being reachable by the people who elected him.
Why Direct Access to Sheriff Rigby Matters for Community Trust
When a resident in Heber City or Midway has a concern about what’s happening in their neighborhood, they shouldn’t have to wonder if anyone is listening. When a deputy has an idea that could make the office run better, they shouldn’t have to wait for the right moment to mention it to the right person.
An accessible sheriff means problems get surfaced earlier. Concerns get addressed before they become bigger issues. And the people of Wasatch County feel what they should always feel — that their sheriff’s office belongs to them, not the other way around.
More Than Just Office Hours
The open door isn’t limited to those two hours in the morning. It’s a mindset that Sheriff Rigby is working to build across the entire leadership of the office — a culture where the people at the top are approachable, where concerns move up the chain instead of getting buried, and where every resident knows they have a direct line to the people responsible for keeping them safe.
Because accessibility isn’t just a courtesy. In law enforcement it’s how trust gets built — and trust is what makes everything else work.
Sheriff Jared Rigby is running for re-election as Wasatch County Sheriff. See his full plan at sheriffjaredrigby.org.
