BRIGHTON, Colo. — Adams County's Democratic Sheriff Rick Reigenborn is running for re-election.
He is eluding our questions about his decision to join a car chase, livestream it and keep chasing when other deputies said it was too dangerous to continue.
It is not tough to see how that could have turned out tragically.
What is tragic, according to the sheriff's office, is that we keep asking about it.
Reigenborn livestreamed being on patrol on January 29. He had a ride-along passenger with him.
During the livestream, he joined a pursuit in an unmarked vehicle with a passenger. That pursuit was six-and-a-half miles away.
The sheriff's office ride-along policy 404.3 states: "Deputies should use sound discretion when encountering a potentially dangerous situation, such as a high-speed pursuit. If practicable, the participant should be let out of the vehicle in a safe, well-lighted place. The dispatcher will be advised of the situation and as soon as practicable have another sheriff's unit respond to pick up the participant at that location. The ride-along may be continued or terminated at this time."
Not only was the passenger not dropped off, but they also helped direct the Sheriff during the pursuit.
The sheriff's office pursuit policy 307.4 states: "Distinctively marked patrol vehicles should replace unmarked vehicles involved in a pursuit whenever practicable."
We asked the sheriff's office numerous questions about the pursuit policies and the ride-along passenger.
On Wednesday, a sheriff's office spokesman replied:
"We will not provide any further comments on this story and instead hope you’ll spend time focusing on the great work being done by law enforcement officers here in Adams County and across Colorado."
The spokesman did say that the ride-along passenger was Tim Sheley, who was formerly in the radio business.
We have been unable to find a Tim Sheley, but we have found a Tim Shiely who also goes by "Scooter McGee," and calls himself a "'retired' broadcaster."
Shiely/McGee is a conservative conspiracy theorist who has suggested mass shootings were really government operations and that public health orders were to usher in martial law.
Shiely/McGee has not returned multiple voicemails and text messages.
We wanted to know about his involvement with the Sheriff's Office, among the questions we asked when we were told to spend time focusing on the great work being done by law enforcement.
The Sheriff's Office spokesman said in an email on Thursday afternoon that the pursuit was reviewed "and was found to be within our policy."