NEW ASSISTANT CHIEF DEPUTY
Greg Leveling is NOT the Man With the Plan

"I have no specific plans on how we might change the current system;
I'm learning as much as I can about how things work now."

Official named to help troubled jail
Dallas County: Former Denton sheriff's major will oversee care areas
http://www.dallasnews.com/s/dws/news/city/denton/stories/071505dnmetleveling.1bdbb4c.html
11:01 PM CDT on Thursday, July 14, 2005  By DAVE MOORE / Denton Record-Chronicle
E-mail dmmoore@dentonrc.com
 

SUMMARY: Greg Leveling was a former Denton County sheriff's office major and unsuccessful candidate for sheriff. He had been with the Denton department since 1998. He's been hired as assistant chief deputy to oversee mental health, medical matters and inmate housing for the Dallas County Jail. 

While he worked for Denton County, Chief Leveling was invited by the National Sheriff's Association to travel the country explaining how deputies work with mental health professionals to divert people from institutionalization. He also served on the board of the nonprofit Denton County Mental Health/Mental Retardation.

Last year he campaigned for the Denton County sheriff's post but lost to Benny Parkey in the Republican primary. When Sheriff Parkey took office in January, he declined to hire Leveling, who had been with the Denton department since 1993.

QUOTES:

Since he lost his Denton County job, "I've been doing some consulting work and applying for jobs," Leveling said. When the position presented itself in Dallas County, he said he "jumped at it".

"There are some severe challenges, but UTMB's departure and other challenges can also be opportunities that lead to successful outcomes" ~Chief Leveling

"The sheriff intends to tap into his expertise in correctional mental health issues. He's got a pretty extensive background in that." ~Dallas County Sheriff's Department spokesman Sgt. Don Peritz

"The most burning issue is the recertification of the jail." ~Chief Leveling

"Sheriff Lupe Valdez [is] ...very results-oriented. She made it clear when she hired him." ~Dallas County Sheriff's Department spokesman Sgt. Don Peritz

NOTE:  We are more than willing to give Chief Leveling a chance to improve this jail. It certainly needs some deep cleaning. I don't know if abusive staff will be disciplined or if poor medical care is as important to him as recertifying the jail, but perhaps he'll realize that, if he takes care of the details, the goal will take care of itself.  Kay Lee