Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, August 3, 1995 TAG: 9508030055
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: RICHARD FOSTER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
"I don't think there's room for six [candidates] running, so I'm going to make it five," Goode said, explaining why he asked the county registrar Wednesday to remove his name from the fall ballot.
"The chances are a lot slimmer with six running. I don't know how my chances would have been," the 26-year veteran of the Sheriff's Office said. "I think I had some support out there but I can't say whether or not I could have won."
Rumors that Goode would quit the race have spread across the county and the Sheriff's Office since shortly after Goode announced he would run in early June.
More than a month ago, he answered a reporter's question on the subject by saying, "I made an announcement to run and I'm sticking with it."
Goode was endorsed by retiring Sheriff Carl Wells, who some say now will back Sgt. Dave Cooper for sheriff. As for Goode, he says he's staying neutral. Depending on the outcome, he said, he may retire in December.
Goode's campaign was low-key from the start. Unlike his opponents, he never unveiled a campaign platform. And other than his announcement on the courthouse steps, he never made any major campaign appearances.
When asked about his agenda by reporters, Goode usually would say, "Well, we're working on that." The most he ever said was, "If I'm elected sheriff, I don't think the Sheriff's Office will be run the same way it has been."
Goode ran the county's jail annex in Moneta for several years until he was recently promoted from lieutenant to captain. He now handles security in the Circuit Court.
Goode also is president of the Saunders Volunteer Fire Co. and has been a member of many civic clubs and organizations including the Smith Mountain Lake Ruritan Club.
His departure from the race leaves five candidates: Cooper; Mike Brown, an international security specialist who's running as a Republican; Doug Maynard, an investigator in the Bedford and Roanoke public defenders' offices; Sheriff's Deputy Chuck Reid; and Darryl Updike, a Drug Abuse Resistance Education officer with the Bedford Police Department.
by CNB