Matthew Bannon
Age: 42
Occupation: Valley County Sheriff’s Deputy from 2004 to 2024.
Where Born/Raised: Born and raised in Valley County
Education: Cascade High School 2001; associate degree from Boise State University 2003; Idaho POST Master Certificate, dual certified in both Detention and Patrol.
How Long Lived in Valley County: Lifelong Valley County Resident
Previous government experience: Worked for Valley County Sheriff’s Office from 2004 to 2024 in Detention, Marine, Patrol, and Jail Administrator. Administered Highway Safety Grant Program, Field Training Officer, and High Liability Instructor. Southern Valley County Recreation District board member from 2013 to 2021, Board President from 2017 to 2021.
Clubs, organizations, other activities: Cascade Volunteer Fire Department, Coaching football at Cascade High School, Volunteer with SVCRD youth programs, Cascade Chamber of Commerce volunteer, Idaho State Parks volunteer.
Family members at home: Wife Marlene, son Caleb in the Idaho Army National Guard, son Cameron attending Idaho Virtual Academy.
Matthew Bannon would focus on employee retention and community relationships if elected sheriff.
He is running for the republican nomination against Kevin Copperi and Bradley Beaman. The winner of the nomination will face unaffiliated candidate Jason Speer in the November General Election.
“I decided to run for Sheriff because I’ve lived here my entire life,” Bannon said. “I have dedicated my career to serving and protecting the citizens and visitors of Valley County. As a full-time resident, parent, and someone that loves the outdoors, I want to ensure Valley County continues to be a safe place to live, work, and play.”
Bannon was motivated to run for sheriff primarily because of high staff turnover within the department recently.
“I decided to run for Office because I had concerns about leadership and it wasn’t what I had been committed to for so many years,” Bannon said.
“We need to work harder on employee retention and development and retention, building future leaders, and making sure we are truly meeting the needs of the community we serve,” he said.
If elected, he would work more closely with other local agencies.
“The rural nature of Valley County dictates the necessity for the Sheriff’s Office to work well with other agencies to meet the needs of citizens,” Bannon said.
“McCall Police, ISP, Fish and Game, and Forest Service Law Enforcement Partners should be training and working seamlessly together to assist each other accomplish their respective missions because those are the people that are most readily available at a moment’s notice when you call for help,” he said.
Bannon would create a community forum to improve public relations with the sheriff’s office, and increase the VCSO’s partnership with school administration with a goal of increasing physical safety along with educational efforts in the safe use of social media for children.
“Social media influences are the greatest threat to our children today and for most is an addiction,” Bannon said. “Our children are getting attacked day and night by social media and we need to start helping them develop healthy boundaries and relationship habits.”
Bradley Beaman
Age: 57
Occupation: Retired law enforcement officer and real estate agent
Where Born/Raised: Fridley, Minnesota and San Diego, California
Education: Mesa Community College law enforcement certification and bachelor’s degree in psychology from Northern Arizona University.
How Long Lived in Valley County: six years
Previous government experience: City of Mesa Police Reserve Officer 1988-1990, City of Scottsdale Police Department 1990-2004
Clubs, organizations, other activities: Elk Creek Church Board Member and Benevolence Director
Awards and recognitions: Northern Arizona University Scholar Award and Honors Convocation, service commendations at Scottsdale Police Department
Family members at home: Wife Heather, Daughter Tatum, Daughter Lindsey, Son Caleb
Bradley Beaman said he was motivated to run for sheriff because the community would be better served by leadership that values the people of the agency and the community.
“Some of the items that will help are a college education, extensive leadership training and experience as well as fiscal management of assets and budgets,” Beaman said.
Beaman is running for the republican nomination against Kevin Copperi and Matthew Bannon. The winner of the nomination will face unaffiliated candidate Jason Speer in the November General Election.
“I have built good relationships with members of the agency as well as many agencies that serve with the Sheriff’s Office,” Beaman said. “The honor and dedication in which they serve makes me want to provide servant leadership and stand by their sides to serve this community.”
Beaman asserted that the culture of the agency has been “damaged.”
“Deputies as well as others who serve don’t feel valued, appreciated or secure in their jobs,” he said.
“Their hearts want to serve and provide for their families, but the current leadership style doesn’t create those values,” Beaman said. “We are losing deputies at a rate that isn’t sustainable.”
If elected, Beaman would increase community involvement.
“This is something that needs to happen every day and not just right before an election. I am happy to see the increased participation of late, but I am concerned of the long-term commitment of the current leadership to see this beyond the election,” he said.
One of Beaman’s goals, if elected, would be to transition to “servant leadership.”
“I have engaged with the amazing and talented men and women that serve the community on the front line and believe I could help bring them the resources and encouragement that is needed so they can perform their duties with support and appreciation,” he said.
Beaman identified recruitment and retention as the greatest challenge facing the VCSO.
“We are extremely short-staffed and that creates hardships on our remaining members and creates more risk to them and the community,” he said.
Beaman also listed drug crimes, domestic violence and suicide as major concerns.
“In speaking with members of the community, these topics are very important to them,” he said. “We can better address all of these issues with the right leadership.”
Family roots are important to this community, Beaman said.
“I understand how many people move here and think they know what is best for the people of Valley County,” he said.
“We moved here six years ago, but have deep relations and a long history with this community,” Beaman said. “My grandma came to Valley County in 1932 and my grandfather worked as a police officer in Weiser. The family cabin is in McCall and is home to a family member today.”
Kevin Copperi
Age: 51
Occupation: Valley County Sheriff
Where Born/Raised: Born in Butte, Montana; moved to Boise in 1983
Education: Boise High School, attended Boise State University, Idaho POST Academy management certificate, graduate of the FBI Leadership Academy.
How Long Lived in Valley County: 17 years
Previous government experience: Three years with the Caldwell Police Department before joining the Valley County Sheriff’s Office in 2007
Clubs, organizations, other activities: Rotary Club of McCall, Cascade Medical Center Strategic Planning Committee, Valley County Strategic Planning Committee, Cascade School Safety and Security Committee, Idaho Sheriff’s Association member.
Awards and recognitions: Domestic Violence Superhero award from Rose Advocates.
Commendation for overseeing and executing the Valley County Jail Pod renovation.
Family members at home: Wife Kelly and four adult children, who no longer live at home.
Kevin Copperi said he is running for sheriff because the role of sheriff is an important one in shaping the way in which law enforcement interacts with the community and upholding the values of fairness, accountability, and transparency.
“I am dedicated to implementing policies and procedures that ensure that we operate within current case law, ever-changing supreme court rulings, and meet the expectations of the citizens that we serve,” Copperi said. “The cornerstone of my administration is being committed to building trust and collaboration between law enforcement and the community that we are responsible for making sure they have a safe place to live, work, and play.”
Copperi was appointed sheriff on July 1, 2023, to serve the remainder of Patti Bolen’s term, which is up at the end of the year. Prior to that, he was a Lieutenant at the VCSO.
He is running for the republican nomination against Matthew Bannon and Bradley Beaman. The winner of the nomination will face unaffiliated candidate Jason Speer in the November General Election.
“I have been invested with this community and the Sheriff’s Office for 17 years. When Sheriff Patti Bolen was getting ready to retire, she encouraged me to seek her position,” Copperi said.
“I have been in the position just long enough to get the ball rolling on having deputies in schools more, professional development for staff, community engagement, backcountry and recreation safety, highway safety, high visibility patrols, and continued advanced training that positions our staff to complete complex investigations that results in the level of successful prosecutions that we have seen recently,” he said.
If elected, Copperi said he would like to see more deputies in local schools.
“I would like to open communications with our schools about the return of school resource officers,” he said. “Having an SRO to assist school officials to educate students and parents about the dangers of fentanyl and other drugs and by building positive relationships with students, can help foster trust and respect between law enforcement and the community.”
Two goals he would like to accomplish are to increase staffing recruitment and retention and build upon community outreach and cooperation.
“I want to continue building relationships with partner agencies,” Copperi said. “I would ultimately like people to refer to us as ‘Our Sheriff’s Office,’ not ‘The Sheriff’s Office.’”
“Recruitment and retention are our biggest issues. As we all know, housing is a major issue within all industries of our area,” he said.
“We have recently filled key openings in patrol, dispatch, and detectives with experienced and trained staff,” he said. “I have watched our agency go from a ‘training ground’ to an agency that people move to over the last several years.”
