The wily veteran, with his uniform laid out the night before, arrived at the scene around 5 a.m. and began coordinating efforts to negotiate the South Carolina man, who was on the run after allegedly murdering his wife hours earlier, out of his truck so traffic on the now backed up interstate could return to normal. Grice, a sheriff who prides himself on being able to work with different law enforcement agencies, contacted High Point police for use of their armored vehicle, negotiated with the suspect with the help of a Rowan County deputy and coordinated traffic with the highway patrol.
“Being a sheriff is running the whole operation and not just blowing up in front of the media,” Grice said. “I take the job seriously, but you don’t want to micro-manage everybody. That’s why you have people out there. If you do make the decisions, you have to make sure they’re carried through. I carry through with what I do.”
By 8:30 a.m., Grice and the Davidson County Sheriff’s Office convinced the man to surrender, ending the standoff as peacefully as possible. Grice’s morning was off and running. He finally made it to his office by 11:30, after speaking to a radio station and a dozen other media outlets wanting information about the standoff, where a man needing some forms signed waited patiently. With his secretary passing him another handful of messages, Grice took a few minutes to help the man by signing his permits before finally making it to his office at the end of the hall.
This is Grice’s politics. He has attended all the forums and refuted all the arguments against him, but for him, the best way to get his point across is by doing what he does best — his job.
“I think that is the best way for people to know what I’m doing,” said Grice. “I’m out there, every day, doing my job, and the people know that by how many arrests we’ve made, the cooperation we have with other agencies and how proactive we are in the community. That’s what is important to me.”
There’s no question Grice took over as sheriff under less than ideal circumstances. The Sheriff’s office had just suffered a major black eye when Gerald Hege was removed from his duties in 2004, leaving Grice in a position of having to not only uphold the law but restore public trust in the department. In 2006, with a little more than a year as sheriff under his belt, Grice ran for re-election and won, defeating five opponents. Four years later, the incumbent is back for more and trying to fend off challenges from his predecessor, Hege, and the man who came in second in 2006, Terry Price.
“I have people who have been behind me for years,” Grice said. “It’s now up to the people to decide. The people have a clear choice, and if the people who are pleased with what’s going on want to keep me here, and not have a return to the shenanigans of the past, then they should come out and vote and not stay home. I’ve done what I’m supposed to do. I’ve been a good steward of the budget, and I’ve run this place honestly and fairly.”
Grice’s family history in Davidson County dates back to 1778. He graduated high school in Denton, and his wife and mother are both former educators in the county. Having spent a large part of his career teaching law enforcement at Davidson County Community college, Grice sports a long list of former students in the area who are now actively working in law enforcement. DCSO has arrested more than 450 sex offenders and all but eradicated meth labs in the county under Grice, in addition to reducing the crime rate by 25 percent in the past year.
“I think I offer the best qualifications in all aspects of law enforcement,” Grice said. “I think my formal education, in which I have real college degrees, and my management experience are what the citizens of the county come to expect from their sheriff.”
During the next four years, Grice hopes to find a resolution to solve the jail space needs for DCSO and continue making end roads in combating the diverted pill problem that has become the latest drug issue facing the community.
“We are always trying to catch the thieves,” said Grice. “We’ll continue working with the breaking and entering task force as well as the student resource officer programs.”
Once a month, Grice sits down with representatives from throughout the county for breakfast, discussing ways to improve life for Davidson County residents. He has spent the last five-plus years implementing that idea.
For him, this version of politics outweighs any signs or mis-interpretation of statistics. Grice calls it just doing his job.
Staff Writer Eliot Duke can be reached at 888-3578, or duke@tvilletimes.com.
Grice is to be commended on his hard work on crime and trying to stop the drug traffic and getting rid of meth labs.
He's honest and not interested in the limelight. His family's long history here instilled valuable lessons in him in integrity and truth. He went to the forums and we know where he stands.
Mr. Grice has not brung shame to this county, he has not tried to be a news hound. His record, his actions speak far larger than what hege is and has done.
Davidson County citizens do not live in fear. Mr. Grice has given us 6 years of peace, lets go for more of the peaceful times. I have enjoy living in Davidson County since Mr. Grice has ran his office with pride.
He has done a tremendous job with cleaning up the mess he was left with and if given the chance will do even better. He comes from a long line of hard working, honest people who does this county proud!