Longtime public servant Jim Dupont dies
<p>During his campaign for county commissioner, Jim Dupont, left, shares a laugh with old friend Dale Haarr in 2008 at Nickel Charlie's Casino & Eatery in Evergreen. The two knew each other for more than 30 years through various public offices and Rotary Club of Kalispell.</p>
<p>In 2004, Sheriff Jim Dupont posed with a cache of weapons seized after the arrest of fugitive David Burgert.</p>
<p>Flathead County Commissioner Jim Dupont and Clerk of Court Peg Allison embrace each other before taking their oaths of office in Flathead County District Court on Dec. 31, 2008. Judge Ted Olympus swore in both officials.</p>
<p>Sheriff Jim Dupont, left, and Kalispell Police Chief Frank Garner retired at the same time at the end of 2006. </p>
<p>A pensive Sheriff Jim Dupont is pictured at his desk in 2002.</p>
Sheriff Chuck Curry delivered shocking news to county officials on Monday morning: Popular Commissioner and longtime former Sheriff Jim Dupont had died.
Many courthouse employees cried when they heard the news.
Curry said Dupont, 65, was getting ready for work when he collapsed in the kitchen of his West Glacier home of an apparent heart attack.
Dupont had been associated with Flathead County since 1978 when he began working as a sheriff’s deputy.
He went on to serve 16 years as sheriff and was in his first term as a county commissioner when he died.
Curry, who served as Dupont’s undersheriff, was despondent over Dupont’s death.
“He’s been a close friend and mentor for many years,” he said. “I think there are lots of people in the law enforcement community that learned from Jim over the years. It’s a very, very sad day. His loss is going to be felt by a huge number of people.”
According to Curry, “He was an amazing man. I was always impressed with his ability to bring common sense to any situation.
“Jim was big on fairness in this organization and that really helped him be a great sheriff. We always tried to do everything as fairly as we could. He cared a great deal not just about this department and his employees and friends, but the public.”
Curry said Dupont was “extremely popular” as sheriff.
“People loved Jim,” he said. “He could be colorful and not always politically correct and people appreciated that about him. ... I’m going to miss him terribly, not only as a co-worker and a commissioner, but as a friend.”
Similar tributes to Dupont were voiced by public officials and private citizens who were touched by Dupont during his long career in the public eye.
Dupont’s public service goes back as far as the Vietnam War.
He served in the U.S. Navy from 1963-69 and flew transport flights in Vietnam, then went on to be a pilot throughout his life.
Dupont moved from San Diego to the Flathead and began working as a deputy sheriff in 1978. During his time in California, Dupont owned two small businesses and worked as a deputy sheriff for eight years.
He was a Flathead County Sheriff’s deputy from 1978 to 1991, when he was first elected sheriff.
He then served four terms as Flathead County’s top law enforcement officer and was involved in a host of high-profile cases ranging from Jerry Ambrozuk to David Burgert.
Dupont ended up being the longest-serving sheriff in Flathead County history.
His four terms tied the election record of previous sheriff Dick Walsh. The way the calendar ran, though, Dupont would spend a few more days in office than Walsh.
“I’ve got him by about a week,” Dupont said during an interview in 2006.
“I always felt really, really wonderful when I could help somebody,” Dupont said of his tenure as sheriff. “To me, we’re peace officers” more than law-enforcement officers.
He kept that in mind when residents called to complain about a bashed mailbox with the same intensity as someone reporting a murder or major burglary.
“I’d think, ‘Give me a break.’ But put yourself in their shoes,” Dupont said.
During his years as sheriff, Dupont’s deputies gave him the nickname “Hollywood” because he was on camera or in print so often.
Dupont explained in 2008 that part of his job was to be in the limelight.
“For any public service job, the people want to hear from you,” he said. “More communication between government and the public would really help. People get really upset when things sneak up on them — no matter what the issue is. We need to get the word out as to what’s going on.”
He was proud of his accomplishments as sheriff.
“I brought organization and leadership to an office that was lacking those things,” he said. “There was a lot of turmoil going on when I arrived. We took it out of the hole and modernized it.”
He retired as sheriff at the end of 2006 and began working as a part-time security consultant.
Then he ran for county commissioner in 2008, defeating incumbent Gary Hall in the primary and triumphing over Democrat Steve Qunell in the general election.
Since taking office as commissioner in early 2009, he worked long and hard to resolve the dispute over the two-mile Whitefish planning “doughnut” area.
Last week he was appointed as one of two interim directors of the county Office of Emergency Services.
Dupont is survived by his wife, Su, and two grown children.
He had an associate’s degree in criminal justice, graduated from a variety of law enforcement schools and attended the FBI Academy.
He held commercial, instrument and multi-engine pilot’s licenses and was an FAA-certified airframe mechanic.
He also had been president of the Montana Sheriff’s Association and Western States Sheriff’s Association and a member of the Montana Attorney General’s Law Enforcement Advisory Board and Montana Attorney General’s Crime Lab Advisory Board.
Funeral services are pending.