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Former Wood Co. sheriff remembered as a pioneer

PARKERSBURG – Former Wood County Sheriff Lee Bechtold, 91, died Tuesday and he leaves a legacy of turning the sheriff’s department into a professional force, former colleagues said.

Bechtold was sheriff from 1969-1973 and 1977-1985. Those who knew and worked for him praised his professionalism.

Longtime Wood County Commissioner Holmes R. “Butch” Shaver called Bechtold “the consummate law enforcement officer.”

“He just had so much integrity. He just did everything the right way,” Shaver said. “He would rank right up there with the top sheriffs in Wood County ever.”

Shaver recalled getting a call around midnight from Bechtold, informing him an inmate charged with murder had escaped from the Wood County Jail.

“It wasn’t three hours until he caught him and had him back there,” Shaver said.

Wood County Sheriff Steve Stephens said Bechtold hired him in 1979 and worked for him for 2½ years.

Stephens said he was always a “hands-on investigator” and was strong on discipline in a professional manner.

Even when Bechtold was not in uniform, people knew who he was, Stephens said.

“Everyone knew he was the sheriff,” Stephens said. “He just had that ‘lawman’s look.”

One of Bechtold’s lasting legacies for not only the Wood County Sheriff’s Department, but for sheriff’s departments across the state, was helping to get civil service protection for deputies.

Prior to that, a deputy sheriff’s job was at risk when a new sheriff got elected. It was common for new sheriffs to fire people and put in people of their own choice.

Because of civil service, a deputy could not be relieved due to a political difference with the new sheriff. That helped the sheriff’s department become a more professional police agency, Stephens said.

Rick Modesitt, a former Parkersburg police chief and county commissioner, was starting his career in law enforcement when Bechtold was in office. He described Bechtold as being at the beginning of the modern-day sheriff’s office.

“He was an active sheriff and a professional sheriff,” Modesitt said. “Seems like he knew everybody.”

Wood County 911 Director Rick Woodyard was hired at the age of 19 as a deputy sheriff by Bechtold.

“He gave a young man a chance to live his dream,” Woodyard said.

Woodyard also commended Bechtold in establishing the civil service protection.

“The establishment of civil service led to the profession that it is today in West Virginia,” Woodyard said. “Sheriff offices statewide now have well educated, skilled and highly trained professionals within their ranks. That is a legacy that will stand for a long time.”

Of the sheriff, he said Bechtold “ran a tight ship.” Under Bechtold, the sheriff’s department was a family, he said.

“It was more than a job, it was a career,” Woodyard said.

Former Sheriff Steve Greiner was hired by Bechtold in 1973 and became his chief deputy in the early 1980s. Greiner succeeded Bechtold in 1985 when he was elected sheriff.

Greiner was one of the first deputies in the state to go from being a deputy to elected sheriff.

“Thanks to him, I learned a lot and got to become sheriff,” he said. “He was a good man to work for. He was tough.”

When Greiner expressed interest in becoming sheriff, Bechtold sent him to get various forms of training.

“He was a good teacher and a good supporter,” Greiner said.

Funeral arrangements are pending at Vaughan Funeral Home in Parkersburg.

Staff Writer Evan Bevins contributed.

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