Dale Stacey Wins Re-Election as Rich County Sheriff After Brutal Campaign Tied to Missing Teen Case
Dale Stacey wins Rich County Sheriff re-election days after Garden City teen rescued from Oregon basement. Brutal campaign tied to missing-person case.
Just days after a 17-year-old Garden City girl was rescued from a basement in Oregon, incumbent Sheriff Dale Stacey has won re-election in a hard-fought race.
The girl was 15 when she was reported missing on May 29, 2025. The FBI says she was picked up in Utah by Adam H. Harmel, 39, of Baker County, Oregon, and taken to his home, where investigators allege she was held against her will for more than a year. She was rescued Sunday. Harmel was arrested and faces federal charges of transporting a minor across state lines with the intent to sexually abuse her.
The case became a flashpoint in the sheriff’s race. The child’s parents and their advocates publicly criticized the Rich County Sheriff’s Office for what they called a lack of effort and errors in the search. That criticism sparked a brutal social media battle across the county between the parents’ side and community supporters of Sheriff Stacey. Stacey himself was unable to comment publicly because the investigation was still active.
His challenger, Thomas Keith Wahlberg, is a former Rich County deputy who worked under Stacey. He abruptly quit the department in protest over wages just before Bear Lake’s famous Raspberry Days, a move that drew coverage on mainstream news networks. He then challenged Stacey in the election.
Stacey, who has served as Rich County Sheriff for nearly 28 years, secured the win with roughly half the vote counted. Official results are being finalized.
The FBI case remains ongoing in federal court in Salt Lake City. The girl was taken for medical treatment after the rescue.
