By Nathan Mayberg
MONTICELLO — December 9, 2005 – Mike Schiff was sworn in on Wednesday as the new Sullivan County Sheriff by Sullivan County Clerk George Cooke at the Sullivan County Government Center in Monticello.
Schiff will take office January 1 after Dan Hogue retires.
In addition, he named his Undersheriff – New York State Trooper Sergeant Eric Chaboty. Chaboty was sworn in by his wife Tammi, who is a notary.
Schiff said the swearing-in made his victory over challenger Frank Armstrong feel official after a long, hard-fought campaign. He said he is looking forward to working in the Sheriff’s Department and with the “very good police chiefs in Sullivan County.”
He said Chaboty was his first choice for Undersheriff.
“I wasn’t sure if he would take it,” said Schiff. “He had a great job. . . . He is a very sharp guy. I would trust him with my family. I think Sullivan County will be very pleased.”
Chaboty was not only a Sergeant with Troop F in Liberty, but he was the New York State Troopers PBA Sergeant’s delegate for the eastern half of the state. He was also the treasurer for the union, in charge of a $2 million budget. He has had to give up all of those positions as part of his retirement to take the new position.
Chaboty was born and raised in Manhattan. He began his career with the New York City Police Department 22 years ago before joining the New York State Troopers in 1987. He was assigned to Troop F in Liberty before being transferred back out to New York City in 1997.
While there, he oversaw the construction of an NYPD radio system – a $6 million project. A 300-foot tower was built on Staten Island, as well as a transmitter on top of the World Trade Center.
He was there for 9/11 and helped establish an emergency command post. He had to go to the top of the Chrysler Building to re-establish a communication system taken out by the WTC’s destruction.
He assisted in rescue operations and the cleaning up of debris and worked alongside Schiff at the Jacob Javits Center, which was the command post for the recovery operations.
He returned to Sullivan County in 2003 as a line sergeant.
As for the future, “I am interested in implementing the programs and initiatives of Schiff. The county is on the verge of massive growth and expansion. . . . We need to be ahead of the curb and bring cutting-edge techniques to the department so we can be prepared for the future,” he said.
Among them is a regular in-service training program and a traffic safety program to avoid accidents in problematic areas such as Route 17B.