Editor’s note:
The Maries County Advocate received the following email from Maries County Sheriff Mark Morgan, who requested the opportunity to clarify points he said were inaccurate in an article published in the Jan. 28, 2026, edition of the newspaper.
Eddie,
In this week’s paper dated Jan. 28, 2026, while the article was overall well written, I would like to provide clarification on a few points to correct some inaccuracies.
The section stating, “Morgan said the commissioning process stalled because the circuit clerk’s personnel was not available,” is not accurate. At the point in my decision-making process being referenced, the circuit clerk’s office was not involved in the commissioning process. When I referred to the process being “stalled,” I was referencing the length of time between when I initially submitted the deputy appointment form to the circuit judges and when I received any response.
After submitting the form, I was advised that the circuit judge’s clerk would be on vacation for one week. After approximately two weeks passed with no further communication from the circuit judges’ office, I began researching who is legally authorized to appoint a deputy. As sheriff, I have statutory duties to perform, and the unusually long delay in the appointment process was interfering with my ability to schedule and utilize the deputy.
For clarity, by the time the notary issue arose, I had already completed my research and determined that judicial approval was not required for me to appoint a deputy and that I could administer the oath myself. I believe the misunderstanding centers on why the notary was from Osage County. I wanted the oath of office and swearing-in notarized, and Nicole Bexten is a commissioned notary. The county in which the notary is commissioned is not relevant to the validity of the process.
I filed the oath of office with the circuit court clerk not because it was required, but to inform the clerk that I had already made the appointment and did not want them to continue requesting status updates from the circuit judges.
Additionally, RSMo 57.250 applies to third-class counties and provides that circuit judges set the total number of deputies and their compensation. It does not require judicial approval of each individual deputy appointment.
There also appears to be some confusion regarding POST requirements. The oath of office is an internal document and is not required to be submitted to POST to add a deputy to the POST roster. To add a deputy, I enter the required administrative information and the officer’s POST number into the POST online portal. Typically, the deputy is added within 24 hours, which is what occurred in this case. POST does not typically require a sheriff or chief to submit additional documentation beyond this information.
Again, the article was generally well written, but I wanted to clarify these points to address the misunderstandings outlined above.
Respectfully,
Mark Morgan
Maries County Sheriff
