Allegheny County Sheriff's Race One Of The Hottest On Next Tuesday's Ballot

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- It's one of the most visible races on the May primary ballot with dueling television endorsements.

Mullen TV Ad:  "I want to talk to you about one of the greatest assets we have in Allegheny County -- Sheriff Bill Mullen."

Satler TV Ad:  "The system is broken.  We need a change. We need George Satler."

Pittsburgh homicide detective George Satler is challenging two-term sheriff and former Pittsburgh deputy police chief Bill Mullen in Tuesday's Democratic primary.

"I am running on the 10,000 outstanding warrants," Satler told KDKA political editor Jon Delano on Friday.

"I believe that's inexcusable. I want to be able to get a handle on those warrants."

"We're cutting down those warrants every single day," retorted Mullen.

Mullen says many warrants are not for serious crimes, like failing to pay multiple parking fines, but the serious ones get handled like family non-support warrants.

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"There was 5,902 warrants issued for those people.  We've knocked that down to, last year there was 2,529."

Satler says Mullen is not showing up for work every day.

"He was very good when he was a deputy chief of the city of Pittsburgh, but over time now he's not going to work."

"Absolutely, positively untrue," says the sheriff.

Mullen rejects any notion that he's part-time.

"I come in at quarter to eight every morning. I leave here around 4:30, and people here can tell you that," says Mullen.

The sheriff, who was Satler's boss in the city police, says Satler is a hard worker but not experienced to be sheriff.

"My opponent has no supervisory experience, has no administrative experience."

But Satler says he's got the energy.

"I am going to be the type of sheriff that goes to work every single day.  I'm going to roll up my sleeves and try to solve these issues that's going on in the sheriff's office."

There is obviously a generational difference in these two candidates.

Satler, whose young son urges him to 'catch the bad guys' in TV ads, positions himself as the youthful change candidate.

But he's up against an experienced incumbent sheriff endorsed by every law enforcement organization in the county.

Democrats will chose their nominee next Tuesday.