My History

About Me

I was first elected as Sheriff in Jackson County in November 2020, taking office on January 1, 2021. I am a life-long resident of Jackson County. My wife, Sharla and I have been married for 29 years and we have four adult children. My entire life has been law enforcement focused. My father was a police officer as were many, many of my relatives. I retired as a Detective from the Jackson Police Department in 2016. During my tenure,m I was assigned to the Special Response Team, Honor Guard, Gang Intelligence, and focused much of my career investigating violent crime. After retirement from Jackson Pd, I became a practicing attorney in Jackson. But law enforcement continued to call me. Being the Jackson County Sheriff is the highest honor of my life!

Professional History

After becoming a Jackson Police Cadet, I quickly obtained enough credits to attend a police academy. I was promoted to police officer at the tender age of 20 years.
After almost two years as a patrol officer, I was assigned to the department’s investigative vice unit, known as the CRAC Unit (Concentrated Response Against Crime). This is where I first received a taste of investigations.

In this assignment, I worked undercover, handled drug forfeitures, and was in charge of confidential informant control. I was involved in writing search warrants and conducting raids. I learned a tremendous amount through this assignment and was very fortunate to work with incredibly talented investigators and supervisors that set a strong foundation for the rest of my career.

I cycled out of the CRAC unit and went back to patrol. I applied and obtained a position on the Special Response Team (SRT). During this time, I was an entry specialist. I was involved in hostage situations and conducting multiple high-risk raids. During this time, I obtained a bachelor’s degree in business.

At this same time, I was assigned as a neighborhood officer position. Another incredible growth experience for me. During this assignment, I worked closely with residents in what was determined at the time to be Jackson’s most violent neighborhood. I had incredible success in this assignment which I attribute to the many great people who learned to trust me as their friend.

In one month, I recorded 52 felony arrests; needless to say, the crime rate decreased substantially. Drug dealers began to make death threats against me, and my superiors became concerned for my safety. At about the same time, a detective position opened up. I was offered an “acting detective” position before the permanent promotion; I was thrilled and accepted it.

I took the detective examination, received the highest score, and accepted the permanent position. This was where I wanted to be! Because of my extensive work in drugs and gangs, I was assigned to gang intelligence.

During my first two years as a detective, I worked the second shift. I attended every death that occurred while I was working and nearly all autopsies. I began to develop a fascination for death investigations; also known as homicide investigations, because each death must be investigated as a homicide.

My specialties of gangs, drugs, and homicide investigations qualified me for a position on a task force with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF). I was assigned the task of investigating the “worst of the worst” criminals under a federal government program entitled “Project Safe Neighborhoods.”

I spent two years, part-time, on this task force before being assigned to full-time four-year assignment. I wrote successful grants and received well over a hundred thousand dollars in extra money to combat violent crime. During my years with ATF, Jackson had a murder free year. Gun crimes decreased dramatically, and no one’s gun rights were violated. Instead, we went after the gangs involved in violent crime and stopped problems, often before they had a chance to get out of hand.

After ATF, I continued my work as a detective. I was assigned to the Jackson County Major Case Team and the Child Death Review Team. During this time, I attended law school, obtaining my law degree four months after my retirement.

Awards and Commendations as a Police Officer

I was named Officer of the Year for the Jackson County Prosecutor’s Office in 2001. I was named Officer of the Year for the Jackson Police Department in 2002, and Officer of the Year for the County of Jackson also in 2002. I was named Officer of the Year for the State of Michigan in 2003.

Throughout my career I received five meritorious service awards, 12 merit citations and outstanding service awards, four (4) FBI and ATF outstanding service awards, two (2) letters of commendation from the United States Attorney’s Office, and the Liberty Bell Award from the Jackson County Bar Association.