| King County Sheriff's Office | |
| Common name | King County Sheriff's Office |
| Abbreviation | KCSO |
 |
|
| Patch of the King County Sheriff's Office. | |
| Agency overview | |
|---|---|
| Preceding agency | Municipal Police |
| Employees | 1,000+ |
| Legal personality | Governmental: Government agency |
| Jurisdictional structure | |
| Operations jurisdiction* | County of King County in the state of Washington, U.S. |
| Population | 1.6 million |
| General nature |
|
| Operational structure | |
| Sworn members | 720 |
| Agency executive | Sue Rahr, Sheriff |
| Units |
6
Patrol
K-9 Unit TAC-30/SWAT Unit Search and Rescue Motorcycle Unit Marine/Dive Unit |
| Facilities | |
| Precincts | Yes (4) |
| Police boats | Yes |
| Helicopters | 2 |
| Website | |
| http://www.metrokc.gov/sheriff/ | |
| Footnotes | |
| * Divisional agency: Division of the country, over which the agency has usual operational jurisdiction. Note: The KCSO provides policing for unincoorporated areas of King County, 12 contracting cities |
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The King County Sheriff's Office (KCSO) is a local civilian police agency in King County, Washington. It is the primary law enforcement agency for all unincorporated areas of King County, as well as 12 cities, and 2 transit agencies, which contract their police services to the KCSO. KCSO also provided Police and Fire ARFF Services to the King County International Airport (Boeing Field. KCSO also provides regional-level support services to other local law enforcement agencies such as air support and search and rescue. The department has over 1,000 employees and serves over 1.6 million citizens[1], over 500,000 of whom live in either unincorporated areas or the 12 contract cities.
The current sheriff of King County is Sue Rahr.
Contents |
History
The Green River Killer
On July 15, 1982, the body of Wendy Lee Coffield was found in the Green River. Within a month, four other bodies were found on the riverbank: Debra Lynn Bonner, Marcia Faye Chapman, Opal Charmaine Mills and Cynthia Jean Hinds. Thus began one of the longest and largest serial murder investigations in United States history. Eventually, the deaths of at least 48 women would be linked to the Green River killer.[2]
Gary Ridgway was eventually convicted of the crimes. Ridgway is considered one of the most prolific serial killers in American history.
Fallen Officers
Since the establishment of the King County Sheriff's Office, 15 officers have died in the line of duty.[3]
| Officer | Date of Death | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Deputy Sheriff Wesley F. Cherry |
|
Gunfire |
| Sheriff Louis V. Wyckoff |
|
Heart attack |
| Officer George W. Poor |
|
Gunfire (Accidental) |
| Posseman Cornelius Rowley |
|
Gunfire |
| Deputy Sheriff Robert Carl Scott |
|
Gunfire |
| Deputy Sheriff Steven S. Watson |
|
Gunfire |
| Deputy Sheriff Thomas Meehan |
|
Gunfire |
| Deputy Sheriff Norman F. Silkworth |
|
Gunfire |
| Deputy Sheriff Donald A. Armeni |
|
Gunfire |
| Detective Sergeant Samuel A. Hicks |
|
Gunfire |
| Detective Michael L. Raburn |
|
Stabbed |
| Deputy Sheriff Richard S. Cochran II |
|
Motorcycle accident |
| Deputy Sheriff Mark William Brown |
|
Motorcycle accident |
| Deputy Sheriff Richard Anthony Herzog |
|
Gunfire |
| Deputy Sheriff Steve E. Cox |
|
Gunfire |
Organization
Contract cities
The following cities contract their police departments to KCSO:
- Beaux Arts Village
- Burien
- Covington
- Kenmore
- Maple Valley
- Newcastle
- North Bend
- Sammamish
- SeaTac
- Shoreline
- Skykomish
- Woodinville
Other contracts
- King County International Airport Police/Fire ARFF (Boeing Field)
- King County Metro Transit Police
- Muckleshoot Indian Tribe (no longer a contract agency)
- Sound Transit Police
Law Enforcement Exploring Program
The King County Sheriff's Office has a volunteer program for individuals between the ages of fourteen and twenty-one who are interested in investigating a career in the field of law enforcement. The program is called the King County Sheriff Explorers and is a local post of the Learning for Life Exploring program. The explorer post has a rank structure similar to the Sheriff's Office. The explorers attend academies and competitions, ride-along with deputies on patrol, and receive training on a variety of law enforcement topics.
See also
References
External links
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