Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich was appointed as Sheriff of Spokane County on April 11, 2006. He was elected to the Office of Sheriff in the fall of 2006 and is currently serving his third term as our Sheriff. This year marks his 29th year in the Law Enforcement Profession.
As Sheriff of Spokane County, he oversees the law enforcement activities in the unincorporated areas of Spokane County and several contract cities and towns. He is also responsible for managing the County's Department of Emergency Management.
Prior to being appointed to the office of Sheriff, he held the following positions with the Sheriff's Office: patrol deputy, field training officer, property crimes detective, sex crimes detective, SWAT team operator, SWAT team supervisor, patrol supervisor, and training supervisor.
He also served as a patrol officer for the City of Olympia, Washington and the City of Rock Springs, Wyoming. He was assigned to develop the school resource officer program and served as a school resource officer while serving with the Rock Springs Police Dept. He started his law enforcement career with the Town of Superior, Wyoming serving as the Chief of Police.
He is a Past President of the Washington Sheriffs’ and Police Chiefs’ Association and co-chair of the following committees and Boards for the Washington Sheriffs’ and Police Chiefs’ Association:
• The Homeland Security Intelligence and Technology Committee
• Law Enforcement Standards, Training and Education Committee
• Washington State Intelligence Fusion Center executive board
• Past co-chair of the WASPC Law Enforcement Accreditation
Committee
Sheriff Knezovich is a Past President of the FBI-Law Enforcement Executive Development Association which is an organization dedicated to developing professional law enforcement leaders within the law enforcement community.
At the local level Sheriff Knezovich has served as the Chair of the Emergency Communication Board.
Sheriff Knezovich is dedicated to reaching out to the community and our youth and serves on the following community outreach boards:
- · The United Way
- · Daybreak Youth Services
- · The Salvation Army
- · Frontier Behavioral Health (formally Spokane Mental Health)
- · The Arc of Spokane
- · Boy Scouts of America
- · Community Service Team
- · Founding Board Member for the Spokane County Human Rights Task Force