Lake County Sheriff's Department (Indiana)


The Lake County Sheriff's Department is the county law enforcement agency for Lake County, Indiana. The first sheriff was elected in 1837, when Lake County was organized.

Organization

The Lake County Sheriff's Department employs 168 sworn police officers, 170 sworn corrections officers and 156 civilians under the sheriff's direction.
The command staff includes a chief of police and four commanders, each responsible for a division, who are assisted by deputy commanders. The Corrections Division is led by a chief warden, an assistant warden and three deputy wardens.
The department also has a number of Special Operations Units with specifically trained personnel assigned for Aquatics Underwater Recovery and Rescue, Aviation, Bomb Squad, Chaplains, K-9, Marine, Tactical and a mobile communications Command Center.

Aircraft

The Lake County Sheriff's Department has three helicopters used for law enforcement in the county and for assistance to local police agencies. They are maintained by the Aviation Unit and are operated from the Griffith-Merrillville Airport in Griffith, Indiana.
According to FAA records, the helicopters currently registered to the agency include a Bell OH-58A a Bell OH-58A and a Eurocopter EC120B

Demographics

Fallen officers

In the history of the Lake County Sheriff's Department, six officers have been killed in the line of duty.
NameDate of deathAgeTenureCause of death
March 14, 1930381 yearMotorcycle accident
January 16, 1933434 yearsGunfire
January 25, 19944418 yearsVehicular pursuit
June 12, 1999241 yearAutomobile accident
August 22, 20066328½ yearsBicycle accident
March 6, 2012253 yearsVehicular assault