David Ward (sheriff)
| David Ward | |
|---|---|
| Sheriff of Harney County, Oregon | |
|
Assumed office January 2, 2015 |
|
| Deputy | Brian Needham |
| Preceded by | David Glerup |
| Constituency | Harney County |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Drain, Oregon, U.S. |
| Profession | Politician |
David M. "Dave" Ward is the current sheriff of Harney County, Oregon.
Ward was born in Drain, Oregon, to Jim, the son of a military veteran, and Linda Ward. In high school, he wrestled and played football. After graduation, he enlisted in the United States Army, where he served as a combat medic. He was deployed to Somalia, as part of Operation Restore Hope, and Afghanistan. While serving as a machine gunner in Afghanistan, he also trained more than 1,500 Afghan soldiers, and created a literacy program and a bank for them.
Ward left the Army in 1994 and pursued a variety of jobs ranging from ranch hand to mill worker. During this time, he served in the Oregon National Guard. He returned to active service in 1998 and left the Army a second time in 2002.
Following his second separation from military service, Ward worked as a corrections officer in Lake County, Oregon from 2002 to 2007. He later went to work for the Harney County Sheriff's Office as a sheriff's deputy. He had been the top cadet in his class at the Oregon Public Safety Academy, earning awards for marksmanship and understanding defensive tactics.
Ward was appointed sheriff of Harney County by the Harney County Court on December 5, 2014, and was sworn into office on January 2, 2015. His appointment was to fill the unexpired term of retiring sheriff David Glerup. The next election for sheriff of Harney County will take place in November 2016; Ward has announced he will stand in that vote.
Ward was serving as the Harney County sheriff in January 2016 when a loosely organized militia group occupied the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. The occupation was covered by national news media. Ward worked with the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Oregon State Police to maintain order and protect local citizens during the occupation.
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