Sheriff Gese's Message

It is an honor to have been appointed as the Kitsap County Sheriff and yesterday (August 30, 2021) I took my oath of office and assumed the full duties of the Sheriff of Kitsap County.

I have been with the Sheriff's Office for over thirty years.  Since the day I was hired I have been proud to be part of this profession and this outstanding agency and to have worked with my extraordinary coworkers providing public service for such a great community.   My goal, along with every member of the Kitsap County Sheriff's Office, is to serve our community in a way that makes the community proud by modeling our agency values of Teamwork, Integrity and Professionalism.   We pledge to be progressive and work with our community and community partners to address their public safety needs and do it in a fair and just manner.

We currently live in historic and challenging times.   Our agency has felt the tremendous influences of the COVID pandemic and have had to adapt to the effects like everyone else.   It has greatly impacted our services and operations over the last two years.   Along with you, we had hoped the effects of the pandemic were lessening, but now must recognize the current threat is very serious.   We have a responsibility to keep our staff safe in our operations, keep the public safe when they interact with us and assure those incarcerated within our Kitsap County Corrections Center are also kept safe.   We are constantly monitoring the situation and making many changes to adapt as we deal with the ups and downs of this pandemic. 

Additionally, our law enforcement profession is going through profound changes.  The death of George Floyd and the resulting national spotlight on law enforcement and police reform has caused us to pause and rethink our methods for doing police work. In recent months, Washington State has enacted many new laws affecting the police profession and promoting police reform, which has greatly changed the expectation on law enforcement and how we conduct our services. 

We are committed to adapting and growing to meet changing expectations and best standards.  We have set ourselves up well to address much of the call for police reform having incorporated many of the tenants of reform and training in our strategic planning process.  We will continue to work with our communities to provide the best public safety service to meet their expectations and needs.   

I look forward to serving as your Sheriff and on behalf of all of the Kitsap County Sheriff's Office thank you for your continued support of our agency and all those who work here and serve our community. 

                               - Sheriff John Gese

Sheriff John Gese