A
re you still looking for a summer job? Do you have either four years of full-time law enforcement experience, or two years of law enforcement experience and two years of post-high school education? Are you looking to meet lots of people in a role where every day is different — something temporary, but public-facing and with decent pay?
If you’re 21 or older, live in Deschutes County and can handle intensive on-the-job training, consider your future as Deschutes County’s new Interim Sheriff.
Don’t dally. The Deschutes County Board of Commissioners requests all application materials by July 11, 5 pm. The BOCC indicated it will name the appointee before July 31.
The job listing was posted this morning, as current Sheriff Kent van der Kamp’s July 31 resignation became binding June 26. As the Interim Sheriff, the appointed person will serve until a new Sheriff is elected and takes office. Per ORS 236.210, those candidates for Sheriff would be listed on the next election cycle’s ballot in May 2026. The new sheriff will be elected that November and will begin their term Jan. 1, 2027.
Serving as the Interim Sheriff wouldn’t bar you from campaigning, too. In fact, this interim job could be a great steppingstone. While county officials couldn’t immediately provide an estimated salary for the Interim Sheriff, the DCSO said it presently pays Sheriff van der Kamp a $211,000 annual salary.
While the initial application for Interim Sheriff entails sending a letter of interest, a résumé and checking a couple boxes, the hiring process is anything but superficial. To begin with, your cover letter — after non-disclosable personal info is redacted — will be published for public scrutiny.
Now the stressful part: You’ll be subjected to a comprehensive background check. Questions include: Do you have any tattoos that signify membership in, or affiliation with, a criminal enterprise, street gang, or any group that advocates violence against individuals because of their race, creed, gender, sexual orientation or nation of origin? Have you ever provided alcohol to someone under 21? Have you stolen from an employer or leaked information you weren’t supposed to? Have you ever been in a fight? And are you willing to be truthful under oath, lest you wind up on a Brady list?
(OK, that last question isn’t explicitly listed, but it’s definitely a question authorities want a straight answer to.)
Then you’ll pass through psychological, medical and physical fitness evaluations. Not least of which, you’ll be subjected to several in-depth interviews.
Once you get the job, get ready for some serious onboarding. Becoming certified to work for the DCSO includes lots of instruction. Crucially, an Interim Sheriff will spend 16 weeks studying at the Oregon Public Safety Academy, which is operated by the Oregon Department of Public Safety Standards and Training at its Salem campus. Taking courses remotely is not an option, according to the DPSST. At the DCSO in Bend, the certification process continues. Expect a 30-day orientation phase and 15 weeks of training that happens in three five-week phases, said Jason Carr, the DCSO public information officer. There’s also a two-week checkout process at the end.
If you’ve followed the tribulations of van der Kamp’s tenure as Sheriff, which began when he was elected in November 2024, you’ll know that falsifying details about your education and employment history will come back to bite you — and potentially strip you of your badge.
On April 8, Deschutes County District Attorney Steve Gunnels placed van der Kamp on the Brady list, which details allegedly dishonest police officers that are banned from giving future testimony, the Source reported. The DA’s Office also publicized its findings that Sheriff van der Kamp made false statements under oath about receiving degrees from the University of Southern California and the University of Arizona. Van der Kamp made these statements while testifying as an expert witness in several criminal cases from 2012 to 2015. The DA’s Office additionally stated that van der Kamp omitted mention of his previous law enforcement experience at the La Mesa Police Department when he joined the DCSO in 2004.
The DA’s placement of Sheriff van der Kamp on the Brady list caused a snowball effect. On May 22, a DPSST committee voted unanimously to recommend a lifetime revocation of van der Kamp’s police certifications, the Source reported. The DPSST board will review and vote on that recommendation on July 24, regardless of van der Kamp’s employment status, said Sam Tenney, the DPSST communications coordinator.
Oh, don’t forget — the new Interim Sheriff will get to pick out an unmarked vehicle from the existing DCSO fleet!
Visit www.deschutes.org/interimsheriff to apply.
This article appears in Source Weekly June 26, 2025.
MAKE LOCAL JOURNALISM HAPPEN
Republish our articles for free, online or in print, under a Creative Commons license.
Internally there are three reported candidates for the interim position. A Lt, a CPT, and Undersheriff Wells.
If no interim candidate is selected then Undersheriff Wells will run the agency until a new Sheriff is elected in 2026.
The interim Sheriff will assume all responsibilities of managing the agency to include its budget. He or she will also manage the jail which is the Number One priority of any Sheriff’s Office in Oregon.
And there is much more.
Outstanding internal investigations must be reviewed and closed. New ones considered. The interim Sheriff will interact directly with the county commissioners. DCSEA, and the county legal office to ensure the agency and its employees see continued improvements in service and employee moral.
And fences must be mended with OSP and other local, state, and federal agencies.
A frank and transparent public affairs effort to repair Public Trust will also be the interim Sheriff’s responsibility.
Not exactly a summer job nor a comical matter.
I believe this article should not be published in its current form, as it presents the subject in a tone that undermines the seriousness of the position. This is not a lighthearted or seasonal role—it’s a significant responsibility that deserves to be treated with the appropriate level of respect and gravity..
Peter Madsen here: If anyone with insight would like to speak off the record about about anything related to the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office, please send me an email at peter@layitoutfoundation.org