The short list is in.
The Deschutes County Sheriff Employee’s Association has recommended five applicants for Interim Sheriff.
Those listed are Deschutes County Undersheriff Aaron Wells; DCSO Detective and Special Services Commander Ty Rupert; DCSO Detective Lt. James McLaughlin; former DCSO Captain Deron McMaster; and COCC Director of Campus Safety and Emergency Management, Cory Darling.
DCSEA president Danny Graham will moderate an informal, public debate among the applicants at the Elks Lodge in Bend on July 7.
Reached by phone, Graham, who is also a DCSO Patrol Sargeant, said the debate will feel more like a peer-reviewed job promotion than, say, a televised presidential debate. Going into it, applicants are not aware of the questions, Graham said. However, he’s not been shy about their central themes: how to restore public trust and how the DCSO should correct its course. Matters of institutional accountability and transparency will also inform the discussion.
Graham doesn’t expect any drama at the union’s public forum, which marks the latest development in what has been a tumultuous era for the DCSO under the leadership of Kent van der Kamp and his predecessor Shane Nelson.
“I’ll be there as a peacekeeper,” Graham said, adding that he’ll monitor speakers’ allotted time. Each applicant will receive a five-minute period to introduce himself. Then Graham will direct the group in answering his prepared questions. Each speaker will get a total of 15 and 20 minutes. While a public Q&A session isn’t planned, Graham said he expects the applicants to hang around after the discussion to answer the public’s questions.
Asked whether he had a personal favorite among the applicants, Graham says he doesn’t.
“I have good friendships with several candidates and good working relationships with a lot of them,” Graham said. “They all have very excellent backgrounds and qualifications. I’m very open minded going into the forum.”
Applicants Wells and Rupert have been members of van der Kamp’s command staff since the sheriff assumed the position this year. And McMaster was a captain under Shane Nelson. Graham said one of his questions will tie into how well each applicant thinks past sheriffs have handled the role.
In recent decades, DCSEA endorsements have carried weight with county commissioners.
“I appreciate that the county commissioners want to take the time to hear what the [DCSEA] members are looking for,” said Graham, adding that three commissioners have said they’ll attend the July 7 forum, either in person or virtually through a livestream.
(The Source will link to the recording in a subsequent story.)
“At the end of the day, they don’t have to go with our vote,” he said.
Despite the union’s recommended applicants, Deschutes County spokesperson Kim Katchur confirmed by press time that officials have not received letters of interest from any of the candidates recommended by the DCSEA — nor anyone else. Graham said each of the union’s applicants have expressed intention to apply for Interim Sheriff. And he allowed that it’s possible that after Monday’s forum, a DCSEA applicant might reconsider the top job.
Shortly after the July 7 forum, the union will hold a weeklong ranked vote for its endorsement. The DCSEA will tabulate votes, distribute the results to members and forward them to the board of county commissioners.
The BOCC will vote and then announce the new Interim Sheriff before July 31.
Interim Sheriff Applicants Forum, p/b by Deschutes County Sheriff Employee’s Association
Where: Bend Elks Lodge, 63120 Boyd Acres Rd, Bend
When: Monday, July 7, 6:30 – 8:30 pm
Cost: Free, open to the public
This article appears in Source Weekly July 3, 2025.
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