Loudoun County Sheriff's Office Explained

Agencyname:Loudoun County Sheriff's Office
Commonname:Loudoun County Sheriff
Abbreviation:LCSO
Patchcaption:Loudoun County Sheriff's Patch
Badgecaption:Loudoun County Sheriff's Star
Employees:845
Budget:$87.9 million
Country:United States of America
Countryabbr:U.S.
Divtype:State
Divname:Virginia
Subdivtype:County (United States)
Subdivname:Loudoun
Map:Map_of_Virginia_highlighting_Loudoun_County.svg
Sizearea:521sqmi
Sizepopulation:420,959 (2020)
Legaljuris:Loudoun County
Governingbody:County (United States)
Constitution1:Yes
Police:Yes
Local:Yes
Headquarters:Leesburg, Virginia
Sworntype:Deputies
Sworn:650
Unsworntype:Civilian
Unsworn:199
Chief1name:Michael L. Chapman
Chief1position:Sheriff
Stationtype:Station
Website:Official Website

The Loudoun County Sheriff's Office (LCSO) is the primary law enforcement agency within Loudoun County, Virginia and is the largest Sheriff's Office in the Commonwealth of Virginia.The agency is currently headed by Sheriff Michael L. Chapman who was last re-elected in 2019.

Organization

LCSO is headed by the Sheriff and is divided into three bureaus, each led by a Chief Deputy with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel: Field Operations, Investigations, and Administrative and Corrections. Bureaus are made up of one or more divisions, sections, and units.[1]

Rank Structure

!Insignia!Title[2] !Responsibilities / Information
SheriffCommander of the department.
Undersheriff (Colonel)Second-in-command of the department; rank no longer used.
Chief Deputy (Lieutenant Colonel)Commands a Bureau.
MajorCommands a Division.
CaptainCommands a Station or a Section.
First LieutenantAssistant Commander of a Station or a Section.
Second LieutenantCommander of a Unit or a patrol shift.
SergeantSupervisor within a Unit or patrol shift.
Master Deputy SheriffCompetitive senior rank requiring 12 years of service.
Deputy First ClassAutomatic promotion.
Deputy SheriffAutomatic promotion.
Probationary Deputy

Potential Transition to Police Department

Shortly after being re-elected in 2019, Loudoun County Board of Supervisors Chairwoman Phyllis Randall proposed transitioning policing to a new police department while the sheriff would only be responsible for court related duties as is done in Prince William County and Fairfax County. Randall said the reason she proposed this is "I just simply don’t believe that law enforcement should be political."[3] However, Sheriff Michael L. Chapman has stated that "[Loudoun Residents] are happy with the service they are getting, and it’s almost like, 'Why is there going to be a move to try and fix something that’s not broken?' it just seems to me to be a matter of just exercising power and control."[4]

In 2012, the Board of Supervisors asked for a report about a potential transition and the commission responsible strongly recommended keeping the current system citing decreased state funding due to low crime rates and the idea that a police chief would be equally political when appointed.[5]

To implement a police department a referendum is required and must be approved by voters in the county and enacted by the Virginia General Assembly.[6] [7]

In 2022, the Board of Supervisors announced that it would no longer seek the transition following an extensive report on the subject was released by the International Association of Chiefs of Police. The report recommended that the transition not go forward due to several reasons, including the cost (estimated to be between $200 and $300 million), the LCSO's very high satisfaction rates among county citizens, and the low crime rate of the county.[8]

List of sheriffs

Number! scope="col" class="unsortable"
PortraitNamescope=col class="unsortable" TermPartyscope=col class="unsortable" Electoral History
1stAeneas Campbell1757

Unknown
IndependentAppointed in 1757at the creation of Loudoun County[9] [10]
UnknownElijah Viers White1867

Unknown
IndependentElected 1867[11]
UnknownThomas W. EdwardsJanuary 1, 1908

December 31, 1923
IndependentElected 1907Re-elected 1911

Re-elected 1915

Re-elected 1919

UnknownEugene Adrian1930sIndependentElected 1931[12] [13]
UnknownS. Paul AlexanderJanuary 1, 1940

June 5, 1951
DemocraticElected 1939[14] Re-elected 1943[15]

Re-elected 1947

Resigned[16]

UnknownCarroll S. HutchisonJune 6, 1951

December 31, 1951
IndependentAppointed[17] [18]
UnknownRoger Franklin PowellJanuary 1, 1952

December 31, 1959
DemocraticElected in 1951Re-elected in 1955

Lost re-election

UnknownMaurice "Max" DwyerJanuary 1, 1960

December 31, 1963
DemocraticElected in 1959
UnknownRobert Willis LegardJanuary 1, 1964

December 31, 1979
DemocraticElected 1963[19] Re-elected 1967

Re-elected 1971

Re-elected 1975

Lost re-election[20]

UnknownDonald L. LacyJanuary 1, 1980

December 31, 1983
RepublicanElected in 1979[21] Retired[22]
UnknownJohn R. IsomJanuary 1, 1984

December 31, 1995
DemocraticElected in 1983[23] Re-elected in 1987

Re-elected in 1991[24]

Lost re-election

UnknownStephen O'Neil SimpsonJanuary 1, 1996

December 31, 2011
RepublicanElected in 1995[25] Re-elected in 1999[26]

Re-elected in 2003[27]

Re-elected in 2007[28]

Lost re-election

UnknownMichael Louis ChapmanJanuary 1, 2012

present
RepublicanElected in 2011[29] Re-elected in 2015[30]

Re-elected in 2019[31]

Re-elected in 2023

See also

External links

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Notes and References

  1. Web site: Sheriff Mike Chapman Announces Strategic Realignment of Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office . 2024-06-02 . Loudoun County, VA . en.
  2. Web site: PowerDMS . 2024-06-02 . public.powerdms.com.
  3. News: New elected officials take the stage in Loudoun County; Randall expects new board to discuss county police department. Cline. Nathaniel. November 6, 2019. Loudoun Times-Mirror. January 12, 2020.
  4. News: Loudoun County sheriff calls police department proposal 'a matter of exercising power and control'. Cline. Nathaniel. November 8, 2019. Loudoun Times-Mirror. January 12, 2020.
  5. Web site: Loudoun County Government Reform Commission Memorandum. November 1, 2012.
  6. Web site: § 15.2-1702. Referendum required prior to establishment of county police force. law.lis.virginia.gov.
  7. News: Questions and answers about a potential Loudoun County Police Department. Cline. Nathaniel. December 26, 2019. Loudoun Times-Mirror. January 12, 2020.
  8. Web site: 2022-04-06 . Loudoun Co. won't pursue police department; chair seeks to raise state bar for future sheriffs . 2022-05-16 . WTOP News . en.
  9. Web site: Yudd . Charles . April 5, 2022 . Presentation of Loudoun County Police Department Study . Loudoun.gov.
  10. Web site: 13 July 2011 . Loudoun County Court Complex Collection 1833-1993 . LeesburgVA.gov.
  11. Web site: Confederate Officer - Visit Loudoun - Elijah White . www.visitloudoun.org . en-us.
  12. News: Scheel . Eugene . 2001-09-02 . Sheriff and Storyteller, Roger Powell Kept Little-Known Pieces of the Past Alive . en-US . Washington Post . 0190-8286.
  13. Web site: Wadsworth . Chris . 2020-10-04 . Deadly shooting 88 years ago shocked Loudoun . The Burn . en-US.
  14. Web site: 9 November 1939 . Loudoun News, Volume 3, Number 48 . Virginia Chronicle, Library of Virginia.
  15. Web site: 4 November 1943 . Loudoun News, Volume 7, Number 48 . Virginia Chronicle, Library of Virginia.
  16. Web site: 7 June 1951 . Loudoun News, Volume 15, Number 20 . Virginia Chronicle, Library of Virginia.
  17. Web site: Minute Book 02-05-1945 thru 02-03-1953.pdf . Loudoun County Board of Supervisors . 359, 362, 365, 370, 374, 379.
  18. Web site: 9 August 1951 . Loudoun News, Volume 15, Number 29 . Virginia Chronicle, Library of Virginia.
  19. Web site: Owens . Crystal . Jun 16, 2010 . Former Loudoun County Sheriff Legard dies . Loudoun Times-Mirror.
  20. News: Mike . Sager . February 26, 1983 . Controversial Sheriff Of Loudoun County Won't Seek Reelection . The Washington Post.
  21. News: Bruske . Ed . Boodman . 1981-10-07 . Loudoun County Sheriff Under Investigation on -Misconduct Allegations . en-US . Washington Post . 0190-8286.
  22. News: Sager . Mike . September 12, 1983 . Sheriff Is a Hot Issue In Loudoun Campaign . The Washington Post.
  23. News: Cocroft . Anne . 1984-01-12 . Loudoun's New Sheriff Working Hard . en-US . Washington Post . 0190-8286.
  24. Web site: Loudoun County November 5, 1991 General Election Results .
  25. Web site: Loudoun County November 7, 1995 General and Special Elections Results .
  26. Web site: Loudoun County November 2, 1999 General and Special Elections Results .
  27. Web site: Loudoun County November 4, 2003 General and Special Elections Results .
  28. Web site: Loudoun County November 6, 2007 General and Special Elections Results .
  29. Web site: Loudoun County November 8, 2011 General and Special Elections Results .
  30. Web site: Loudoun County November 3, 2015 General Election Results .
  31. Web site: Loudoun County November 5, 2019 General Election Results .