Patrol Bureau | Skagit County

Chief of Field Services:
Chief Chris Baldwin

The Skagit County Patrol Bureau is the largest unit in the Skagit County Sheriff's Office.

The Patrol Bureau is comprised of approximately 50 commissioned law enforcement officers at any given time and encompasses the Traffic, K-9, Boating, Search and Rescue, La Conner, and East Precinct units.

Drug Task
Force

Skagit's Most
Wanted

Search and
Rescue

The primary core of Patrol is made up of four rotating squads. Each squad usually includes one sergeant and five patrol deputies. In addition, there may be one or two traffic deputies, a K-9 deputy, one or two east precinct deputies, and a La Conner precinct deputy to augment the primary patrol squad depending needs and time of day.

The Skagit County Patrol Bureau is proud to be a diverse group of men and women serving in Skagit County. Each deputy trains regularly and has a wide variety of skill-sets to offer the citizens and patrons of Skagit County. Through it's training regiment and dedication to the public it serves, the Patrol Bureau has earned the respect of it's community and surrounding law enforcement agencies.

Traffic Unit

Unit Supervisor: Sgt. Craig Caulk

The Skagit County Sheriff's Office Traffic Unit consists of five full time traffic deputies and one sergeant. The mission of the Traffic Unit is to promote traffic safety in Skagit County through education and enforcement. The traffic unit participates in the Skagit County Traffic Safety Task Force and regularly participates in DUI emphasis and major traffic corridor safety projects and patrols.

To augment the traffic unit, the motorcycle program was started in 1997. Three deputies are assigned to traffic motorcycles and focus their enforcement in areas where it is difficult for a patrol vehicle to respond as well as during special events such as the Skagit County Tulip Festival where traffic congestion prohibits patrol vehicles from a timely response to calls for service. In addition to patrol and traffic functions, the motorcycles are also used as escorts for motorcades and parades.

The Skagit County Traffic Unit is happy to assist you with your traffic related concerns. If you observe ongoing problems with traffic violations in your neighborhood please contact the traffic division. Our traffic deputies will come out and conduct emphasis patrols if requested as time and man-power allows.

K9 Unit

Unit Supervisor: Sgt. Jason Moses

The philosophy and the mission of the Skagit County Sheriff's Office Canine program is to provide reliable patrol dogs to aid law enforcement personnel, in the search, location, and apprehension of criminals. The K9 teams can be applied as a specialized tool in tactical situations and as back-up to augment patrol.

The K9 teams may also be utilized to search for evidence of a crime. The Skagit County Canine Program currently consists of two dog teams, K9 Dutch and K9 Fred. K9 Dutch is a 2-year-old German Shepherd/Malinois mix born in the Netherlands. K9 Fred is a 16-month-old German Shepherd born in the Czech Republic. They are a cross trained dog teams which means they are able to track humans and search for the odor of drugs.

In April 2024, Deputy Mueller was selected to be the next K9 Handler and paired up with K9 Dutch. They then completed the 400-hour Basic K9 Academy for patrol work followed by the 200-hour Drug Detection Training. K9 Dutch is certified to detect illegal substances such as Fentanyl, Methamphetamine, Cocaine and Heroin.

Earlier this year, Deputy Kading teamed up with K9 Fred and completed the 400-hour Basic K9 Academy for patrol hosted by the Bellingham Police Department. They recently certified through the Washington State Police Canine Association as a patrol dog team.

The Skagit County Sheriff's Office Canine team is the one of five K9 teams in Skagit County and is regularly utilized by the cities of Mount Vernon, Anacortes, Sedro-Woolley, and Burlington to assist in the apprehension of criminals and to promote mutual aid among the local agencies within the county.

The Skagit County K9 team trains on a regular basis on tracking, area searches, building searches, evidence searches, clearing vehicles, pursuits, detaining suspects, and handler protection. They also train regularly in narcotic detection. These odors include the four major narcotics: cocaine, crack cocaine, heroin, and methamphetamine. The handler also provides training to local law enforcement personnel on K9 related topics.

K9 School Assemblies

The Skagit County Sheriff's Office K-9 unit is proud to put on K-9 assemblies for elementary schools in Skagit County. These assemblies are designed to provide an opportunity for children to interact with law enforcement in a positive and exciting environment.

The assemblies demonstrate some of the skills of our K-9's and the deputies that handle them as well as provide a question and answer session for kids to interact with deputies. The Sheriff's Office believes that it is important to gain the trust and confidence of children, provide them with positive role models, and give them the opportunity to see what an exciting career in law enforcement is like.

If your school or organization would like to request a K9 demonstration, please contact Sgt. Jason Moses at (360) 416-1911.

Boating Unit

Unit Supervisor: Sgt. Steve Gonzales

The Skagit County Sheriff's Office boat patrol unit consists of five, fulltime, commissioned sheriff's deputies and one patrol sergeant. This unit is responsible for all sheriff's office responsibilities on the waters of Skagit County. The deputies are assigned on a part time basis to the boat patrol unit and are available to respond as the situation requires. In addition, these same deputies are regularly scheduled for weekend boat patrol in the summer months between the Memorial and Labor Day holidays.

All of the deputies assigned to the boating unit have been certified by the State of Washington parks department after passing a basic, one week boating academy. In addition many of the assigned deputies have received additional training in boat accident investigation, search and rescue operations, intoxicated boater enforcement and waterborne tactical operations.

The Skagit County Sheriff's office boating unit has been accredited by the State of Washington since 1988. It is largely funded by monies collected by the State of Washington from boat registration taxes with the money then disbursed to all accredited boat patrol programs throughout the State.

The Skagit County Sheriff's office boating program strives to provide safe and enjoyable waterways within Skagit County, through continuing education, vessel safety inspections and enforcement action as may be required.

Boating Regulations | View Skagit County Lake Boating Info | Other Boating Resources

North Cascades Regional SWAT Team

SWAT Team Commander: Chief Chris Baldwin

The Skagit County Sheriff's Office is part of the North Cascades Regional SWAT team (NCRS). NCRS is comprised of law enforcement and medical personnel from Skagit and Island Counties. These dedicated operators and medics are highly trained, skilled, and equipped to work as a coordinated team to save lives.

NCRS responds to rapidly evolving, highly complex situations that exceed the capabilities of initial responders.

Animal Control

Unit Supervisor: Sgt. Craig Caulk

The Animal Control unit consists of one full-time officer, Officer Emily Diaz. She is responsible for responding to all animal related complaints. On average the Skagit County Sheriffs Office responds to 1400-1500 Animal problems a year. The Animal Control Officer handles on average 1200 of these on her own.

Officer Diaz responds to calls related to animal cruelty, neglect, unsafe confinement, unsafe transportation, animal abandonment, hoarding situations, loose livestock, aggressive dogs, and wild/exotic animals.

Animal Control is responsible for all phases of investigation of all animal complaints. From the initial complaint, filling charges, and testifying in court. Animal Control is also responsible for removing animals from unsafe situations and getting the animals the care they need to be rehabilitated and placed in loving homes.

Officer Diaz is usually on duty and available for contact during sheriff's office business hours Monday through Friday or by phone at 360 416-1911. All complaints should be made through 911 dispatch or on the non-emergency line at 360-428-3211.

Due to budget restraints a majority of the animals care is provided through donations. If you wish to make a tax deductible donation to help Skagit County Rescue Animals and Horses please make donations to:

Skagit Animals In Need
P.O. Box 503, Mount Vernon, WA 98273

Or visit:
http://www.skagitanimalsinneed.org

Proactive Unit

Unit Supervisor: Sgt. Chris Kading

The Skagit County Sheriff's Office Proactive Unit is the newest unit to Skagit County. The proactive unit is responsible for gathering intelligence on and infiltrating known crime rings and problem areas within Skagit County. The proactive unit acts on the intelligence it gathers to make arrests and bring criminals to justice. The proactive unit is different from a regular patrol unit in that it does not answer regular calls for service but focuses entirely on proactive arrest and intelligence gathering activities.

The proactive unit currently focuses it's efforts on neighborhood crime rings and problem houses involved with motor vehicle thefts, burglaries, identity theft, fraud and other such criminal activity and works in conjunction with the Interlocal Drug Task Force, Skagit County Sheriff's Office Investigations, and surrounding agency's proactive teams to share and gather information.

The proactive unit relies on information provided by the citizens and patrons of Skagit County. If you have information on a crime ring or problem area in Skagit County please contact Sgt. Chris Kading at (360) 416-1911 during normal business hours Monday through Friday.

Address: 600 South Third Street Mount Vernon WA 98273
Phone: (360) 416-1911 (Emergencies Dial 9-1-1)
Fax: (360) 416-1924

Concrete: East County Detachment

Precinct Supervisor: Sgt. Paul Wolfe

The Skagit County Sheriff's Office East Precinct is tasked with providing law enforcement service to the towns of Lyman, Hamilton, Rockport and Marblemount and has a coverage area from just west of Lyman to the eastern borders of Skagit County with a total coverage area of more than 1000 square miles.

The East Precinct office is currently staffed by one sergeant and six permanently assigned east deputies. East deputies are assigned to the east Precinct for a minimum of 2 years with the option to stay for up to 5 years.

The Skagit County Sheriff's Office East Precinct is also currently providing contract law enforcement services for the Town of Concrete. Concrete is located in the foothills of the North Cascades along scenic State Route 20. The Town of Concrete has a population of just under 800 but during bald eagle season, fishing and hunting seasons, and during the summer months thousands of people may pass through the town per day.

The Skagit County Sheriff's Office East Precinct is also responsible for coordinating search and rescue services for the entire county and will assist in search and rescue services as needed for the cities of Mount Vernon, Burlington, Sedro-Woolley, and Anacortes.

East Precinct deputies are given special search and rescue training in order to equip them with the knowledge necessary to launch a successful search and rescue mission under a wide variety of circumstances and conditions.

Additionally, East Precinct deputies patrol the back-country of Skagit County in specially equipped, four wheel drive and off road vehicles that allow them access to parts of the county that would otherwise be inaccessible.

Address:
Concrete Town Hall Building
45672 Main Street. Concrete WA

Phone:
(360) 416-1911

*Note: This office is not staffed regularly.
Please call ahead to schedule an appointment.

La Conner: West Detachment

Precinct Supervisor: Sgt. Ben Hagglund

The Skagit County Sheriff’s Office proudly serves the Town of La Conner providing contract law enforcement services. The Town of La Conner is nestled in the southwest corner of Skagit County. The town’s population is over 900 people, but during peak tourism season the population can swell into the thousands.

The Sheriff’s Office is responsible for providing all law enforcement services to the town. The La Conner Detachment Office is located right next to Town Hall at 204 S. Douglas Street. The general day to day operations are overseen by a dedicated patrol sergeant.

Anyone resident seeking services such as fingerprinting or concealed weapons permits, should contact the main Sheriff’s Office located in Mount Vernon by calling 360-416-1911 to schedule an appointment.

We're Hiring Patrol Deputies!