Below is a short biography of my law enforcement career. As you read my biography remember that I was an "at will employee" for eighteen-years before the Travis County population reached the civil service threshold. I know full well the stress that is placed on deputy sheriffs and jailers under this system, so that is why I employ a "civil service style" management system to include hiring, the promotional and disciplinary processes. I pride myself on working closely with our associations, their respective representatives and attorneys in order to resolve issues fairly.

My law enforcement career started in 1974 upon my graduation from Sam Houston State University where I earned a B.S. in Law Enforcement. My first job was as a jailer at the Travis County Sheriff’s Office. The agency was small with about two-hundred employees. I worked the next twenty-six years at the Travis County Sheriff’s Office, and held many positions until my retirement. I experienced the rapid growth of this agency and watched the office grow to over one thousand employees during my career.

After I retired I was subsequently employed at the Williamson County Sheriff’s Office where I served as the Lieutenant in command of their Criminal Investigations Major Crimes Unit. I left Williamson County and served six years as an investigator with the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission. Some of the positions I have held at these agencies include jailer, jail investigator, patrol officer, traffic officer, warrant officer, burglary/theft/ major crimes detective, awards committee chair, adjunct training instructor, Lieutenant and Captain.

In November of 2010 I was honored to be elected Sheriff of Hays County. Upon taking office, I met with all of our employees to share my experiences and vision of what was in store for one of the fastest growing counties in the U.S. I promised job stability, support for our associations, a common sense policy manual, support for collective bargaining, to listen to suggestions, solicit employee input and to provide enhanced training, equipment upgrades, an overall better and safer fleet vehicle pool, Victim Assistance, Crime Lab and a more secure and better maintained jail facility.

I have delivered on every promise and continue to work tirelessly to enhance our agency’s abilities to provide services and to support those employees who provide our myriad of public services. Below are a few highlights of our accomplishments during the past five years.

• ? Academy Training increased from 5,000 hours in 2010 to 41,000 in    2014
• ? 7,000 hours of outside agency training for HCSO employees in 2014
• ? Intermediate and Advanced training classes are held yearly for officer  license upgrades
• ? Fleet vehicles are now V8 SUV or V6 TURBO LE packages with enhance light packages
• ? Enhanced BPOC, BOBCAT, defensive tactics, driving, MHU and firearms training
• ? Facilities Manager acquired to better supervise and maintain jail, command and LEC
• ? Booking and Recreation areas remodeled to better handle our growing jail populations
• ? Acquired personnel for CID, Victim Assistance, Warrants, Patrol, SRO, Academy, HR, Budget, Booking, Crime Lab and Maintenance for better overall effectiveness and efficiency
• ? Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR) installed for comprehensive and unbiased internal investigations with a two appeal process while working with CLEAT, FOP and Union Representatives
• ? Remodel of the Wimberley Substation
• ? Contracted jail medical section for better overall inmate care, cost savings and indemnity
• ? Created Supervisory Training Courses for newly promoted CPL, Det. & Sgts.
• ? Cleared a twenty year backlog of mismanaged evidence room
• ? Installed a new crime lab facility and created a civilian supervisor position to better process and manage our evidence and employees
• ? Entered into an MOU with other county jails to keep our jail at an acceptable Texas Commission on Jail Standards level in order to manage our burgeoning population without sanctions or interruptions
• ? Installed the wireless "PIPE" system to increase efficiency and effectiveness while conducting required inmate checks
• ? Installed the VIDEO visitation system using SECURUS vendor at no cost to the county
• ? Has expended the participation of the SWAT team that includes: Kyle PD, Buda PD, and Texas State University.
• ? Maintained the overall S.O. budget +/- 1% for the past five years
• ? Helped establish a vehicle rotation system with Commissioners’ Court to keep our fleet healthy and our officers safe
• ? Refurbished the Communications A/C system with recycled Justice Center A/C, now the old A/C system is in place as an emergency backup instead of a failing primary system

• ? We continue to score perfect or near perfect on inspections of our kitchen, jail facility, academy, license testing and fire inspections
• ? Installed armory for jail bureau and upgraded officer safety (ballistic glass and walls) for our bonding unit and entry doors
• ? MOU with Austin PD Lab for faster drug case turn around and use of ballistics, DNA and other laboratory services when needed. System helps move cases forward and purge evidence storage
• ? Development and deployment of new CSI Van

I look forward to having your continued support now and in the years to come so that together we can continue to build the agency to meet the growing needs and demands of Hays County. Together we will work towards a new jail, communications center and the renovation of the Law Enforcement Center.

Sincerely,

Gary Cutler

Sheriff