Orange County Sheriff Keith Merritt plans to make some personnel changes within his department in January. Merritt said he has asked John Tarver a former chief deputy under two previous sheriffs to return to the Sheriff’s Office in that capacity. Merritt indicated he had wanted Tarver on the Sheriff’s Office staff for quite a while, but circumstances had never worked out. Beginning in the New Year the sheriff will move a couple of people around to make the position of chief deputy available for Tarver.
The change was started with the announced retirement of Sheriff’s Patrol Captain Mike Langley effective the first week in January. Sheriff Merritt intends to return his current Chief Deputy Clint Hodgkinson to his previous position of patrol captain from where he was promoted in 2011. Merritt emphasizes the change is not a reflection on the job performance of Hodgkinson, but the opportunity to get the services of Tarver with the Sheriff’s Office was the motivating factor timed with the retirement of Langley. Merritt confirmed he thinks Hodgkinson will do a great job at the position of patrol captain just as he had done before.
One other change is Chad Hogan the chief investigator for the Sheriff’s Office will return to his position as the department’s Public Information Officer. Hogan held the PIO position before Hodgkinson assumed that role when he was made chief deputy.
After more than 30 years in local law enforcement John Tarver is returning to where his career began. Tarver has accepted the position of chief deputy with the Orange County Sheriff’s Office. Tarver said he began working for the Sheriff’s Office in 1977 as a jailer in the Orange County Jail. Tarver added he is looking forward to working with Sheriff Merritt and the crew that’s over there now.
Tarver served as chief deputy previously with two different sheriffs in the county as well as working with two local police departments. Tarver informed that most of his 39 years in law enforcement were with the Sheriff’s Office and the Bridge City Police Department. He retired at age 50, but it only lasted about 6 months before he went to West Orange Police Chief Mike Stelly and asked him if he could use an old cop in his department. Tarver originally told Stelly he would probably work about five years with the West Orange Police Department, but when he moves to the Sheriff’s Office next year it will have been 9 years with Stelly in West Orange.
On January 6, 2016 Tarver will take over as chief deputy and hopes to add his years of experience to make Sheriff Keith Merritt’s team even better. Tarver concludes that he does not plan to make any changes and just hopes to add his knowledge gained in 39 years of law enforcement to what they’ve already got going.
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