New Deputies Graduate for Arlington County Sheriff's Office
Published on December 14, 2023
Monday, December 11, 2023, ten new deputies of the Arlington County Sheriff’s Office graduated from the Northern Virginia Criminal Justice Training Academy as part of Session 149. The Academy is a six-month program at the largest regional law enforcement training facility in Virginia. The Friday prior, the deputies stood in a county courtroom among colleagues, family and friends and were sworn in by Arlington Clerk of the Circuit Court Paul Ferguson. They will now complete several weeks of in-house training.
“Today marks the culmination of dedication and valor as our recruit sheriff deputies graduate from the training academy, ready to uphold our commitment to serve and protect our community with honor and integrity,” said Sheriff Jose R. Quiroz, Jr. “They will continue to train in various roles within the Sheriff’s Office in the detention facility, courthouse, and civil process. I congratulate each one of them and am thankful they have chosen to become a deputy sheriff here in Arlington County.” The graduates are:
- J.J. Byers
- T. Cherry
- K. Fulmer
- A. Gonyea
- T. M. Harris
- J.P. Kombet
- P.H. Parris
- A. Rabb
- O. Reyes
- D.W. Smith
Three of the new sheriff deputies were recognized with the following achievements at graduation:
- Deputy K. Fulmer was awarded the Director’s Award for Academic Excellence for Deputy School
- Deputy J. Buyers was awarded Excellence in Human Performance, 2nd Place
- Deputy J.P. Kombet was awarded the most distinguished award for trainee excellence, the Thomas L. Shaw award. For this award, Basic Training Staff select one individual recruit that they felt best exhibited the high-quality standards set by Mr. Thomas L. Shaw’s law enforcement legacy. The staff’s selection was difficult due to many excellent candidates.
About Mr. Thomas L. Shaw
This award is named in honor of Mr. Thomas L. Shaw and recognizes his 42 years of service to the Northern Virginia region in the Criminal Justice arena. In 1982, Tom Shaw retired after serving 20 years with the Fairfax County Police Department. During his police career, he served in a variety of different assignments and rose through the ranks to Major with the Fairfax County Police Department. Upon his retirement from the police department, he was named the Executive Director of the Northern Virginia Criminal Justice Training Academy. For the next 18 years, he served as the Academy’s Executive Director, until his second retirement in the year 2000.
He is widely remembered and respected for his tireless commitment to, and implementation of, rigorous training standards and high-quality education for law enforcement officers throughout Virginia. His entire law enforcement career was representative of three characteristics - Professionalism, Dedication, and Leadership.
About the Northern Virginia Criminal Justice Training Academy (NVCJA)
After being hired by the Department, the new officers began their training at the NVCJA, a regional academy offering high quality, professional training to recruit officers who will go on to serve agencies in Northern Virginia. New officers enrolled in the basic training program complete over 800 hours of training curriculum, which orients them to the diverse day-to-day challenges experienced by law enforcement personnel while on the job. In addition to basic training, NVCJA offers in-service training programs to officers throughout their careers.
About the Arlington County Sheriff’s Office (ACSO)
The Arlington County Sheriff’s Office is a Nationally Accredited Law Enforcement Agency located in Northern Virginia. The ACSO staff is approximately 270 sworn and civilian staff who serve a county population of almost 200,000 residents. A Deputy Sheriff performs duties in corrections, inmate transportation, civil process service, and courtroom/courthouse security.
For more information, please visit https://sheriff.arlingtonva.us/ or connect with us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and Twitter.