FILE - A Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office vehicle on July 7, 2025.
Jen Baires / OPB / OPB
Deschutes County Sheriff Kent van der Kamp is not fit to serve. That was the decision Thursday from the board overseeing Oregon’s Department of Public Safety Standards and Training. The agency is responsible for issuing peace officer certifications and reviewing certain misconduct complaints against law enforcement.
The DPSST board decision came after a staff investigation found multiple incidents of alleged dishonesty by van der Kamp over the course of his 20-year career with the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office. Van der kamp was elected to lead the office last November.
With mounting public pressure to leave office, the sheriff announced his resignation last month. His last day will be July 31, just seven months into his first term. The county’s board of commissioners plans to appoint an interim sheriff next Tuesday, days ahead of van der Kamp’s exit.
Van der Kamp and his lawyers did not respond to requests for comment. Sheriff’s office spokesperson Jason Carr said the sheriff is on vacation this week.
Kent van der Kamp poses for a portrait during his campaign for Deschutes County sheriff, Sept. 26, 2024.
Emily Cureton-Cook / OPB
In April, DPSST officials found van der Kamp intentionally didn’t tell Oregon officials he was previously fired from a police department in California.
A separate investigation conducted by Deschutes County District Attorney Steve Gunnels found van der Kamp gave false testimony about his education while under oath in multiple criminal trials dating back to 2013. Gunnels has directed local prosecutors to no longer call on van der Kamp as a witness for the county.
In May, the DPSST Police Policy Committee unanimously voted to recommend revoking his certifications. The committee found that he violated moral fitness standards and should be banned for life from serving as a peace officer in Oregon. Thursday’s full DPSST board vote was largely a formality, and board members did not publicly discuss van der Kamp’s case.
DPSST had already issued its notice of intent to revoke van der Kamp’s certifications. Van der Kamp’s lawyers have signaled they will fight the decision, and have requested a contested case hearing, according to DPSST spokesperson Sam Tenney. Van der Kamp’s certifications remain active during the appeals process.
With van der Kamp set to leave office on July 31, five candidates hoping to replace him have officially filed applications with the county. County commissioners say they plan to appoint an interim sheriff during a public meeting on July 29.
The five candidates are all long-serving officers in the region. They include, Capt. Paul Kansky, deputy chief of police at Bend Police Department, Lt. James Mclaughlin with Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office, Capt. Ty Rupert with the sheriff’s office, Undersheriff Aaron Wells and Deron McMaster, a former sheriff’s office captain who resigned in 2021. McMaster later sued the office alleging retaliation and civil rights violations following a demotion by former Sheriff Shane Nelson.
The Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office Employee Association hosted a candidate forum this month, where four of the five candidates spoke about their experience and plans for the office should they be appointed. Each said they would first focus on improving morale within the office and rebuilding trust with the greater community. Following the forum, the union held a ranked choice vote to advise county commissioners on who its members prefer.
McLaughlin came in as the top choice, with Rupert second. Daniel Graham, union president, said that there was about 80% voter turnout among the roughly 200 members with 10 people abstaining.
McLaughlin filed a tort claim notice with the county last year claiming he experienced retaliation and discrimination by former Sheriff Nelson for supporting van der Kamp’s candidacy and being involved with union organizing. After the election, Van der Kamp promoted McLaughlin to lieutenant in February.
Graham said he provided the union’s vote to county commissioners, some of whom have indicated that the results will weigh heavily in their considerations. However, at the time of the vote the county was still accepting applications and Kansky with the police department had not yet applied. Additionally, Cory Darling, a forum participant, did not formally apply to the county.
“We voted based on the information we had available to us at the time,” Graham said.
Once appointed, the interim sheriff will serve until the next elected sheriff is sworn in. A special election for that position is planned for May 19, 2026.
Editor’s note: During the 2024 election cycle, van der Kamp took OPB and Deschutes County to court in an attempt to seal records about his past law enforcement experience in La Mesa, California. A judge found the lawsuit lacked any reasonable basis. OPB continues to have active litigation to recover legal fees accrued defending itself from van der Kamp’s lawsuit.
This story was reported by freelancer Jen Baires. She can be reached at jbaires@opb.org.
OPB is a nonprofit, statewide news organization with a mission to tell stories for communities in all parts of Oregon and Southwest Washington. As part of that goal, we work with partner news organizations and freelancers to identify stories like this that might otherwise go untold. If you have an idea for a story, live in an area outside Portland and want to work with us, send your freelance pitches to ecureton@opb.org.
