Spokane County Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich, R, is seeking re-election in 2014 after serving two consecutive four-year terms.

According to the Spokane County website, Knezovich was originally appointed to the office on April 11, 2006, and was officially elected to the Office of Sheriff in the fall of 2006. 2014 marked his 24th year in law enforcement.

In a recent statement released by Knezovich, he said serving as sheriff for the last seven years has been an honor. He said, “Spokane County has many great communities within its borders,” and he believes working together as a region will help solve problems that these communities have in common.

According to the county website, Knezovich is responsible for overseeing law enforcement of unincorporated areas of Spokane County, several contract cities and towns, and managing the county’s corrections system and department of energy management.

Knezovich said on his website that crime is one of the biggest problems facing Spokane County. Since the 2007 formation of the Violent Crimes and Gangs Task Force, violent crimes in unincorporated areas of Spokane County have gone down 56 percent and in the City of Spokane Valley, the crime rates decreased by 24 percent.

On his website, Knezovich said he attributes his success as Sheriff to new policing models such as Intelligence Led Policing, bringing back Crime Check, volunteers in the Sheriff’s Community Oriented Policing Effort (S.C.O.P.E.) and to training, which he said is “essential in developing an effective and professional Sheriff’s office.”

Spokane Police Detective Doug Orr, R, is running against incumbent Ozzie Knezovich in the 2014 Spokane County Sheriff race.

According to his campaign website, Orr has served in three departments over a period of nearly 30 years.

Orr said over the phone that his education sets him apart from his opponent. Orr holds a Ph.D. in criminal justice from Washington State University, a Master’s degree in organizational leadership from Gonzaga University and an MBA from Saint Leo University in Florida. Orr said he hopes his education translates to voters as ability to write policy based on empirical research and training.

If elected, Orr said there are three major things in Spokane County that need to be accomplished.

First, he said civilian oversight is needed in law enforcement, something he said has gone undone for too long in the city and county.

Second, Orr said he plans to focus on an evidence-based response to property crimes. He said he plans to bring in programs that have worked for other Washington communities that work to increase accuracy in arrests.

Third, he said instead of building another large jail in the region, he wants to focus on smaller community corrections centers.

Aside from his work as a detective with the Spokane Police Department, according to his website, Orr has worked closely with legislators from Washington, Idaho and South Carolina to craft public safety legislation and currently sits on the Firearms and Violence Panel for Peer Review at the National Institute of Justice.