Ozzie Knezovich
A candidate for Sheriff, Spokane County in the 2010 Washington General Election
Party: Republican
Age: 61
City: Western Spokane County, Wash.
Occupation: Spokane County sheriff
OZZIE KNEZOVICH
Education: Graduated from Rock Springs High School in Wyoming. Graduated from Weber State College with an integrated studies bachelor’s degree in 1985.
Work experience: Became town marshal in Superior, Wyoming in 1990. Joined Rock Springs, Wyoming police force in 1991. Joined Olympia Police Department in 1995. Joined Spokane County Sheriff’s Office as deputy in 1996. Became sergeant in 2004. Appointed Spokane County sheriff by county commissioners in 2006 and won election to the post in November of that year. Re-elected while unopposed in 2010.
Political experience: Former president of the Spokane County Deputy Sheriff’s Association. Former president of the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs. Named to the FBI’s Law Enforcement Executive Development Association in 2008. Served as president of that group in 2012.
Military: U.S. Army airborne medical specialist and combat medic, served in Korea, 1987-90.
Family: Married, three grown children.
Contact information
Related Coverage
Sheriff critical; S-R stands behind story
Spokane County Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich confirmed Wednesday for the second time in two days that chemicals were mixed with shrapnel in a bomb that was placed along the Unity March route in downtown Spokane on Jan. 17. The sheriff has criticized a front-page story published in the Wednesday edition of The Spokesman-Review, but stopped short of seeking a correction.
Sheriff’s detective cleared of using excessive force
A jury Wednesday exonerated a Spokane County sheriff’s detective who has been the subject of several excessive force complaints. The jury found unanimously for Spokane County in a case that began with a traffic stop on Jan. 22, 2006, by Jeff Welton, who was a deputy at the time.
King Day bomb had chemical component
A bomb maker mixed chemicals with shrapnel in what law enforcement officials say was a weapon designed to inflict maximum injuries during last week’s Martin Luther King Jr. march in downtown Spokane. Tests are being conducted to determine the type of chemical and whether it made the bomb potentially more deadly, Spokane County Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich said Tuesday.
MLK bomb laced with chemical, sources say
A bomb maker mixed chemicals with shrapnel in what law enforcement officials say was a weapon designed to inflict maximum injuries during last week’s Martin Luther King Jr. march in downtown Spokane.
Leaders, residents discuss violence in the community
The Spokane-area community gathered Saturday morning to discuss the attempted bombing along the Martin Luther King Jr. Unity March on Jan. 17. Spokane County Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich and state Rep. Kevin Parker co-hosted the forum, “Understanding Threats in Our Community,” on the Washington State University Spokane campus. Community leaders and residents discussed their concerns about, and possible solutions to, violence in the community.
Verner: ‘This is not who we are’
The Spokane-area community joined this morning to discuss the attempted bombing along the Martin Luther King Jr. Day Unity March on Monday.
Civil trial over use of Taser begins
A Spokane County sheriff’s detective who has been the subject of a number of use-of-force complaints appeared in court Tuesday, the first day in a civil trial brought by a man who claimed that he was unnecessarily shocked by a Taser during a traffic stop. Daniel B. Strange, 41, filed a $1.5 million excessive force lawsuit against Spokane County in 2006 after a traffic stop on Jan. 22 of that year in which Deputy Jeff Welton shot Strange with a Taser during a traffic stop in Spokane Valley.
County considers using reserves to save public safety jobs
Spokane County commissioners may dip into reserves to save jobs and offset some of the most painful cuts in their 2011 general fund budget. Commissioners Mark Richard and Bonnie Mager called for preserving safety-related programs by reducing reserves from 10 percent of the $136.8 million general fund to perhaps 8 percent.
Life-savers honored at annual ceremony
Two Spokane County sheriff’s employees have been honored for saving the life of a suicidal man after he was shot by officers. Deputy Walter Loucks and Sgt. Dale Golman rushed to Michael E. Young after he was shot Dec. 27 and kept him breathing while medics arrived.