The Many Hats
Of Bill Bohnyak

As sheriff of Orange County for the last six years, I am on the verge of retirement from the Sheriff’s Department and a total of approximately 40 years of public service (23 years active duty USN, 17 years Sheriff’s Department).

I have been watching the up-coming primary election very carefully. I have long ago placed my endorsement and support to my second in command, Captain Bill Bohnyak. Due to a recent serious illness and subsequent surgery, Captain Bohnyak has had to take the reins of the Department during my recovery period. His performance has been most remarkable.

He did not fail to display top leadership, confidence, and capability that are seldom seen in a candidate vying for any office. His decisions were timely, crisp, decisive and correct. There were no laps in leadership during my absence.

There are only two full-time law enforcement positions within the Orange County Sheriff’s Department, sheriff and chief deputy (captain), both of which are state-paid. All the rest of the positions are part-time deputies. It is state law that forbids the county to fund for law enforcement services at the county level.

Due to this fact, the choice of chief deputy is not a position to be filled haphazardly. And Bill Bohnyak was scrutinized very carefully for that position. His first obstacle was to attend and successfully complete a very vigorous 16-week resident full time police academy in order for him to remain as the "State Deputy."

Bill Bohnyak did not disappoint me in my selection and he went on to wear many very important hats while in the job of chief deputy. He became a field training officer (FTO), a position requiring a full-time police certification and not offered to just any police officer. I also looked at Bill Bohnyak for a DARE position. This too is not a position for all police officers. Bill has been teaching DARE for many years now.

Capt. Bohnyak also took the initiative to become the depart-ment firearms instructor, a position that teaches the use of deadly force and firearms safety.

Captain Bill Bohnyak is above all a superior criminal investigator. He does not shy away from serious cases that could take months to investigate. He is adept in seeking, writing and executing search warrants. He has recovered tens of thousands of dollars in stolen property. He has stopped many sexual predators. He is an excellent investigator in juvenile matters.

He heads up the Department DUI team and writes the many grant requests to fund the programs. He is heavily involved in the START program which attempts to intervene in teen drinking either reactively or proactively. He is the department intelligence officer, attending very sensitive intel meetings around the state, both providing and receiving intelligence on all types of crimes.

Bill Bohnyak has been involved from start to finish with every homeland security grant that I have written since 9-11.

I have only scratched the surface of the experience and qualifications of Captain ill Bohnyak. I wish I could list them all, but there are just too many, all of which are needed to run the Orange County Sheriff’s Department, and jail. He will hit the road running and the department will continue to grow and prosper under his leadership and expertise. The office of sheriff is not the place to train to be a police officer or the place to provide your first service to the citizens of Orange County!

Dennis McClure

Sheriff, Orange County

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