Sheriff

About Chad Sheehan

Sheriff Chad Sheehan was elected as the 34th Sheriff of Woodbury County, Iowa in November of 2020 and was sworn into office January 2, 2021. The Woodbury County Sheriff's Office has 120 employees and covers 872 square miles with a population of 102,271.

Sheriff Sheehan began his law enforcement career in the fall of 1993 when he began training to become a Reserve Deputy with the Woodbury County Sheriff's Office. Prior to completing Reserve training he was hired as a full time Police Officer in South Sioux City, NE. In 1999 Sheriff Sheehan joined the Sioux City Police Department and worked there until his retirement from Sioux City in August 2016. Sheriff Sheehan then spent over four years traveling the United States training schools,  businesses and organizations in the training program he developed called S.A.V.E. Yourself. The program teaches people what to do if they are caught in the middle of a violent attack like an active killing. Sheriff Sheehan has worked in multiple capacities during his law enforcement career including the Hostage Negotiation Unit, Field Training Officer, K-9 Handler, School Resource Officer, Community Policing Unit, Honor Guard and Critical Incident Stress Management team member. 

The Woodbury County Sheriff's Office was the first law enforcement agency in Iowa to utilize Axon Body cameras for our staff. Body cameras give a true depiction of what law enforcement is faced with on a daily basis, both in the jail and on the street. This also allows us to be transparent in all we do. In January 2023 we will be upgrading to the latest versions of the Axon Body cameras.

We took control of Courthouse Security in 2014 and placed all security personnel in Sheriff's Office uniforms and put them in our quarterly in-service training rotation that the rest of the Sheriff's Office staff receives. That change provided better security for the courts, county employees and the citizens that use the building for business reasons.    

Starting in 2018, we began teaching the DARE program in our county schools again. We felt this was a another key piece of our community policing efforts so we worked to re-implement the program.  In the fall of 2022 we will be refocusing our education and school outreach efforts in a new "S.T.A.R.S." program specifically developed for the Woodbury County Sheriff's Office. Thanks to the support of many Woodbury County businesses we are able to deliver our new prgram at no additional cost to tax payers.

S - Sheriff's Office
T - Teaching
A - Awarness
R - Responsibilty
S - Safety

In an effort to keep school safety one of his top priorities Sheriff Sheehan realocated a Deputy to be assigned full time to the rural schools as a School Resource Officer starting with the 2022-23 school year. Deputy Chwirka completed SRO training during the summer of 2022 and is excited to fill this new role for the Sheriff's Office 

We also continue to play an active role in our communities by volunteering for many causes. We have volunteered at Convoy of Hope, Salvation Army Food Basket and Toy Drive, along with numerous other agencies and events. We feel that giving back not only reflects positively on the Sheriff's Office, but it shows a genuine spirit of caring!

About Chief Deputy Tony Wingert

Chief Deputy Wingert is a native Iowan, born and raised around the Sioux City area. He graduated from Bishop Heelan High School in 1987. Tony attended Morningside College through 1991 majoring in Criminal Justice.

Chief Deputy Wingert began his career with the Woodbury County Sheriff’s Office in 1993. Tony’s first position was a Corrections Officer assigned to the Jail Division.  In 1995, he was appointed Deputy Sheriff.  In 1998, he successfully certified his first K9 (Spenser) and served in the K9 Division until 2003. In 2003, Sheriff Dave Amick transferred Tony to the Tri-State Drug Task Force, where he worked as a federally deputized Drug Enforcement Agent for four years. After completing his tour with the Task Force, Tony certified his second canine partner (Chewy).   Tony was also a member of the WCSO SWAT Team for fifteen years.

On January 3rd, 2013, Sheriff Dave Drew appointed Tony to the rank of Lieutenant. In 2016, Sheriff Drew promoted Tony to the rank of Captain, and in May of 2017, Sheriff Drew appointed him to the rank of Major. In July of 2019 Sheriff Drew promoted Major Wingert to Chief Deputy.

In his 28 years at the Sheriff’s Office, Chief Deputy Wingert has worked or has overseen all the divisions of the Sheriff’s Office. Tony has been a state certified instructor in various areas, including, basic firearms, tactical/combat handgun, patrol rifle, ASP Baton, crowd control techniques, active shooter instructor and force on force. Tony is also an Instructor for Sheehan Strategic Solutions Inc. and instructs in responses to school and workplace violence.

About Captain Willie Garrett

 Captain Garrett was born in Chicago, IL and graduated from Cetura High School In 1991. He graduated from Wayne State College, Wayne, NE with a BS in Criminal Justice in 1995.

Captain Garrett enlisted as an infantryman in the US Army Guard in 1991. He commissioned as an Army Infantry Officer in 2008. He was deployed to Afghanistan January 2010 to January 2011 and continues to serve the Air National Guard in the 185th ARW as a Operations Officer for Security Forces.

Captain Garrett began his law enforcement career in 1999 working as a patrolman for the Hawarden Police Department until being hired as a deputy by the Woodbury County Sheriff's Office (WCSO) in 2008. He was assigned to the Patrol Division.

In 2013 Captain Garrett was assigned to the Tri-State Drug Task Force, where he worked as a federally deputized Drug Enforcement Agent for three years.  While assigned to the task force he also worked a K-9 named Kota. They were involved in several large-scale Federal investigations while assigned to the Drug Task Force.

Captain Garrett returned to the Patrol Division in 2016. He has slo worked Investigations, D.A.R.E. and has headed the Honor Guard since 2016. He was also a member of the SWAT team from 2010-2020.

Captain Garrett was appointed to Lieutenant in 2017 and then to Captain in July 2019. Captain Garrett oversees Investigations, Records, Civil, Transport and Court Security.

About Captain Todd Peterson

Captain Peterson was born in Sioux City and graduated from North High School in 1989.  While a senior in high school he enlisted in the United States Marine Corps (USMC).  

Captain Peterson enlisted as an infantryman in the USMC and was stationed in Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii. During his enlistment he was deployed to Kuwait and Saudi Arabia during the Persian Gulf War in 1990-1991.

Captain Peterson began his career with the Woodbury County Sheriff's Office (WCSO) in 2001. His first position was a Corrections Officer assigned to the Jail Division. In 2004 Captain Peterson was promoted to Deputy Sheriff and attended the Iowa Law Enforcement Academy. Upon graduation from the academy he was assigned to the Patrol Division.

In 2007 Captain Peterson was assigned to the Tri-State Drug Task Force, where he worked as a federally deputized Drug Enforcement Agent for four years. He was involved in several large-scale Federal investigations while assigned to the Drug Task Force.

Captain Peterson returned to the Patrol Division in 2011, where he became a precision Driving and Field Sobriety Instructor. He was also a member of the SWAT team.

Captain Peterson was re-assigned to the Tri-State Drug Task Force in 2017 and continued to work in that assignment until January 2021.

Sheriff Chad Sheehan appointed Captain Peterson to the rank of Captain effective January 2, 2021. Captain Peterson oversees the Patrol Division, SWAT, K9, Reserves, Community Policing and D.A.R.E.