Jefferson County Sheriff's Office (Colorado)
| Jefferson County Sheriff's Office | |
|---|---|
| Abbreviation | JCSO |
| Agency overview | |
| Formed | 1859 |
 | |
| Map of Jefferson County Sheriff's Office's jurisdiction. | |
| Size | 774 square miles (2,000 km2) |
| Population | 565,524 (2015) |
| Headquarters | 200 Jefferson County Parkway, Golden, Colorado 80401-2697 |
|
| |
| Agency executive |
|
| Website | |
|
www | |
The Jefferson County Sheriff's Office (JCSO) or JeffCo is a criminal justice agency based in Golden, Colorado. It serves all of Jefferson County and is its main law enforcement agency. JCSO has the responsibility to 189,720 residents in the unincorporated areas of the 773 square miles of the county.[1]
Overview and structure
The Jefferson County Sheriff's Office was founded in November 1859 and today serves the over 550,000 residents of Jefferson County with a patrolling responsibility to 189,720 residents in the unincorporated areas of the 773 square miles of the county. As chief law enforcement officer of the county, the Sheriff oversees the largest full-service sheriff's office in Colorado with 542 state certified deputies and 283 professional staff. Additionally, about 300 volunteers support Sheriff's operations.[2]
Rank structure
| Title | Insignia |
|---|---|
| Sheriff |  |
| Undersheriff |  |
| Division Chief |  |
| Captain |  |
| Lieutenant |  |
| Sergeant |  |
| Deputy |
Notable events
Columbine high school shooting
JeffCo was the main investigation agency in the 1999 Columbine massacre along with national agencies such as the F.B.I. The agency was responsible for responding to the shooting and did. JeffCo lead the investigation and was hit with extreme backlash after it was revealed the agency had the perpetrators Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold in and out of custody prior to the shooting. Following the shooting, one of the perpetrators' parents, Sue Klebold, sued the Jefferson County Sheriff's office for failing to prevent their son from carrying out the Columbine High shootings. County officials were "reckless, willful and wanton" in the way they handled a 1998 police report about Eric Harris' Internet ravings, according to a "notice of intent to sue" filed by Susan and Thomas Klebold. Others said "It's rather astonishing that the Klebolds would hold the Jefferson County Sheriff's Department responsible for their own son's behavior," said Bill Tuthill, assistant county attorney.[3][4][5]