Sheriff of Clark County

The Sheriff of Clark County, officially The Sheriff of the County of Clark, is the chief law enforcement officer of Clark County, Nevada. The Sheriff heads the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, is elected by the citizens of Clark County, and is an independent agency with joint policing of the City of Las Vegas and of unincorporated Clark County. The sheriff is the only elected head law enforcement officer within the city and county, and, as such, is not under the direct control of the city, county, state, or federal government.

Sheriff of Clark County
Incumbent Kevin McMahill since January 2, 2023
Style	The Honorable
Residence	Clark County, Nevada, U.S.
Term length	Four years, no term limits.^[1]
Inaugural holder	Charles Corkhill 1909
Formation	Lincoln County and Nevada Legislature
Salary	$194,310.67 (2019)^[2]
Website	Office of the Sheriff

The current sheriff is Kevin McMahill, who became sheriff after Republican Joe Lombardo resigned to become Governor of Nevada.

History

The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department was formed on July 1, 1961, by merging the former Las Vegas Police Department with the Clark County Sheriff's Department, with the Sheriff serving as its chief. The result is that Metro polices within the city limits of Las Vegas and all unincorporated areas and towns within Clark County.

Staff

Metro has more than 5,100 members. Of these, over 2,700 are police officers of various ranks and over 750 are corrections officers of various ranks.

List of Clark County Sheriffs

 

Joe Lombardo, the current governor of Nevada, served as the 17th Clark County sheriff from 2015 to 2023.

• Charles Corkhill, 1909–1911^[3]
• Sam Gay, 1911–1917^[3]
• Will Mundy, 1917 (acting)^[3]
• Jay Warren Woodard, 1917 (acting)^[3]
• Sam Gay, 1917–1931^[3]
• Joe Keate, 1931–1936^[3]
• Bill Mott, 1936–1937^[3]
• Gene Ward, 1937–1943^[3]
• Glen Jones, 1943–1955^[3]
• Butch Leypoldt, 1955–1961^[3]
• Ralph Lamb, 1961–1979 (CCSO)^[3]
• John McCarthy, 1979–1983^[3]
• John Moran, 1983–1995 (LVPD)^[3]
• Jerry Keller, 1995–2003 (CCSO)^[3]
• Bill Young, 2003–2007^[3]
• Doug Gillespie, 2007–2015^[4][5]
• Joe Lombardo, 2015–2023^[6]
• Kevin McMahill, 2023–present

Notes

1. "Court says term limits don't affect county officials". 10 August 2012.
2. "Multiple records for Joseph Lombardo". Transparent Nevada. Retrieved December 29, 2017.
3. "The Sheriffs of Clark County". Metropolitan Police Museum Association of Nevada. Retrieved December 19, 2016.
4. McCabe, Francis (January 3, 2007). . Las Vegas Review-Journal. Archived from the original on January 29, 2007. Retrieved July 27, 2012.
5. Schoenmann, Joe (November 2, 2010). "Democrats keep control of Clark County Commission". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved July 27, 2012.
6. Lochhead, Colton (January 5, 2015). "Sheriff Lombardo offers lighthearted laughs in swearing in ceremony". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved December 20, 2016.