Candidate for
Sheriff-Coroner; County of Orange

Sandra Hutchens is the 12th Orange County Sheriff and the first woman to serve as the county's top cop. She was named Sheriff by the Board of Supervisors in 2008 after a nationwide search which included a field of 48 candidates. She is running in 2010 for election to a full term.

A Southern California native, Sheriff Hutchens was raised in Long Beach, where she graduated from Woodrow Wilson High. Shortly after graduating from high school she was hired as a secretary for the Los Angeles Sheriff 's Department, where she met some Deputies who convinced her to apply for a Deputy position. She graduated from the Academy in 1978. Her 30 year career includes counterterrorism training in Israel, FBI National Academy training, participation in the National Preparedness Leadership Initiative Program at Harvard University, and a Bachelor of Science degree in Public Administration from the University of La Verne.

In her one year as Sheriff of Orange County, Sheriff Hutchens has made numerous changes to the Orange County Sheriff 's Department with the goal of restoring honor to the department. New leadership staff has been added and policies have been revised all with a commitment to the department's core values: "Integrity without compromise; Service above self; Professionalism in the performance of duty; Vigilance in safeguarding our community."

Sheriff Hutchens and her husband, Larry Hutchens, are long time residents of Orange County. Larry is a retired assistant police chief for the Los Angeles Unified School District. They have a dog, Tucker. In her spare time, Sheriff Hutchens enjoys traveling, cooking, reading, and writing.