Jim O’Sullivan will step down from serving as Chesapeake’s sheriff. He is retiring after leading the sheriff’s office for 12 years.
O’Sullivan took over as sheriff in October 2012 as an appointment, and he was later elected to the position the following year. Since then, he has completed four terms in the office’s top spot.
“O’Sullivan oversaw the safety and security of approximately 800 offenders per day in the Chesapeake Correctional Center, the safety of 57,000 people entering and leaving the court buildings per year, and led the 460-person Office to new heights in his 12 years in office,” a news release from the office read. “Beyond his day-to-day responsibilities, O’Sullivan’s legacy will remain in his community programs.”
He began his law enforcement career in the early 1990s and joined the Chesapeake Sheriff’s Office in 1992. A couple years before taking the sheriff’s position, O’Sullivan founded a non-profit organization, “Children Today Leaders Tomorrow” which aims to mentor and support children in Chesapeake. He also helped introduce school resource officers to schools across the city.
According to the sheriff’s office, one of O’Sullivan’s biggest goals was to “ensure children’s first interactions with law enforcement are positive and reassuring.”
Col. Dave Rosado will take over as sheriff after O’Sullivan’s retirement in November. Rosado is a 23-year veteran of the Chesapeake Sheriff’s Office, joining the office in 2001. He was Chesapeake’s first Hispanic undersheriff in 2022.
Eliza Noe, eliza.noe@virginiamedia.com
