PHOTO BY JOHN FRYMAN / THE VILLAGE REPORTER
SWORN IN … Detective Sergeant Ben Baldwin (right) was promoted to Chief Deputy of the Williams County Sheriff’s Office on Tuesday, September 2, by Williams County Sheriff Tom Kochert (left).
By: John Fryman
THE VILLAGE REPORTER
john@thevillagereporter.com
Ben Baldwin has plenty of law enforcement experience with the Williams County Sheriff’s Office, and on Tuesday, September 2, he was officially sworn in as Chief Deputy by Sheriff Tom Kochert.
“The promotion isn’t what’s important; it’s the opportunity that I’ve been given,” said Baldwin.
“When I first started this, my goal wasn’t to become a chief deputy; my goal was to come out and do the job that I was supposed to do and uphold the oath that I’m supposed to uphold.”
Through his hard work and dedication throughout his law enforcement career, Baldwin commented that he’s now been blessed by people that he’s worked with, including his supervisors that he’s worked under, and the administration that he now works for.
“His role as second in command obviously is very important,” said Kochert. “I was very fortunate this time, and it was easy. Sometimes life gives you very hard choices, and you have to weigh here and there.
“This was not one of those times; this was pretty much, and it was pretty obvious. If I’m not here or out of town, and we get a serious situation, who is the most likely to make the exact call with the exact people for the exact end result that I would make? That answer was very simple; it was Ben.”
Baldwin, who resides in Pioneer, started his career with the department in November 2013 as a road deputy before being promoted to the detective bureau in 2020 and then as detective sergeant in November 2024.
In addition, he’s been involved with several other positions within the department, including the dive team, special operations team, and MAN (Multi-Area Narcotics) Unit.
“Ben is one of those guys that I don’t have to ask twice,” said Kochert. According to Kochert, every sheriff in the state of Ohio has what is called a “second,” for a proxy.
“Very few sheriffs will name that person by rank, say captain or major,” said Kochert. “The most common title, according to the Buckeye State Sheriffs’ Association, is Chief Deputy.
“That is a politically appointed position by the sheriff. They are not a member of the bargaining unit in sheriff’s offices that have, we do, so then (Baldwin) would not be a member of that.”
Baldwin will also act as a proxy for the sheriff. As Kochert pointed out, the new Chief Deputy will serve as the sheriff’s voice at department head meetings, gatherings with police or fire chiefs, or whenever the sheriff is out of town.
“He’s (Baldwin) is basically in charge of everybody in this office, even the clerical staff, except me,” noted Kochert. “What brought it about is I needed another one (Chief Deputy).
“Since I’ve been sheriff, I made it very clear to all of my folks, this very much is what I call a meritocracy, and those who take ownership, those who show efficiency, those who do the work; I don’t need to double-check or question them.
“More importantly, they are in a lockstep with my train of thought and my agenda in terms of training, administration, and the direction that I want the office to go.”
Kochert credited Baldwin for the leadership he will bring to his promoted position. “Nobody has an issue with him,” noted the Sheriff. “He has shown leadership in his advice he gives to the road patrol guys.
“He also had several very large, very serious investigations under his belt that we were able to bring to successful prosecution.
“He’s also developed an excellent rapport, kind of a liaison as his role of detective and detective sergeant with not just the Williams County Prosecutors Office, but the Bryan Municipal Prosecutor’s Office.”
Baldwin strongly believes in leading by example, which is a big strength in his new position.
“A lot of this comes from I’ve been doing the job long enough,” said Baldwin. “I dedicated myself to the job, I done it well, and I gained the respect of not only the people that I worked with, but the people in the community.
“So, to point to any one thing, you can’t do that; you have to look at the totality of it. The job itself is extremely important, or this role is extremely important. Again, it’s just been through hard work and determination of my own personal convictions and work ethic.”
His promotion as Chief Deputy signifies his own abilities in doing the job.
“The ability to be able to do that has just come from all of my life experiences put together,” said Baldwin. “Again, the hard work, the determination, the work ethic, and owning it. It’s just a very serious thing. It’s taking ownership. These are my guys, my girls, and this is our family
“ I want to make sure they’re being led well, I want to make sure they know they have trusted me, and I got their back, along with the sheriff. That’s everything put together, how this all came about.”