YORK COUNTY, Va. (WAVY)- He’s all moved in to the big office, and the glass on the front office has been pressed with his name, but it’s still going take a little time to adjust.
“I had to admit to them, there were a couple of times I’ve answered the phone last week, ‘Major… I mean Sheriff Montgomery,’ so I don’t get on anybody if they make a mistake and call me major cause it’s gonna take me a while to get used to it too. I have to admit, I do like the sound of the word sheriff,” smiled new Sheriff Ron Montgomery.
Sheriff Montgomery is now the top cop for York County and the City of Poquoson.
Throughout all those years, Sheriff Montgomery was his right-hand man.
He’s worked for the York County Sheriff’s Office his entire career, starting in 1975. He most recently served as chief deputy.
“I’ve been asked a lot the 10 months leading up to when I took this position on January 1. What was I going to do differently? And the answer is I’m not going to fix something. It’s not broken. As I said earlier, we worked very hard being a former sheriff, and I over the past 20 years to develop this very special relationship with this community and if anything, my expectation is it we’re going to build on that,” said Montgomery.
Some of the things he’s most excited about include the new building set to be completed next year.
He says it’ll have new technology and a space for the community to hold meetings.
He’ll also be working on improving salaries and benefits for the deputies, and he plans to crack down on the number one crime in York County: car thefts.
“I did a study as I was surprised to see that over 90% of the guns or stolen in York County come out of unlocked vehicles, and we certainly want to address that and make the public aware of it because that’s a huge problem not just for your county, but for Hampton Roads,” said Montgomery.
Montgomery has been at the helm of many 10 On Your Side investigations over the years.
Along his journey, he says the saying “small things matter” stuck.
It’s something he’s always reminding his deputies.
He says starting small is how you make a big difference.
When he’s not in uniform, Sheriff Montgomery says he’s known to be a gym rat who loves sports.
He used to coach baseball in the community, but he also enjoys watching old movies with his wife.
