Chief Deputy

Chief Deputy Hammel has lived in Huntington County his entire life. He completed an internship with the Huntington County Sheriff's Office as part of the Criminal Justice program at Indiana University. After graduating from Indiana University with an Associate's Degree in Criminal Justice, he became a reserve deputy. He was hired as a merit deputy in 2003 and graduated from the Indiana Law Enforcement Academy in April 2004 with honors as the academic achievement recipient. He also received the Academic Achievement Award from the Indiana Sheriff's Association in 2004.

Chief Deputy Hammel was a patrol deputy on all shifts until he was promoted to lead detective in 2011. As the lead detective he intensely investigated drug crime, crimes against children and property crimes. He was promoted to Sergeant in 2013 and returned to road patrol as a supervisor and training officer. In 2019 he was promoted to Chief Deputy.

Chief Deputy Hammel is actively involved in several committees that support community safety and well-being, including:

• Safe School Committee
• Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative (JDAI) Committee
• Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) Steering Committee
• Safe Prom Committee
• Seven-year member of the drug court team
• Past board member of McKenzie's Hope

His participation in these committees reflects a strong commitment to youth safety, mental health initiatives, and collaborative community policing.