Leadership Team
Sheriff Craig Roberts
Craig Roberts was sworn in as the Sheriff of Clackamas County on Jan. 4, 2005, and re-elected to office in November 2007. Born and raised in Clackamas County, Roberts has risen through the ranks of the Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office over the past 30 years. After starting out as a reserve deputy in 1979, he was hired full time in 1982, and subsequently joined the SWAT team, serving for 10 years as a member of the elite tactical unit. After five years on patrol, he transferred to an undercover narcotics unit, working cases that led to the successful prosecution of major drug trafficking organizations in federal court.
Promoted to detective after five years on the drug unit, Roberts started working property crimes before moving up to investigating armed career criminals and ultimately rape and homicide cases. As a father of three, he was especially affected by cases that involved the death or abuse of children, which prompted him to launch several initiatives to address the problem.
First among these was the Child Abuse Team -- a group of dedicated investigators that combined the resources of law enforcement, social services, the medical community and other professionals to identify and protect children in danger of abuse. For two years, Roberts worked at CARES Northwest at Legacy Emanuel Medical Center, a medically-based child abuse assessment and intervention program based in Portland that serves 1,400 families each year. Roberts worked with abused children and served as a liaison for other law-enforcement agencies to the center.
In 1999, he launched the Child Abuse & Family Violence Summit. The annual event is now recognized among the best conferences in the nation. In 2008, it brought more than 700 participants from across the United States and around the world. Other initiatives followed, including the multi-agency Domestic Violence Enhanced Response Team, which he led as its director, and the National Family Violence Apprehension Detail — a coordinated warrant sweep by law enforcement agencies all over the country, which has served as a model for more recent federal efforts.
After being elected in 2004, Roberts introduced Crisis Intervention Team training to the Sheriff’s Office, to better prepare deputies for encounters with persons suffering with mental illness. He also championed a $42.7-million public-safety levy, passed by voters in 2006, that re-opened 84 jail beds that had previously been shuttered due to lack of staff.
Since becoming Sheriff in 2004, he has developed two new multi-jurisdictional teams to address specific criminal threats. To combat the trafficking of methamphetamines and other illegal drugs, Roberts created the Clackamas County Inter-agency Task Force, which combines local, state and federal resources. Then, recognizing the danger to children from Internet sexual predators, he formed INTERCEPT — the Inter-agency Child Exploitation Prevention Team. It includes the sheriff’s offices in Clackamas, Multnomah and Washington counties, as well as state and federal partners, who work together to detect, investigate, arrest and prosecute predators.
In 2007, building on the expertise of the Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office in search and rescue operations, Roberts launched Northwest SARCon. The fall conference brings nationally recognized leaders and experts to Oregon, to educate public safety officials and volunteer search teams.
In 2008, he emerged from the May primary with almost 80 percent of the vote in a three-way race, clearing the path for another four-year term in office.
Undersheriff David M. Kirby
David M. Kirby was appointed Undersheriff by Sheriff Roberts on Oct. 1, 2007. Undersheriff Kirby brings a wealth of experience to the CCSO Undersheriff position: He is DPSST-certified in both basic police and corrections. He also holds certificates in both corrections and law enforcement at the advanced, supervisory, and management levels. He has 13 years experience in the field, with two years' service as Commander of the Washington County Jail. He has worked as a deputy as well as a supervisor in narcotics, investigations, and patrol. Prior to joining CCSO, he held the position of Commander of the Washington County Sheriff's Office Investigation Division.
Undersheriff Kirby supervises the Jail, Community Corrections and the Civil Division.
Undersheriff Matt Ellington
Matt Ellington was appointed Undersheriff by Sheriff Roberts on June 1, 2009. He first joined the Clackamas County Sheriff's Office as a Cadet in 1986. Three years later, he became a Reserve Deputy; one year after that, he became a full-time Deputy Sheriff in the Patrol Division. Ellington has served as a detective, sergeant, lieutenant, and captain. During his career, he has worked on many assignments -- including the Special Investigations Unit, Special Weapons And Tactics Team (SWAT), Child Abuse Team and Search & Rescue. He holds an executive certificate and is a graduate of the FBI National Academy.
Undersheriff Ellington supervises our Patrol, Investigations, and Support Services divisions.
Captain Dave O’Shaughnessy
Support Services Division
Captain Dave O’Shaughnessy has been with the Sheriff’s Office since July 1993. He started in Law Enforcement in the Oregon Air National Guard as an Air Force Law Enforcement Specialist. He also served as a Reserve Officer for North Plains Police Department in 1991 and as a Reserve Deputy at the Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office until being hired by Clackamas County in 1993.
Starting in Patrol at the Clackamas County Sheriff's Office, O’Shaughnessy worked the road until 1999, when he accepted a position as the Department’s Training Coordinator. In 2000, he was promoted to Sergeant, and was assigned to the Civil Division for two years before returning to Patrol. After promotion to Lieutenant in 2003, he returned to the Civil Section as the manager, and then to Patrol as the special unit/administrative Lieutenant. In 2007, after promotion to Captain, he took over the Patrol Division. In 2009, Capt. O’Shaughnessy was assigned to the Investigations/Professional Standards Division -- managing all aspects of the detective, professional standards and policy/accreditation areas of the Sheriff’s Office. In 2012, he became the Support Services Division Commander.
O’Shaughnessy was named the Oregon State Sheriffs' Association Civil Manager of the Year in 2005 and OSSA Enforcement Commander of the Year in 2010. He obtained his Basic, Intermediate, Advanced, Supervisory, Middle Management and Executive certifications from the Oregon Department of Public Safety Standards and Training, and is also a graduate of the 227th session of the FBI National Academy for Law Enforcement Executives in Quantico, Virginia.
Captain Kevin Poppen
Investigations Division
Captain Kevin Poppen has been with the Sheriff's Office for over three decades. He graduated Southern Oregon State College (now Southern Oregon University) in 1981 with a BS in Criminology, and was hired as a Corrections Deputy in September 1982. He was promoted to Deputy Sheriff (Patrol) in December 1984; to Detective in January 1992; to Sergeant in August 1994; to Lieutenant in March 1999; and to Captain in July 2007.
As Captain, he was first assigned to the Support Services Division, switching to the Investigations Division in February 2012.
Capt. Poppen was the Founding Director of the Clackamas County Inter-agency Task Force (CCITF) -- the first coordinated group effort by local and federal law-enforcement officials to solve methamphetamine and other drug problems in Clackamas County.
Captain Kevin Layng
Patrol Division
Captain Kevin Layng was hired as a Deputy Sheriff in February 1987; promoted to Sergeant in February 1999; to Lieutenant in January 2008; and to Captain in February 2009. He has worked in the Special Investigations Unit and ROCN (Regional Organized Crime and Narcotics) Unit, and is currently the Sheriff's Office SWAT Team Commander. He is also a graduate of the FBI National Academy.
Captain Mike Alexander
Jail Division
Captain Mike Alexander joined the Sheriff's Office as a Corrections Deputy in February 1992. He was promoted to Corrections Sergeant in Novmber 1998; to Corrections Lieutenant in November 2002; and to Captain in February 2009. In December 2011, the Oregon State Sheriff's Association (OSSA) named Capt. Alexander its Jail Manager of the Year -- recognizing him for achievements that included seeing the Clackamas County Jail through a complex remodel and overseeing the adoption of a new healthcare system for inmates.
Captain Chris Hoy
Community Corrections
Chris Hoy has been with the Clackamas County Sheriff's Office, holding the rank of Captain, since February 2008; he is the Community Corrections Director. Captain Hoy began his career with the Lincoln County Sheriff's Office in 1989, where he was a Records/Property Clerk, Corrections Deputy, Sergeant and Jail Commander. He left Lincoln County in 2003 to become the Jail Commander in Marion County, where he served until December 2007. Captain Hoy was the OSSA's Jail Commander of the Year in 2000, and has twice served as the President of the Oregon Sheriff's Jail Command Council. He holds Basic, Intermediate, Supervisory, Middle Management and Executive Certification in Corrections from DPSST. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Political Science with an English minor from Willamette University in 1987.
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