WABASH COUNTY – Ryan Baker has announced that he will run for Wabash County Sheriff in the upcoming 2018 election.
“I am passionate about the Sheriff’s Department and its mission,” said Baker. “My administration would continue to improve the Department, serve the community, and represent the entire county in enforcing the laws.”
A lifelong Wabash County resident, Baker is a 16-year veteran with the Wabash County Sheriff’s Department, serving the past four years as a detective with the Wabash County Drug Task Force.
“My top priority will be to address the drug problem,” Baker said. “We need to continue coming up with new ideas and collaborating with other law enforcement agencies and community groups who are fighting the same battle on different fronts.”
“As sheriff, my primary responsibility will be to enforce the laws in our county. But I would also like to work with schools, local businesses, rehabilitation centers and others to focus on what we can do to prevent illegal drug use in the first place. We need to do everything that we can to educate the younger generation to prevent them from going down the same path that some of their family and friends have.”
Baker gives between 20 and 30 drug education classes per year in local schools, including those in Manchester, M.S.D., and Wabash City Schools systems.
Baker graduated from Vincennes University in 2001 with a degree in law enforcement and criminal justice. He has extensive law enforcement education and training, many of which has been specifically geared toward drug investigations and arrests, including:
– Indiana Law Enforcement Academy (2005)
– Firearm Instructor Certification (2008)
– Vehicle Drug Interdiction training (2008)
– Emergency Vehicle Operations Instructor Certification (2010)
– “Top Gun” Covert Drug Investigation School (2014)
– DEA Academy and Clandestine Methamphetamine Laboratory Safety School in Quantico, Virginia (2015)
“I hope to use the experience I’ve gained over the last 16 years to be a responsible leader of the Department,” said Baker. “We are stewards of the tax dollars that are entrusted to us, and we have to work within our budget to spend them as wisely and efficiently as possible.”
Baker is the current president of the Wabash Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 83, a position to which he has been elected by his fellow officers since 2013. He has been a member of the Indiana Department of Homeland Security Task Force since 2009 and the Indiana Drug Enforcement Agency since 2014.
Locally, Baker serves on several boards and committees. He is a member of the newly formed Wabash County Re-Entry Court board of directors, which provides support and services to those released on parole in an effort to reduce recidivism. He serves on the advisory council of Hands of Hope, which provides support to victims of domestic abuse.
He is also a long-standing member of the AACTION board. The mission of the AACTION group “is to identify the needs of the area regarding alcohol, tobacco and other drug use and abuse, monitor programs which are recipients of Drug Free Indiana monies, and act as a resource in Wabash County for alcohol, tobacco, and other drug information.”
Baker’s personal interests include hunting and fishing, woodworking, and spending time with his wife Gina (Kelley) Baker and their extended family.
More information about Ryan Baker and his campaign can be found at www.ryanbakerforsheriff.com and the Ryan Baker for Sheriff Facebook page.