Richard Branche Sr. of Penn Forest Township has declared his candidacy for the Republican ticket for Carbon County sheriff.

A veteran law enforcement officer with 38 years of service, he was educated at Middlesex County Community College and Thomas Edison State College, studying criminal justice police science.

During that time he worked in the patrol division and later the K-9 section of the East Brunswick Police department in New Jersey.

He moved to the special operations division, conducting background investigations for new applicants and training, then the Traffic division supervisor of the motorcycle unit and the department’s special weapons and tactics team.

He served as range master/supervisor of the East Brunswick Training Facility, supervising 25 state, local, and federal departments firearm qualifications, repairing the indoor range system, preparing budgets and managing inventory and schedules.

After retiring, he worked for Georgetown County Sheriff’s Office in South Carolina as a supervisor in charge of training for the department.

His training and instructor certifications include firearms, driving, defensive tactics, Axon Taser, alert active shooter/ breaching, ALS Less Lethal instructor, Master motorcycle Instructor Maryland state police, Incident Command and emergency response, Command and control of line staff.

He has received the Life Saving Award, Service Commendation Award, WTC Award, Meritorious Service Award, 2020 Training Officer of the Year State of South Carolina.

He has been at Carbon County Sheriff’s Office for six months.

His time away from law enforcement was spent with his wife Laura for 36 years, four grown children and two grandchildren. He coached them in sports, was commissioner of several athletic organizations and enjoyed family time.

“I am running for Sheriff of Carbon County to instill a professional law enforcement attitude, integrity, and accountability to the position. I would do away with wasteful spending, institute policy and procedures that are up to date and in accordance with state and federal laws. I will work with the local police departments and the citizens of Carbon County to address the issues at hand. I would ask for your support for the Republican nomination for Sheriff of Carbon County,” Branche said.