By BOB MARTIN
Eagle Times Staff
A former Claremont Police officer has made history by becoming the first full-time deputy sheriff for the Sullivan County Sheriff’s Office.
Kalie Cummings, a resident of Warner, was sworn in by High Sheriff Jayson Almstrom on Feb. 18. She started her law enforcement career at the Claremont Police Department in 2021 and will now be working patrol for the sheriff’s office.
A statement by the Sullivan County Sheriff’s Office says that Cummings will be “contributing to our goal of providing an enhanced law enforcement presence through Sullivan County.”
High Sheriff Jayson Almstrom explained that the sheriff’s office was going through personnel changes as one of their deputies was hired back by the Newport Police Department. He said a background check for Cummings had already been conducted for a part-time position, so he just needed to do an update and let her know there was an open spot.
He said that Claremont’s loss is their gain, and Claremont Police Chief Brent Wilmot spoke highly of her time with the department. Almstrom said Wilmot told her she was a great officer and while it would be a big loss, at least she is staying nearby in the county.
“She was working nights over in Claremont and looking for a change,” Almstrom said. “She lives in Warner, so this is a lot closer for her, plus she has a take home cruiser now. This is basically a Monday through Friday job, but we’ll be doing a lot more details and night patrols. I think she is going to be an excellent addition to our office.”
Almstrom said that in the past, not having a female deputy in their office would present problems through extradition processes involving women. The addition of Cummings will alleviate that concern.
“Let’s say we have to go to Florida for person who has fled there on a warrant. If it is a female, we would have needed to go to another county department who has a female,” Almstrom said. “Now that we have Kalie on board that is no longer an issue.”
Tuesday was the first day on the job at Sullivan County for Cummings, and Almstrom said she was hitting the ground running.
“She’s young, motivated and excited to go out and do the job of being a patrol deputy,” Almstrom said. “She’ll be stopping cars in the community, doing transports and investigations, and waving the sheriff’s flag.”
