Thomas has been working with the Sheriff’s Office for more than 30 years, according to a media release.

“Maj. Thomas has proven to be both highly skilled and dedicated to his duties and the history of the Sheriff’s Office. I’ve had the chance to see his work in action while working closely to plan for the King County Sheriff’s Officer Memorial last year,” said King County Councilman Regan Dunn. “It’s been a pleasure getting to know Maj. Thomas and I look forward to working with him in his new role.”

During his time with the Sheriff’s Office, Thomas has had a number of different roles. The release stated he was a deputy in Federal Way as the city made a transition to its own police department, he served in Burien, he worked with the Property Management Unit among many others.

The release continued, he also helped reopen the precinct building in Maple Valley.

“Being a commander of Precinct 3 feels like coming home,” Thomas said in the release. “I’m very lucky to be working with the folks at Precinct 3 and my officers, and look forward to starting this new role.”

Thomas will take over as head of the precinct because Major Ron Griffin is retiring. Griffin has also worked with the Sheriff’s Office for more than 30 years, the release said.

He was commander in Maple Valley for the past two years.

Precinct 3 covers roughly 700 square miles in southeast King County and it also provides a number of services to residents who live in unincorporated King County. They also provide school resource officers to the Tahoma, Renton school districts among a handful of others.