Elmer Dickens

About Elmer Dickens

Elmer is a veteran of the US Army and Oregon National Guard, and a former corrections officer for the Oregon Department of Corrections. He has been the General Counsel to the Oregon State Sheriffs Association since 2015. He served as the first ever full-time general counsel for the Washington County Sheriff’s Office from to 2021, and continues to serve part-time in that role. Elmer has represented the Sheriff’s Office, individual defendants and Washington County in many state and federal lawsuits including officer use of force and deadly force, strip searches and conditions of confinement. Elmer has a private company for corrections and law enforcement training, ELSI Legal, LLC. He also teaches regularly for the Oregon State Sheriff’s Association, and is an instructor at the annual Americans for Effective Law Enforcement – Jail and Prisoner Legal Issues Seminar.

Experience

1. Senior Asst County Counsel

   Washington County

   Mar 1999 — Present · Hillsboro, OR, US

Education

• Willamette University School of Law

  Juris Doctor

  1994 — 1997

Skills

• Program Management
• Local Government
• Research
• Government
• Police
• Non-Profit Administration
• Policy
• Corrections Policy
• Public Administration
• Law Enforcement
• Leadership Development
• Criminal Justice
• Program Evaluation
• Emergency Management
• Non-Profit Fund Raising
• Public Relations
• Media Relations
• Politics
• Legal Research
• Public Policy
• Policy Analysis
• Organizational Development
• Training
• Public Safety
• Public Speaking
• Strategic Communications