Catoosa County Manager Mike Helton wants to go back into law enforcement, this time as sheriff.
Helton wants to replace Phil Summers, the longtime Catoosa County sheriff who recently announced he would retire at the end of his term.
Helton, 49, said nearly three decades in municipal work, including 16 years in law enforcement, qualifies him for the job. Being county manager puts him in charge of 15 different departments and entities, he said.
“The training I’ve gotten has equipped me to lead a law enforcement agency,” he said in a news release.
A former Catoosa County Magistrate Court judge, Helton said his time with the East Ridge Police Department and the Catoosa County Sheriff’s Office’s criminal investigation division has prepared him to fill Summers’ shoes.