Sheriff Dana Lawhorne

Sheriff Dana Lawhorne

Dana Lawhorne is currently serving his second term of office as Sheriff for the City of Alexandria, having run unopposed in the November 2009 elections. A retired police officer, Sheriff Lawhorne served for 27 years in the Alexandria Police Department’s Uniformed Patrol and Criminal Investigations Divisions.

As a police officer, Sheriff Lawhorne made significant contributions to the City’s public safety that included working with youth and families as a Police Detective, serving on numerous public safety task forces and committees, to include serving as chair of the Police/Fire Pension Board; serving as team leader for the City’s Hostage Negotiation Team, as a Field Training Officer for new police recruits and as a member of the Police Department’s Honor Guard. Sheriff Lawhorne also worked tirelessly in several key areas of the Alexandria Police Department to promote staff development. His efforts were instrumental in the drafting of policy and procedure governing hostage/barricade operations, juvenile offenders and violence prevention and response. He earned countless honors, awards and expressions of appreciation for his dedication to excellence and his compassion for people.

As Sheriff, he has continued to exemplify strength of character and commitment to the City. Recognizing a need to improve the working relationship between the City’s top two law enforcement agencies, Sheriff Lawhorne led the Sheriff’s Office in forging a strong partnership with the Alexandria Police Department to improve the depth and quality of law enforcement services provided to Alexandrians. Seeing an opportunity to greater serve the City, Sheriff Lawhorne commissioned the Detention Center’s Inmate Work Detail crew to clean and beautify neighborhoods and public areas throughout the City. Projects of the Work Detail have included beautification of King Street, clean up of Alexandria’s public roadways, parks and neighborhood green spaces, and providing setup and clean up services at numerous City sponsored special events. Efforts by the Work Detail resulted in signifcant savings to the City since he expanded Work Detail operations in CY 2007, and since that time, the Work Force has continued to save the City hundreds of thousands of dollars in labor costs. Sheriff Lawhorne's other accomplishments have included garnering a bomb sniffing canine at no cost to the City; effectively managing the fiscal affairs of the Sheriff's Office so as to reduce costs to Alexandria citizens; promulgating programs that serve our children, youth and vulnerable adults; and keeping the Sheriff's Office ready to serve despite the challenge.  

Understanding the strength of partnership with his community, Sheriff Lawhorne continues to honor his commitment to strengthen the connection between the Sheriff's Office with the Alexandria community.  Sheriff’s Deputies and support staff have been a visible presence at events all around the City, and through his Community Liaison program, Sheriff Lawhorne is bringing Sheriff’s staff up front and center to listen to and address the needs of Alexandria’s citizens through attendance at monthly civic and homeowners’ association meetings. Sheriff Lawhorne is winning kudos for his continued involvement in the community in which he was born, raised, and which he has served for over 30 years. His civic commitment is evidenced in his involvement with Alexandria civic associations, his service on the City’s Community Criminal Justice Board (CCJB), the Peumansend Creek Regional Jail Committee, and involvement with the Center for Alexandria’s Children (CAC). Further, as a parent of three daughters educated in the Alexandria City Public Schools, Sheriff Lawhorne has been a regular presence in our schools and deeply involved.

Sheriff Lawhorne is a native Alexandrian, graduate of TC Williams High School, and lifelong resident of Alexandria’s Del Ray community, where he currently lives with his wife, Linda.