‘We can’t compete with that’: Tacoma PD offering signing bonus as staffing crisis continues at sheriff’s office

Staffing levels at the Pierce County Sheriff’s Office are increasingly at risk as the Tacoma Police Department offers a lucrative incentive to attract deputies.

Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Carly Cappetto confirmed that two deputies recently resigned to take other jobs, presumably with the Tacoma Police Department, although she declined to name the agency.

“We have a lot of rumors going around that more are leaving, and we’ve had a handful say that they will be leaving,” Cappetto said. “But until we actually see a resignation letter, we can’t confirm how many are leaving.”

Cappetto acknowledged that Tacoma PD is offering a “very attractive” $50,000 signing bonus, available only to those who live in Pierce County — a detail that makes the offer feel personal to her department.

“We can’t compete with that,” Cappetto said. “We’ve always done more work with less. And that is not something new to us, and we will continue to serve our community as best we can with what limited resources we have.”

“As a matter of practice, we don’t confirm the prior employment of our officers,” Tacoma Police Officer Shelbie Boyd told KIRO Newsradio in an email. “Like most agencies, our recruitment officers do focus on lateral hires because they bring experience to the job.”

The timing is especially difficult. The sheriff’s office currently has nearly two dozen vacancies, and deputies are in the midst of negotiating a new contract.

In June, deputies rejected — by a vote of 290 to 1 (99.7%) — County Executive Ryan Mello’s contract offer. The vote had a record-breaking 97% turnout.

“Public safety in Pierce County starts with the men and women who wear the badge. They deserve more than lip service,” the Pierce County Deputy Sheriff’s Independent Guild stated. “They deserve a contract that reflects the risks they take and the service they provide. The executive’s offer simply doesn’t deliver.”

Mello’s contract features a pay raise of 10% over the next three years (4%, 3%, then 3%).

“Arbitration for the Pierce County Sheriff’s Guild was authorized a few weeks ago, and that process is now underway,” Pierce County Communications Coordinator Haley Castanera told KIRO Newsradio in an email on Friday. “We strive to provide competitive compensation for all our employees within the resources available.”

I keep getting emails, DM’s, FB messenger messages, and phone calls from my haters threatening to call HR, the Executive, the County Council, and the ACLU to have me either fired or removed from office for my social media posts. They think that scares me. They are dumb.

— Sheriff Keith Swank (@Swank4America) September 5, 2025

Meanwhile, Sheriff Keith Swank is drawing scrutiny for controversial social media posts, including one in which he questioned whether transgender individuals should be banned from owning firearms.

“I keep getting emails, DMs, FB Messenger messages, and phone calls from my haters threatening to call HR, the Executive, the County Council, and the ACLU to have me either fired or removed from office for my social media posts,” Swank said in a post on X Friday. “They think that scares me. They are dumb.”

Like most agencies, our recruitment officers do focus on lateral hires because they bring experience to the job