Sheriff Patti Cole-Tindall graduates from police academy

King County Sheriff Patti Cole-Tindall took the stage Tuesday with 29 other graduates of the basic law enforcement certification program at the Washington State Criminal Justice Commission in Burien.

Cole-Tindall was appointed sheriff last year, but her certification had lapsed during nearly 20 years in administrative and civilian roles. So, she had to return to the academy as a recruit.

County Executive Dow Constantine, who sat in the crowd of officials and cadets' family members during the ceremony, stood to present Cole-Tindall's diploma. Her mother then pinned a star-shaped sheriff's badge onto her uniform.

Constantine appointed Cole-Tindall to the role of permanent sheriff last May, making her the first Black woman in that job. She'd been serving as interim sheriff while the county sought a long-term candidate for the role.

At the time of her appointment, she said she would need to return to the academy to renew her basic training. She'd spent much of the last two decades in non-officer roles, overseeing union negotiations for King County and directing the civilian oversight body for the sheriff's office.

Partway through the 19-week training course, Cole-Tindall told KUOW that she struggled at times to keep up with the much younger recruits in her class.

“I am much older than many of my classmates and some days it’s hard, you know, I’m bumping up to 60 here, so it’s tough, right?” she said.

Her training included hands-on tactics and firearms, as well as the legal cases that guide police work. Her undersheriff ran the sheriff's office on days when she was offsite at the academy.

Ultimately, she said, training for a total of 720 hours with young recruits will be a benefit to her as a leader.