Sam Costello has been involved in law enforcement in Thurston County for more than 29 years. First employed by the Lacey Police Department as a community service officer and later a reserve police officer, he was hired by the Olympia Police Department in 1998. His career as an officer included positions in the patrol division and walking patrol unit. He then transferred to the detective unit where he primarily investigated felony persons crimes and officer-involved critical incidents for many years. He was promoted to the rank of sergeant in 2011. At that rank he served as a patrol sergeant, PTO coordinator, special operations sergeant, and detective sergeant. He was promoted to lieutenant in 2016, where he served as the division commander of the Community Policing Division. The division command included responsibility for the neighborhood policing unit, volunteers, walking patrol, school resource officers, metro traffic, police K-9s, as well as geographic responsibility for public safety in downtown Olympia, which is the epicenter for houselessness in Olympia.Sam currently serves as Deputy Chief of Police at OPD. He is responsible for overall leadership and management of the operations division of the police department. He is an active member of the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs (WASPC), the FBI National Academy Associates (FBINAA), the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP), and the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF). He holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree from The Evergreen State College in Olympia and a Master of Arts Degree in Organizational Leadership from Chapman University in Orange, California. He is a graduate of the 2016 class of Leadership Thurston County. Sam is also a graduate of the FBI National Academy (Session #282) in Quantico, Virginia and the Senior Management Institute for Police (SMIP Session #89). He holds an executive level career certification through the Washington State Criminal Justice Training Commission. Sam sits on the board of the non-profit Olympia High School baseball fundraising group, the Olympia Diamond Backers. "Coach Sam" has also coached competitive youth baseball at a variety of age levels for many years.He, his brother, and a lifelong friend are on a quest to visit every major league baseball stadium together (currently 25+). He is an avid fitness enthusiast. He grew up in Olympia and attended Olympia schools. He lives with his wife, who teaches at Olympia High School, and two children, in Olympia.