Charles Austin Jenkins (born May 27, 1956) is an American politician who has served as the

sheriff A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland, the , which is common ...

of Frederick County since 2006. A member of the Republican Party, he is the longest serving sheriff in Frederick County history. Jenkins is part of the

far-right Far-right politics, often termed right-wing extremism, encompasses a range of ideologies that are marked by ultraconservatism, authoritarianism, ultranationalism, and nativism. This political spectrum situates itself on the far end of the ...

. During his tenure as sheriff, he has been noted for his anti-immigrant views and defense of Frederick County's

287(g) program Section 287(g) of the U.S. Immigration and Nationality Act authorizes the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to deputize selected state and local law enforcement officers to enforce federal immigration law. Section 287(g) allows the DHS and law ...

to deport arrested individuals, which he has credited with decreasing crime in the county. In April 2023, Jenkins was indicted on five counts of conspiracy and making false statements to acquire machine guns, prompting him to take a temporary leave of absence from his duties as sheriff. Federal prosecutors dropped all charges against Jenkins in November 2024, after co-defendant Robert Krop was acquitted of all charges.

Early life, education, and career

Jenkins was born in

Frederick, Maryland Frederick is a city in, and the county seat of, Frederick County, Maryland, United States. Frederick's population was 78,171 people as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in Maryland, second-largest ...

, on May 27, 1956, to father Gordon Jenkins and mother Joy Marie Jenkins. He graduated from Frederick High School. Before entering into law enforcement, Jenkins worked for

COMSAT Communications Satellite Corporation (COMSAT) is a global telecommunications company based in the United States. By 2007, it had branches in Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Mexico, Peru, Venezuela and several other countries in the Americas. Alt ...

. He has worked with the Frederick County Sheriff's Office during his entire law enforcement career, first working as a deputy sheriff in his early thirties for about three years before working in the patrol division and criminal investigations unit from 1990 to 2006.

Frederick County Sheriff

Elections

2006

On June 2, 2006, Jenkins announced that he would run for Frederick County Sheriff, seeking to succeed Jim Hagy, who announced that he would not run for re-election to a fourth term. He won the Republican nomination with 39.4% of the vote and defeated Democratic challenger Charles Tobery with 59% of the vote.

2010

Jenkins ran for re-election to a second term unopposed.

2014

Jenkins was re-elected to a third term in 2014, defeating Democratic challenger Karl Bickel with 62.8% of the vote and becoming the second Frederick County Sheriff to serve three consecutive terms.

2018

Jenkins was re-elected to a fourth term in 2018, defeating Democratic challenger Karl Bickel with 51.9% of the vote.

2022

Jenkins was re-elected to a fifth term in 2022, defeating Democratic challenger Karl Bickel with 51.4% of the vote and becoming the first Frederick County Sheriff to serve for a fifth term.

Tenure

Jenkins was sworn in as sheriff on December 1, 2006. According to the

Southern Poverty Law Center The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) is an American 501(c)(3) nonprofit legal advocacy organization specializing in civil rights and public interest litigation. Based in Montgomery, Alabama, it is known for its legal cases against white ...

(SPLC), he is a member of Protect America Now and the Constitutional Sheriffs and Peace Officers Association, two "constitutional sheriff" groups, and has participated in several CSPOA activities. Jenkins is also a member of the

National Sheriffs' Association The National Sheriffs' Association (NSA) is a U.S. trade association. Its stated purpose is to raise the level of professionalism among U.S. sheriffs, their deputies and others in the fields of criminal justice and public safety. Since its found ...

and was asked to be a member of the organization's immigration subcommittee in 2009. During his tenure as sheriff, the crime rates in Frederick County declined by 50%, in line with statewide and national trends. Jenkins opposed an

executive order In the United States, an executive order is a directive by the president of the United States that manages operations of the federal government. The legal or constitutional basis for executive orders has multiple sources. Article Two of the ...

signed by President

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...

limiting the federal

1033 program The Law Enforcement Support Office (LESO) is a division under the United States Department of Defense (DoD) responsible for managing the "1033 Program", which transfers excess weapons, equipment, and vehicles from the United States Armed Forces ...

, which allows police departments to receive surplus military equipment from the government, saying that he viewed the term "militarized police" as political rhetoric that unfairly castigates law enforcement. In March 2016, he purchased a

Lenco BearCat The Lenco BearCat is a wheeled SWAT vehicle designed for military and law enforcement use. It is in use by numerous military forces and law enforcement agencies around the world. History Since 1981 the Massachusetts-based Lenco Industries, known ...

for the Frederick County Police Department, saying that Sen Bernardino sheriff John McMahon convinced him to buy the vehicle after discussing the 2015 San Bernardino attack with him. Jenkins supported

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

in the

2016 United States presidential election United States presidential election, Presidential elections were held in the United States on November 8, 2016. The Republican Party (United States), Republican ticket of businessman Donald Trump and Indiana Governor, Indiana governor Mike P ...

, describing "open borders" as his top issue in the election and criticizing Democratic nominee

Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, lawyer and diplomat. She was the 67th United States secretary of state in the administration of Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, a U.S. senator represent ...

for wanting to "resettle hundreds of thousands of unvetted refugees here". He has falsely claimed that the

2020 United States presidential election United States presidential election, Presidential elections were held in the United States on November 3, 2020. The Democratic Party (United States), Democratic ticket of former vice president Joe Biden and California junior senator Kamala H ...

was stolen. During the 2014 legislative session, Jenkins opposed a bill to decriminalize

marijuana Cannabis (), commonly known as marijuana (), weed, pot, and ganja, List of slang names for cannabis, among other names, is a non-chemically uniform psychoactive drug from the ''Cannabis'' plant. Native to Central or South Asia, cannabis has ...

, calling marijuana a "

gateway drug The gateway drug effect (alternatively, stepping-stone theory, escalation hypothesis, or progression hypothesis) is a comprehensive catchphrase for the often observed effect that the use of a psychoactive substance is coupled to an increased probab ...

". In November 2015, he opposed

medical marijuana Medical cannabis, medicinal cannabis or medical marijuana (MMJ) refers to Cannabis (drug), cannabis products and cannabinoid, cannabinoid molecules that are prescription drug, prescribed by physicians for their patients. The use of cannabi ...

and dismissed proponents' arguments that the drug helps those with diseases and disorders, saying that he felt that the legalization of medical marijuana would eventually lead to the legalization of recreational marijuana. In October 2022, he said he opposed Question 4, a statewide referendum on legalizing recreational marijuana in Maryland, saying that he felt that legalization would take Maryland down a "bad road" and increase impaired driving incidents. In March 2020, following state orders imposing restrictions on large gathering amid the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

, Jenkins urged residents to notify first responders if they have

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

or suspect that they are infected with the virus. The sheriff's office also suspended most volunteer activities and fingerprinting services at the county's Law Enforcement Center, and implemented protocols at the county's detention center to limit the spread of the virus among inmates. In December 2021, Jenkins opposed incentivizing people to get the

COVID-19 vaccine A COVID19 vaccine is a vaccine intended to provide acquired immunity against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the virus that causes coronavirus disease 2019 ( COVID19). Knowledge about the structure and fun ...

, saying that he felt that "trying to motivate someone to change their mind is absolutely wrong". In March 2022, he provided police escort for the People's Convoy, a group of truckers protesting COVID-19-related mandates. In June 2020, Jenkins confronted demonstrators at a

George Floyd protest The George Floyd protests were a series of protests, riots, and demonstrations against police brutality that began in Minneapolis in the United States on May 26, 2020. The protests and civil unrest began in Minneapolis as reactions to the ...

outside of the Frederick Department of Public Works, where he took questions from the protest's leaders about the county police department's use of force statistics against Black and minority residents to the sheriff's policies on de-escalation and training. During a county council debate on police practices in November 2020, he said the way Floyd died was an "egregious, unreasonable, excessive use of force, unnecessary force", but disagreed that there was

systemic racism Institutional racism, also known as systemic racism, is a form of institutional discrimination based on race or ethnic group and can include policies and practices that exist throughout a whole society or organization that result in and suppor ...

in policing and called for increased funding for the county's police department. Jenkins opposed the Police Reform and Accountability Act, a police reform bill passed in 2021 that repealed the state's Law Enforcement Officers' Bill of Rights, regulated the types of force that police could use during arrests, and required counties to establish police accountability boards.

Views on illegal immigration

Jenkins has been noted for his anti-immigrant views, with ''

Fox News The Fox News Channel (FNC), commonly known as Fox News, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conservatism in the United States, conservative List of news television channels, news and political commentary Television stati ...

'' once calling him the second-toughest sheriff on immigration in the country after

Joe Arpaio Joseph Michael Arpaio (; born June 14, 1932) is an American former law enforcement officer and politician. He was the Sheriffs in the United States, Sheriff of Maricopa County, Arizona, Maricopa County, Arizona for 24 years, from 1993 to 2017, ...

. According to a legal brief by the

American Civil Liberties Union The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is an American nonprofit civil rights organization founded in 1920. ACLU affiliates are active in all 50 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico. The budget of the ACLU in 2024 was $383 million. T ...

, Jenkins has described "the immigration problem" as the nation's "single biggest threat", which he intended to solve by "shooting them right back" out of Frederick County. Jenkins has repeatedly defended Frederick County's

, contesting that the program contributed to a decrease in crime, denying allegations that the program has led to incidents involving

racial discrimination Racial discrimination is any discrimination against any individual on the basis of their Race (human categorization), race, ancestry, ethnicity, ethnic or national origin, and/or Human skin color, skin color and Hair, hair texture. Individuals ...

and

racial profiling Racial profiling or ethnic profiling is the offender profiling, selective enforcement or selective prosecution based on race or ethnicity, rather than individual suspicion or evidence. This practice involves discrimination against minority pop ...

, and rejected studies suggesting that the program led to distrust of law enforcement in the county's Hispanic community. The county's 287(g) program, which started in 2008, allows

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement The United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE; ) is a Federal law enforcement in the United States, federal law enforcement agency under the United States Department of Homeland Security. ICE's stated mission is to protect the Un ...

(ICE) to train law enforcement officers to ask the immigration status of arrested individuals and has led to the deportation of 1,795 criminals as of March 2025, according to Jenkins. According to former Frederick County

NAACP The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is an American civil rights organization formed in 1909 as an interracial endeavor to advance justice for African Americans by a group including W. E. B. Du&nbs ...

chapter chair Guy Djoken, after he and representatives from CASA de Maryland and the Maryland ACLU met with Jenkins to discuss the implementation of the 287(g) program, Jenkins played a

NumbersUSA NumbersUSA is an anti-immigration In March 2009, he testified before the

United States House Committee on Homeland Security The U.S. House Committee on Homeland Security is a standing committee of the United States House of Representatives. Its responsibilities include U.S. security legislation and oversight of the Department of Homeland Security. Role of the committ ...

that he entered into the program for national security, saying that he believed that crimes committed by illegal immigrants were "terrorism". In July 2014, Jenkins traveled to the

Mexico–United States border The international border separating Mexico and the United States extends from the Pacific Ocean in the west to the Gulf of Mexico in the east. The border traverses a variety of terrains, ranging from urban areas to deserts. It is the List of ...

with six other elected sheriffs on a

Federation for American Immigration Reform The Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) is a nonprofit, anti-immigration organization in the United States. The group publishes position papers, organizes events, and runs campaigns in order to advocate for changes in U.S. immigr ...

(FAIR) trip. After ''

The Frederick News-Post ''The Frederick News-Post'' is the local newspaper of Frederick County, Maryland. In addition to discussing local news, the newspaper addresses international, national, and regional news. The paper publishes six days per week. History On Octob ...

'' reported on FAIR's association with Jenkins's trip and the group's status as a SPLC-recognized hate group, he criticized ''News-Post'' for describing FAIR as a "hate group" and refused to speak to the journalist who wrote the article describing it as such. Following the trip, Jenkins decried illegal immigration into the United States as an "invasion" and called for increased manpower along the border, potentially including the

National Guard National guard is the name used by a wide variety of current and historical uniformed organizations in different countries. The original National Guard was formed during the French Revolution around a cadre of defectors from the French Guards. ...

or U.S. military forces. He also blamed the

Mexican government The Federal government of Mexico (alternately known as the Government of the Republic or ' or ') is the national government of the United Mexican States, the central government established by its constitution to share sovereignty over the republ ...

and cartels for increases in immigration into the United States, arguing that cartels were pushing criminals into the country and causing families to seek refuge. At the same time, Jenkins said he recognized the humanitarian needs involved in supporting families crossing the border. FAIR and Help Save Maryland later partnered with Jenkins to set up a statewide tour promoting 287(g) programs. During the 2017 legislative session, Jenkins testified for a bill that would require state or local correctional facilities to notify the

U.S. Department of Homeland Security The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is the U.S. federal executive department responsible for public security, roughly comparable to the interior, home, or public security ministries in other countries. Its missions involv ...

that an inmate is subject to an immigration detainer. In 2018, he supported a bills that would ban sanctuary cities and counties and require state and local detention centers to cooperate with ICE. In December 2018, Jenkins signed onto a letter published as a full-page ad in ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...

'' calling for full funding for the

Mexico–United States border wall The Mexico–United States border wall is a series of disjoined physical barriers built along portions of the Mexico–United States border. The barriers were constructed in a piecemeal manner over the course of several President of the United ...

. In August 2019, Jenkins expressed "disappointment" with Frederick County executive Jan Gardner's decision to audit the county's 287(g) program, saying that he felt the audit showed that "the county executive and council don't trust my management authority". The audit published its final report in July 2020, which showed that the program only cost the county less than $22,000 a year; Jenkins accepted the audit as accurate, but called the report a waste of time. During the 2021 legislative session, Jenkins opposed the Dignity Not Detention Act, which would prohibit counties from contracting with ICE to detain undocumented immigrants in county jails, saying that it would end the county's 287(g) agreement. Vaughn Stewart, the bill's sponsor, and the

Attorney General of Maryland The Attorney General of the State of Maryland is the chief legal officer of the State of Maryland in the United States and is elected by the people every four years with no term limits. To run for the office a person must be a citizen of and qual ...

both said that the bill would not end the 287(g) agreement and would only prohibit jurisdictions from receiving any money for housing individuals in an immigration detention center. After the

Maryland General Assembly The Maryland General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Maryland that convenes within the State House in Annapolis. It is a bicameral body: the upper chamber, the Maryland Senate, has 47 representatives, and the lower ...

voted to override Governor

Larry Hogan Lawrence Joseph Hogan Jr. (born May 25, 1956) is an American politician who served as the 62nd governor of Maryland from 2015 to 2023. A member of the Republican Party and son of three-term U.S. representative Lawrence Hogan, he served as co-ch ...

's veto on the bill in December 2021, Jenkins said that the bill would not impact operations at Frederick County's detention center, which ceased detaining individual awaiting an immigration hearing in March 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic. In October 2024, during a vigil for victims of the

October 7 Hamas-led attack on Israel On October 7, 2023, Hamas and several other Palestinian militant groups launched coordinated armed incursions from the Gaza Strip into the Gaza envelope of southern Israel, the first invasion of Israeli territory since the 1948 Arab–Israeli ...

, Jenkins likened undocumented immigrants to

Hamas The Islamic Resistance Movement, abbreviated Hamas (the Arabic acronym from ), is a Palestinian nationalist Sunni Islam, Sunni Islamism, Islamist political organisation with a military wing, the Qassam Brigades. It has Gaza Strip under Hama ...

and suggested that there were terrorist groups waiting for do similar violence in the United States. In December 2024, after

won re-election in the

2024 United States presidential election United States presidential election, Presidential elections were held in the United States on November 5, 2024. The Republican Party (United States), Republican Party's Ticket (election), ticket—Donald Trump, who was the 45th president of ...

, Jenkins said that his office would support Trump's deportation plan and hoped that Trump would bring back the "Task Force Model" policy of ICE's 287(g) program. During the 2025 legislative session, he testified against the Maryland Values Act, which would prohibit counties from entering into 287(g) agreements with ICE.

Federal indictment

In April 2023, Jenkins and local firearms business owner Robert Krop were indicted by a federal grand jury on five counts of conspiracy and making false statements to acquire machine guns, alleging that Jenkins—on five different occasions from August 2015 to May 2022—signed letters to help Krop obtain machine guns to rent out to the public under the guise that the Frederick County Sheriff's Office wanted to see a demonstration of the guns. The indictments also alleged that Krop's business "offered political support to Jenkins" in exchange for the demonstration letters, though Maryland State Campaign Finance records show no campaign contributions from Krop or his business to Jenkins's campaign. Jenkins refused to resign following the indictment, adding that he was cooperating with the

U.S. Department of Justice The United States Department of Justice (DOJ), also known as the Justice Department, is a federal executive department of the U.S. government that oversees the domestic enforcement of federal laws and the administration of justice. It is equi ...

and the

Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (BATFE), commonly referred to as ATF, is a domestic law enforcement agency within the United States Department of Justice. Its responsibilities include the investigation and prevention ...

throughout their investigation, but did take a temporary leave of absence while facing federal charges. Jenkins's attorneys claimed that he was deceived by Krop into providing him with demonstration letters and did not benefit from the alleged conspiracy, denied any evidence of a

quid pro quo ''Quid pro quo'' (Latin: "something for something") is a Latin phrase used in English to mean an exchange of goods or services, in which one transfer is contingent upon the other; "a favor for a favor". Phrases with similar meanings include: " ...

, and said that Jenkins "regretted" signing the demonstration letters that allowed Krop to obtain machine guns. Jenkins also filed to have his case tried separately from Krop's, arguing that his attorney,

Dan Cox Daniel Lewis Cox (born August 9, 1974) is an American politician and lawyer who was a Republican Party (United States), Republican member of the Maryland House of Delegates representing the Maryland Legislative District 4, fourth district from 2 ...

, was using "dangerous" legal strategies that would prejudice a jury against both of them, which was granted in August 2023. Jenkins's trial was set to begin on January 27, 2025. However, after Krop was acquitted on all counts in his machine gun conspiracy case in October 2024, federal prosecutors dropped all charges against Jenkins. Jenkins compared his indictment to the

attempted assassination of Donald Trump in Pennsylvania On July 13, 2024, Donald Trump, then a former president of the United States and presumptive nominee of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party in the 2024 United States presidential election, 2024 presidential election, surv ...

and accused the Department of Justice of trying to "ruin my reputation as sheriff" and "punish and financially destroy me, knowing very well I committed no crimes". In April 2025, he told ''

The Baltimore Banner ''The Baltimore Banner'' is a news website in Baltimore founded by the Venetoulis Institute for Local Journalism, which is a nonprofit set up by Stewart W. Bainum Jr. It launched June 14, 2022. It had a staff of 125, with about 80 working the ...

'' that he believes the federal charges were brought against him after he posed for a picture with U.S. representative

Lauren Boebert Lauren Opal Boebert ( ; ; born December 19, 1986) is an American politician, businesswoman, and gun rights activist serving as the U.S. representative for beginning in 2025, having previously represented from 2021 to 2025. From 2013 to 202 ...

, who was wearing a dress printed with "

Let's Go Brandon "Let's Go Brandon" is a List of political slogans, political slogan and Internet meme used as a euphemism for the phrase "Fuck Joe Biden" in reference to former U.S. President (government title), President Joe Biden. Chants of "Fuck Joe Biden" ...

", at

Mar-a-Lago Mar-a-Lago ( , ) is a resort and National Historic Landmark on a barrier island in Palm Beach, Florida, United States. It spans 126 rooms and built on of land. Since 1985, it has been owned by Donald Trump, the 45th and 47th president of t ...

Personal life

Jenkins met his future wife, Shari, while taking an

emergency medical technician An emergency medical technician (often, more simply, EMT) is a medical professional that provides emergency medical services. EMTs are most commonly found serving on ambulances and in fire departments in the US and Canada, as full-time and som ...

(EMT) test. He is married and has two children, a son and a daughter. He lives in Lewistown, Maryland.

Electoral history

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jenkins, Chuck 1956 births Living people 21st-century American far-right politicians 21st-century Maryland politicians American deputy sheriffs Anti-immigration activists Law enforcement officials from Maryland Maryland Republicans Maryland sheriffs Politicians from Frederick, Maryland