The San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors today unanimously appointed Undersheriff Shannon Dicus to serve as San Bernardino County Sheriff/Coroner/Public Administrator during the remaining 18 months of retiring Sheriff John McMahon’s final term in office.
In 11 months, the county’s voters will decide who will serve as sheriff for four years starting in January 2023.
McMahon announced last month that he would retire on July 16 after 36 years of service to the Sheriff’s Department, more than eight of those years as sheriff. The Board of Supervisors was obligated to appoint someone to complete McMahon’s term after determining that a special election would not be possible prior to the regularly scheduled June 2022 sheriff’s election.
“Undersheriff Dicus has been with the Sheriff’s Department for 30 years and clearly led the field of applicants in experience and knowledge,” said Board of Supervisors Chairman Curt Hagman. “He has overseen or served within virtually every division in the department. This county must have someone who is ready to step into the role of sheriff in nine days.”
Board Vice Chair Dawn Rowe and Supervisors Janice Rutherford, Joe Baca, Jr., and Col. Paul Cook (Ret.) all enthusiastically supported the appointment of Dicus.
Dicus joined the Sheriff’s Department in 1991 after serving in the U.S. Army as a military police officer and with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Police in Loma Linda.
As undersheriff, Dicus oversees the day-to-day operations of the Sheriff’s Department as well as the Internal Affairs, Civil Liabilities, and Bureau of Administration divisions.
His past assignments include corrections at the Glen Helen Rehabilitation and West Valley Detention centers; patrol duties in Apple Valley and Victorville and the Barstow and Victor Valley stations; specialized Investigations (Narcotics, SWAT, and Criminal Intelligence); and support services (Technical Services, Communications, Records, and the Bureau of Administration).
Dicus has a Bachelor’s Degree in Criminal Justice from Cal State San Bernardino and a Master’s Degree in Communications from Cal Baptist University.