Sampsel to Seek 3rd Term as Centre County Sheriff

Bryan Sampsel is running for a third term as Centre County sheriff in this year’s election, he said in a statement on Wednesday.

A Bellefonte resident, Sampsel will again seek the Republican nomination for the county’s top law enforcement officer in the May primary. Sampsel began his career with the sheriff’s office in 2003, working as a deputy and later sergeant before being elected sheriff in 2015. He ran unopposed for reelection in 2019.

“I would again like to thank all the voters of Centre County for the opportunity to serve as your sheriff for the past seven plus years,” Sampsel said. “I’m asking for your support again to continue to serve as sheriff of Centre County. We have had many accomplishments over the past several years and would embrace the opportunity to continue to move the office forward.”

The main priority of the sheriff’s office is serving the Court of Common Pleas. It has multiple functions, including service of civil process, protection from abuse and custody orders, eviction orders, warrants and inmate transports. It also provides security for the Centre County Courthouse, county-owned buildings and University Park Airport; patrols the Snow Shoe Rails to Trails; conducts sheriff’s sales; issues licenses to carry firearms; enforces motor vehicle violations; and supports other law enforcement agencies, among other duties.

Sampsel is a 1988 Bellefonte Area High School graduate who attended Penn State before enlisting and serving in the Pennsylvania Army National Guard.

Under Sampsel’s direction, the sheriff’s office participates in the Centre County Heroin and Opioid Prevention and Education (HOPE) initiative and maintain multiple drug collection boxes.

The sheriff’s office also participates in numerous community events each year.

“Community events are something that have always been and will remain something that’s important to me as the sheriff,” Sampsel said.

Sampsel and his wife, Ruth, have two children and are members of Faith United Methodist Church and the Pennsylvania Sheriffs’ Association.