Bruce Vanoven To Run For Gibson County Sheriff

Bruce Vanoven grew up in Princeton and graduated from Princeton Community High School in 1992.  After graduating high school, he furthered his studies at Oakland City University where he received a Bachelor of Arts in Religious Studies.  While attending college Bruce married Princeton resident Patty Cotner.  Bruce and Patty have been married over 26 years and have one adult son, Micah who is currently employed at Toyota Motor Manufacturing.  Bruce regularly attends Vertical Church in Fort Branch where he serves as a member of the worship team and prayer team.  In addition to his church involvement Bruce serves on the board of directors of the Princeton Theater and Community Center.  At the Princeton Theater Bruce volunteers in various capacities both on and off the stage.

Bruce’s relationship with the Gibson County Sheriff’s Office began in January of 2001 when the opportunity presented itself for him to become a reserve deputy under then Sheriff George Ballard.  Bruce proudly served in that capacity until he was hired as a Merit Deputy in July of that year.  Since joining the Gibson County Sheriff’s Office, he has been crucial in the involvement of several high-profile cases that have affected the citizen of Gibson County.  Most notably on July 17, 2006, Vanoven located the victims of a triple homicide that occurred in Pike County.  Bruce’s lifesaving actions that night saved the life of one of the four victims, and led to the successful conviction of Nicholas Harbison for murder.  Bruce received much attention for that case and has received several awards for his heroic and courageous actions, but the one award he is most proud of is being selected as only the second deputy in the Sheriff’s Office 200 year history who was awarded the Merit Award for going above and beyond the call of duty as a Deputy Sheriff with his involvement in the Pike County triple homicide case.

Over the years Bruce has devoted himself to training other officers at the Sheriff’s Office.  He was certified as an Indiana Law Enforcement Academy Instructor in 2007 and a Senior Indiana Law Enforcement Academy Instructor in 2020.  In addition to his general instructor duties Sgt. Vanoven is also certified in Close Quarter Combat, Ground Fighting, PepperBall, and Emergency Vehicle Operations.  Bruce values training and for the past several years he has served as the department’s primary instructor of the Indiana Law Enforcement’s mandatory 40-hour PreBasic course, a class that is required of all officers before they attend the basic law enforcement academy.

Four years ago, Sgt. Vanoven ran for Sheriff with the vision of “Building a bridge between law enforcement and the citizens of Gibson County.”  Now more than ever he believes that he is the right person to lead.  In a culture where law enforcement is vilified and integrity is being questioned Sgt. Vanoven wants to build bridges of trust with those he leads, serves and partners with.  Finally, as Sheriff, Sgt. Vanoven will develop a culture where “leadership matters” and everyone is trained and equipped to lead where they are.  In doing so this will foster a culture where employees feel valued, trusted, and equipped to serve those they protect.