Wisconsin
Wisconsin's elected county sheriffs are constitutional officers
whose authority state statute substantially insulates from county
boards. As of May 2026, no Wisconsin county has an enacted external
civilian oversight body covering the sheriff. Milwaukee County is
the most active: in 2024–2025 the County Supervisor's Office of
Corporation Counsel issued a legal opinion confirming the County
Board may create an advisory civilian review board for the Sheriff,
but no ordinance had been voted on as of late April 2025. Milwaukee's
Fire and Police Commission covers Milwaukee Police only.
Sheriff oversight
0/72 counties with a dedicated body
0 reports from those bodies
Other oversight
0 Civil Grand Jury reports
2 statewide oversight reports
Compare costs
Compare Wisconsin sheriff departments side by side
Population, budget, $ per resident, staffing, and jail capacity across all 72 counties.
Counties
| # | County | Status (date) | Started (date) | LE capability | Independence | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Adams | — | — | — | — | |
| 02 | Ashland | — | — | — | — | |
| 03 | Barron | — | — | — | — | |
| 04 | Bayfield | — | — | — | — | |
| 05 | Brown | — | — | — | — | |
| 06 | Buffalo | — | — | — | — | |
| 07 | Burnett | — | — | — | — | |
| 08 | Calumet | — | — | — | — | |
| 09 | Chippewa | — | — | — | — | |
| 10 | Clark | — | — | — | — | |
| 11 | Columbia | — | — | — | — | |
| 12 | Crawford | — | — | — | — | |
| 13 | Dane | — | — | — | — | |
| 14 | Dodge | — | — | — | — | |
| 15 | Door | — | — | — | — | |
| 16 | Douglas | — | — | — | — | |
| 17 | Dunn | — | — | — | — | |
| 18 | Eau Claire | — | — | — | — | |
| 19 | Florence | — | — | — | — | |
| 20 | Fond du Lac | — | — | — | — | |
| 21 | Forest | — | — | — | — | |
| 22 | Grant | — | — | — | — | |
| 23 | Green | — | — | — | — | |
| 24 | Green Lake | — | — | — | — | |
| 25 | Iowa | — | — | — | — | |
| 26 | Iron | — | — | — | — | |
| 27 | Jackson | — | — | — | — | |
| 28 | Jefferson | — | — | — | — | |
| 29 | Juneau | — | — | — | — | |
| 30 | Kenosha | — | — | — | — | |
| 31 | Kewaunee | — | — | — | — | |
| 32 | La Crosse | — | — | — | — | |
| 33 | Lafayette | — | — | — | — | |
| 34 | Langlade | — | — | — | — | |
| 35 | Lincoln | — | — | — | — | |
| 36 | Manitowoc | — | — | — | — | |
| 37 | Marathon | — | — | — | — | |
| 38 | Marinette | — | — | — | — | |
| 39 | Marquette | — | — | — | — | |
| 40 | Menominee | — | — | — | — | |
| 41 | Milwaukee | — | — | — | — | |
| 42 | Monroe | — | — | — | — | |
| 43 | Oconto | — | — | — | — | |
| 44 | Oneida | — | — | — | — | |
| 45 | Outagamie | — | — | — | — | |
| 46 | Ozaukee | — | — | — | — | |
| 47 | Pepin | — | — | — | — | |
| 48 | Pierce | — | — | — | — | |
| 49 | Polk | — | — | — | — | |
| 50 | Portage | — | — | — | — | |
| 51 | Price | — | — | — | — | |
| 52 | Racine | — | — | — | — | |
| 53 | Richland | — | — | — | — | |
| 54 | Rock | — | — | — | — | |
| 55 | Rusk | — | — | — | — | |
| 56 | Sauk | — | — | — | — | |
| 57 | Sawyer | — | — | — | — | |
| 58 | Shawano | — | — | — | — | |
| 59 | Sheboygan | — | — | — | — | |
| 60 | St. Croix | — | — | — | — | |
| 61 | Taylor | — | — | — | — | |
| 62 | Trempealeau | — | — | — | — | |
| 63 | Vernon | — | — | — | — | |
| 64 | Vilas | — | — | — | — | |
| 65 | Walworth | — | — | — | — | |
| 66 | Washburn | — | — | — | — | |
| 67 | Washington | — | — | — | — | |
| 68 | Waukesha | — | — | — | — | |
| 69 | Waupaca | — | — | — | — | |
| 70 | Waushara | — | — | — | — | |
| 71 | Winnebago | — | — | — | — | |
| 72 | Wood | — | — | — | — |