Biography: Sheriff Rocky Holcomb has served the Virginia Beach Sheriff’s Office (VBSO) since 1991 and, prior to his promotion to chief deputy in May 2018, served as captain of the Criminal Intelligence Unit and Classification Division.

As the VBSO’s highest ranking deputy sheriff, he was sworn in as sheriff of Virginia Beach on Sept. 29, 2023, to succeed Sheriff Ken Stolle, who retired after 13 years as sheriff with two years left in his term. Sheriff Holcomb will serve until a special election is held. He is Virginia Beach’s seventh sheriff and the first to rise through the ranks, having started as a deputy sheriff recruit.

Sheriff Holcomb’s leadership values are encompassed by the acronym T.R.U.S.T.: Transparency, Respect, Unity, Service and Training.

During Sheriff Holcomb’s career at the VBSO, he has served in every division, commanded the Emergency Response Team and championed efforts to improve mental health treatment for inmates, including by creating the Mental Health Housing Unit. He created the K9 Unit under the supervision of Undersheriff Brian Struzzieri, acquiring and training two canines to detect narcotics and explosives. The K9 Unit has grown to three canines, including the region’s first Fentanyl-detecting canine paired with the VBSO’s first female handler. As captain of the Classification Division, he was instrumental in the creation of the Reentry and Veterans programs.

In 2017, he won a special election to represent the 85th District in the Virginia House of Delegates. He served during the 2017 legislative session, helping successfully carry bills to improve mental health treatment for jail inmates (HB2184) and expand access to contraception (HB2267).

On Aug. 12, 2021, the Virginia Beach City Council unanimously appointed him to fill the unexpired term for the Kempsville District (District 1) on City Council, and he won a special election to keep the seat on Nov. 8, 2022. He served as liaison to many different boards, committees and commissions prior to resigning on Sept. 29, 2023, before becoming sheriff.

Sheriff Holcomb is a veteran of the United States Marine Corps with an honorable discharge. After joining the VBSO, he earned his bachelor’s degree in organizational leadership and management from Regent University and graduated from the West Point Leadership Course.

He is an active volunteer, dedicating his time to the Pungo Strawberry Festival, Kempsville Meadows Elementary School and Mt. Trashmore Family YMCA.

He and his wife, Tracie, have been married for 29 years and have two children, Summer and Norman.

Why are you running for this office?

Serving this community as the Sheriff of Virginia Beach has been the highest honor of my life. I have proudly worn a Virginia Beach Sheriff’s Office star since 1991, and I have held every rank and position at the Sheriff’s Office, rising through the ranks.

I understand our Sheriff’s Office operations because I have walked the walk. We operate the largest city jail in the Commonwealth of Virginia. We maintain the safety and security of the Virginia Beach Circuit, General District and Juvenile and Domestic Relations District courts. We hand deliver court orders, including evictions, subpoenas, repossessions, levies and sheriff sales. Our deputy sheriffs are sworn law enforcement officers and can make arrests and prosecute crimes, and we stand shoulder-to-shoulder with our partners in public safety to keep Virginia Beach the safest large city of its size. I raised my children in this community, and there is nothing that I care about more than its safety. I also understand that public safety requires the support of the community, which is why I have worked hard during my time as Sheriff to expand our community engagement efforts with events like Sheriff Rocky Holcomb’s Turkey Bowl to support VB Schools’ Beach Bags program and Splash into Summer, where we treated some of our Title I school students to a day at Ocean Breeze Waterpark. I hope I have earned the voters’ trust and confidence to continue serving and protecting them as “The People’s Sheriff”.

What is your view on transparency?

My leadership values are encompassed by the acronym T.R.U.S.T.: Transparency, Respect, Unity, Service and Training. I adopted these as the organizational values of the Virginia Beach Sheriff’s Office when I became sheriff in 2023. Transparency is critical to building and maintaining trust with the community and I am fully committed to running a transparent and accountable Virginia Beach Sheriff’s Office.

Would you release the findings of an internal law enforcement investigation?

Yes, upon conclusion of the investigation, I would release the findings of an internal Virginia Beach Sheriff’s Office investigation if it was in the best interest of the community.