Hennepin County Sheriff

“Teaching and learning are lifelong.”
– Sheriff Dawanna Witt

Dawanna S. Witt was elected as the Hennepin County Sheriff on November 8, 2022. She was sworn in and took office on Tuesday, January 3, 2023. She is the first woman and person of color to hold the office.

Born in Chicago and raised in Minneapolis, Sheriff Witt became a mother at 15 but nevertheless excelled at school. She earned several scholarships to college, including the Justice Alan Page Scholarship. As a condition of that scholarship, she volunteered in several community organizations in various roles and saw firsthand how her actions could make a positive difference in the lives of young people. Her passion for working with kids remains to this day.

Sheriff Witt is married with two adult daughters and three grandchildren. Sheriff Witt serves seasonally as a Minnesota State Fair Police Officer and is a board member of the MN Crisis Intervention Team, the Boys & Girls Club – Twin Cities, and Secretary of the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement – Northstar Chapter. She also serves on the MN Youth Intervention Working Group, Jewish Community Relations Council Steering Committee, and the Major County Sheriffs of America (MCSA) Nomination and Award Committee, which recognizes outstanding employees and units from MCSA member Sheriff’s Offices. Sheriff Witt has served on advisory panels including the State of Minnesota Legislative Task Force on Child Protection and the State of Minnesota Task Force on Law Enforcement Education Reform and works as an adjunct professor at Inver Hills Community College, teaching Juvenile Justice and American Corrections.

Visit the sheriff's website for more info.