Public Information
With a full range of public safety duties including two Adult Detention Centers, Road Patrol, Communications, Investigations, Warrants, Civil Division, a Criminalistics Lab, and many other sections, the Sheriff’s Office is able to provide quality law enforcement to the citizens of Johnson County.
The sheriff’s office operates out of five main buildings located throughout Johnson County. These include:
- Johnson County Courthouse
- Criminalistics Lab
- Olathe Adult Detention Center
- New Century Adult Detention Center
- Countywide Communications Center
- Sheriff’s Operation Center
Sheriff Staff
Sheriff Byron K. Roberson
Byron Roberson was elected Sheriff of Johnson County, Kansas on November 5th, 2024, and sworn in on January 13th, 2025. Prior to being elected sheriff, Byron served the cities of Prairie Village and Mission Hills, Kansas for over 30 years, where he started his career as a police officer in 1995. During his career at Prairie Village, he served as Field Training Officer, Narcotics Detective, Operations Sergeant and Patrol Commander. Byron was a Team Leader of the Prairie Village SWAT team for over ten years. Byron is a State of Kansas Certified Firearms Instructor and taught critical incident response and weapons tactics for the Police Department for over 20 years.
Byron holds a bachelor's degree in criminal justice from Jackson State University in Jackson Mississippi, and a master's degree in administration of justice from the University of Central Missouri in Warrensburg, Missouri. He is a graduate of the 269th Class of the FBI National Academy in Quantico, Virginia.
Byron is an Adjunct Professor in the Criminal Justice Department at the University of Missouri Kansas City. Byron participates as a mentor for the Prep KC organization that sponsors career building opportunities for high school students in Kansas City Metropolitan School Districts. Byron serves on several boards to include Safehome, Johnson County Criminal Justice Advisory Council, Johnson County Police Academy, President of Johnson County Police Chief and Sheriff's Association and a board member of the KC Metro Investigations Squad.
Undersheriff Cindy Henson
Cindy Henson has 32 years of policing experience, with the last 24 years in leadership roles. She began her career with the Overland Park Police Department, spending 27 years rising through the ranks and working within the many divisions of the department. She has worked in Community Policing, Investigations, Patrol, Personnel, Professional Standards, and Training.
In April 2019, she retired from Overland Park to become Chief of Police for the Spring Hill Police Department. As Chief, she rebuilt trust within the department and the community, improved professionalism and collaborations with city departments and outside agencies, implemented strategies for growth and built relationships and trust to ensure a culture of service. Throughout her career, Cindy helped develop several performance evaluation systems, create new units and worked on the development of mission and values at both agencies.
Cindy is a current member of the Safehome Board of Directors and has held the position of President of the Johnson County Police Chief and Sheriff's Association. She has also been a member of several committees and boards throughout her career.
She holds a bachelor's degree in sociology and is a dean's list graduate of the Southern Police Institute Police Executive Command School, located at the University of Louisville. She has also attended several leadership courses which include Northwestern Supervisory Course, Leadership Academy, and the IACP Leadership of Police Organizations.
Undersheriff Darren Shafer
Undersheriff Darren Shafer is an accomplished law enforcement professional with a distinguished 28-year career with the Johnson County Sheriff’s Office. He holds both a bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of Central Missouri. Undersheriff Shafer is also a 2015 graduate of the Northwestern University School of Police Staff and Command and a 2016 graduate of the prestigious FBI National Academy.
Undersheriff Shafer began his career with the Johnson County Sheriff’s Office in April 1995. He has served as a deputy in the Adult Detention Center, Court Services, Patrol, and was a Field Training Officer. He was promoted to the rank of Sergeant in 2004 to the Criminalistics Laboratory before being reassigned to the Patrol Division in February 2005. In August 2008 Undersheriff Shafer was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant and took on the responsibilities of Watch Commander in the Patrol Division. He was promoted to Captain in April 2012 and served as a Division Commander in the Adult Detention Centers, Communications, and Personnel.
Undersheriff Shafer has been an active leader in the community, serving as the immediate past chairman of the Latino Leadership Network and as a member and past president of the Kiwanis Club of Gardner. Additionally, he was also a member and past chairman of the Johnson County Southwest Consolidated Zoning Board.
Undersheriff Shafer was a member of the Honor Guard from 2003 to 2019 and was the commander of the unit from 2017 - 2019.
History of the Sheriff's Office
The Johnson County Sheriff’s Office has grown from a one man department to an internationally recognized leader in the law enforcement community. The Sheriff’s Office now boasts almost 500 sworn deputies, operating two jails and an internationally accredited crime lab offering a full complement of law enforcement forensic services.
The one thing that has not changed since 1861 is the Sheriff of Johnson County still serves every resident and visitor of the county, providing a safe place to live, go to school, work and play. Johnson County Sheriff’s Office is one of the fastest growing Law Enforcement Agencies in the Midwest.
Johnson County is rich with history including a very famous Constable by the name of James Butler Hickok, better known as Wild Bill Hickok. Hickok served as a Constable of the Monticello Township in Johnson County in 1858 while during the same time; Pat Cosgrove served as the Territorial Sheriff.