LEADERSHIP FOCUSED ON
WHAT GILPIN NEEDS NEXT
Zach Meyer’s priorities are clear: protect our schools, retain experienced personnel, strengthen patrol and emergency readiness, restore accountability and merit, and use taxpayer dollars responsibly.
Experience to lead. A plan to move Gilpin forward.
FIVE PRIORITIES
1. PROTECT OUR SCHOOLS AND STUDENTS
School safety must be one of the Sheriff’s Office’s highest priorities. Protecting students requires more than reacting to an emergency after it begins. It requires preparation, coordination, training, communication, and clear leadership before an incident ever occurs.
His approach will focus on four areas: Prevention. Preparation. Response. Reunification.
That means working closely with the school district, fire and EMS partners, dispatch, parents, and other agencies; conducting realistic training; maintaining clear response plans; and ensuring families know how information and reunification will be handled during a crisis.
When children are involved, preparation cannot be an afterthought.
2. RETAIN EXPERIENCE AND BUILD CAPABILITY
A Sheriff’s Office is only as strong as the people who serve in it.
Gilpin County must do more than fill positions. It must retain experienced employees, develop newer staff, strengthen supervision, and make sure every division has the depth and training needed to respond effectively.
That means investing in Patrol, Detentions, Investigations, and Dispatch through practical training, mentorship, fair advancement opportunities, dependable leadership, and a workplace where good employees want to stay.
In Gilpin County, experience matters even more. Mountain terrain, difficult roads, communication challenges, long response distances, and limited nearby backup can quickly expose weaknesses in staffing, supervision, or preparedness.
Zach’s goal is not simply a full roster.
It is a capable, experienced, and well-supported team that knows this county, knows its job, and is ready when the community needs it.
3. STRENGTHEN PATROL AND EMERGENCY READINESS
Gilpin County needs deputies who are ready when the call comes.
Gilpin’s terrain, weather, geography, and limited staffing create challenges that larger departments do not face.
Zach will focus on building patrol capability, cross-training personnel, and making sure deputies have the training and resources to respond safely and effectively throughout the county.
Being fully staffed is not the same as being fully capable. Gilpin needs trained, road-ready personnel who can respond when and where they are needed.
Zach’s approach is simple:
Train. Prepare. Be ready when the call comes.
4. RESTORE ACCOUNTABILITY AND MERIT
Public trust begins with how the Sheriff’s Office conducts its own business.
Accountability is not about blame. It is about setting clear standards, following them consistently, and being willing to answer for the decisions you make.
Employees should know what is expected of them, how they will be evaluated, and what it takes to advance. Hiring, assignments, promotions, and opportunities should be based on qualifications, performance, readiness, and the needs of the Sheriff’s Office.
Zach will set clear expectations, apply policies consistently, recognize strong performance, and make sure employees have a fair opportunity to grow.
Accountability starts with leadership. Supervisors should own their decisions, address problems directly, and hold themselves to the same standards they expect from everyone else.
Zach’s standard is simple:
Set the standard. Apply it fairly. Reward merit.
5. SPEND TAXPAYER DOLLARS RESPONSIBLY
Public safety requires resources. It also requires responsible decisions about how those resources are used.
The Sheriff’s Office should operate with a conservative budgeting philosophy: prioritize essential needs, control unnecessary growth, plan for long-term costs, and make sure every taxpayer dollar serves a clear public-safety purpose.
That means planning ahead for staffing, training, equipment, and replacement costs, while looking for grants and other funding opportunities when they make sense. Major expenditures should have a clear purpose, and taxpayers should be able to understand what their money is being used for and why.
Zach’s approach is straightforward:
Prioritize needs. Plan ahead. Account for every dollar.
I’m running for Sheriff because I believe Gilpin County deserves a Sheriff’s Office that is prepared for what comes next.
I’ve seen firsthand what this job requires and how much a small agency depends on experienced people, strong leadership, and employees who are prepared to step up when the community needs them.
We need to keep experienced employees, train and develop the next generation, support our dispatchers and deputies, and make sure taxpayer dollars are spent where they have the greatest impact on public safety.
I’m not running to protect the status quo. I’m running to build a stronger, more capable Sheriff’s Office that treats people fairly, makes sound decisions, and is ready to serve Gilpin County
every single day.
WHY I AM RUNNING
EXCELLENCE THROUGH SERVICE
Gilpin County needs a Sheriff's Office that keeps experienced people, prepares deputies for the realities of mountain law enforcement, treats employees fairly, spends taxpayer dollars carefully, and earns the community's trust.
EXPERIENCE EARNED IN THE FIELD
Zach Meyer’s experience was built through service, responsibility, and real-world decision-making under pressure.
His background includes Marine Corps combat service, volunteer service with Central City Fire and Timberline Fire, and service with the Gilpin County Sheriff’s Office in Detentions, Patrol, as a School Resource Officer and Field Training Officer, and on SWAT.
His service to Gilpin County also extends beyond law enforcement. Zach has been involved with Gilpin Parks & Rec leagues and has served as a shooting sports and livestock 4-H leader.
Service in uniform. Service in Gilpin.
Service that runs deeper than the job.
EXPERIENCE MATTERS
IN GILPIN
FULLY STAFFED ISN'T
THE SAME AS FULLY CAPABLE
Gilpin County’s mountain terrain, difficult roads, communication challenges, long response distances, and limited nearby backup mean the Sheriff’s Office cannot measure readiness by headcount alone.
Deputies, dispatchers, supervisors, and investigators must be prepared to make critical decisions when additional resources may be miles away.
A capable Sheriff’s Office needs experienced people in the right places, strong supervision, dependable dispatch, effective training, and employees who know this county and understand its unique challenges.
That means protecting institutional knowledge, developing newer employees, and building depth throughout Patrol, Detentions, Investigations, and Dispatch. The goal is not simply to fill positions. It is to build and maintain a team that is experienced, supported, and ready when the community needs it.
RECRUIT. RETAIN. TRAIN. MENTOR.
Build a team that is ready, not just a roster that is full.
THE MEYER STANDARD
Leadership should be measured by more than promises.
The Sheriff’s Office should operate by clear, consistent standards that apply to everyone, from the newest employee to the Sheriff.
Hire on merit.
Choose the best-qualified people for the job.
Promote on performance.
Advancement should be earned through ability, leadership, performance,
and results.
Communicate honestly.
Employees and the public deserve clear, accurate information and
straightforward answers.
Apply the rules fairly.
The same standards should apply to everyone.
Take responsibility.
Own decisions, address problems directly, and be willing to answer for
the choices you make.
Lead by example.
Leadership should meet the same standards it
expects from everyone else.
That is the standard Zach will expect from the Sheriff’s Office,
and the standard he expects from himself.
Zachary Meyer
Wesley Jones
Meyer's Choice for Undersheriff
Meet the Team Ready to Lead
Zachary Meyer
Candidate for Gilpin County Sheriff
Zach Meyer has proudly called Gilpin County home for nearly 15 years. He and his wife, Krystal, are raising three children who attend school here, and in 2019 they founded Diamond ZK Cattle. Gilpin County is not simply where Zach works. It is where his family has built its life and where they are deeply rooted in the community.
After high school, Zach enlisted in the United States Marine Corps, serving with the Presidential Security Detail, 1st Battalion, 7th Marines, and the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit. He later deployed to Afghanistan in combat operations. His military service strengthened the discipline, preparation, resilience, and leadership under pressure that continue to guide him today.
Zach continued his commitment to public service as a volunteer firefighter with the Central City Fire Department and Timberline Fire Protection District. For nearly a decade, he has also served with the Gilpin County Sheriff’s Office, gaining experience in multiple sworn assignments, including Detentions, Patrol, Field Training, and SWAT. His experience also includes supervisory and administrative responsibilities involving personnel, training, scheduling, and agency operations.
Zach remains actively involved in the community today. He and his family regularly participate in local events, school activities, and community gatherings throughout Gilpin County. He is personally invested in the next generation. He mentors young people, sets a positive example, and helps our children understand the value of service, responsibility, respect, and community. That involvement keeps him connected to the people, concerns, and everyday realities of the county he hopes to serve as Sheriff.
Those experiences have given Zach a firsthand understanding of the unique challenges of public safety in a small mountain county and the importance of experienced personnel, strong training, dependable leadership, fiscal responsibility, and community trust.
Zach is running for Sheriff to build a stronger, more capable Sheriff’s Office, one that retains good people, develops future leaders, treats employees fairly, prepares for the unexpected, and remains accountable to the community it serves.
His philosophy is simple:
Prepare before the crisis. Support the people doing the work.
Take responsibility for your decisions. Never forget who you serve.
Wesley Jones
Meyer's Choice for Undersheriff
Wesley Jones brings 20 years of law enforcement experience and a strong commitment to serving the Gilpin County community. As a career law enforcement officer and SWAT team member, Wes has firsthand experience making difficult decisions under pressure and leading in critical moments. He understands that public safety depends not only on capable deputies, but also on strong, engaged leadership that prepares and supports them.
Wes began his career in 2006 after graduating from the police academy, first serving with the Park County Sheriff’s Office before joining the Gilpin County Sheriff’s Office in 2010. During his career in Gilpin County, Wes has served in both Detentions and Patrol and was promoted to Sergeant in 2016. After supervising in Detentions, he transferred to Patrol, where he continues to serve as a Patrol Sergeant, leading deputies and managing both routine and critical law-enforcement operations in the field.
Throughout his career, Wes has taken on key leadership responsibilities beyond his regular assignment. He has overseen hiring and recruiting, served as the agency’s Training Coordinator and Defensive Tactics Instructor, participated in the drone program, and served as Team Leader for the combined SWAT team. Those roles have given him extensive experience in supervision, training, personnel development, emergency response, and preparing deputies to make sound decisions under pressure.
Wes is dedicated to professionalism, accountability, public trust, and supporting the people who serve. He believes strong leadership means setting clear expectations, developing future leaders, and making sure deputies have the training, resources, and support they need to succeed.
He is also a devoted husband to his wife, Jeannie, of 14 years, and a proud father of two.
As Zach Meyer’s choice for Undersheriff, Wes brings the operational depth and day-to-day leadership experience needed to help build a stronger, more capable Sheriff’s Office and continue serving the citizens and visitors of Gilpin County.
Experienced in the field. Committed to the team. Ready to lead.
Together, Zach and Wes offer complementary strengths and a shared commitment to professionalism, accountability, preparedness, and service to Gilpin County.
DIFFERENT BACKGROUNDS. COMPLEMENTARY EXPERIENCE.
ONE STANDARD FOR LEADERSHIP.
UPCOMING EVENTS
