Effective March 1, 2023, the Dodge County Sheriff’s Office began its contract for police services with the Village of Lomira. The Village of Lomira Police Department had previously been under the direction of Sheriff Dale Schmidt since September 23, 2022, during the transition, which allowed the sheriff to analyze the law enforcement needs of the village. It is important to understand that the Lomira Police Department has never been a full-time law enforcement agency and the Dodge County Sheriff’s Office has always been responsible for law enforcement services within the village when the police department was not on duty. The Lomira Police Department has historically averaged about 8-12 hours of police coverage per day. Some days, there were no Lomira police officers assigned to patrol the village.

The Dodge County Sheriff’s Office will now provide 24/7 law enforcement coverage to the Village of Lomira, with three full-time deputies being assigned to work in the village on a full-time basis. One of those deputies will also be assigned to work in Lomira Schools as a School Resource Officer (SRO) for about 20 hours per week.

Sergeant Donald Counard has been assigned to lead the law enforcement efforts within the Village of Lomira and will oversee the deputies assigned. Sergeant Counard has already made rounds through the village introducing himself to many of the business owners to establish excellent police-community relations with those business owners. Sergeant Counard is a 28-year law enforcement veteran who has excelled in the area of community policing. He has worked in small communities before coming to the sheriff’s office and has done wonderful things with the sheriff’s office's Fatal Vision Program and Once Chance Program. Sergeant Counard also was a criminal investigations detective and has found a niche in investigating welfare fraud cases.

Deputy Jay Thielmann is assigned to take over the SRO duties. Deputy Thielmann is very excited about his future role in Lomira. He too is another “Officer Friendly” who will fill the role of SRO well and is described by his supervisors as very intelligent and thoughtful in how he conducts his work. Deputy Thielmann formerly was a probation and parole officer and is currently a patrol deputy working third shift.

The sheriff’s office looks forward to continuing our law enforcement efforts and enhancing our law enforcement presence in the Village of Lomira. It is our goal to make this transition a successful one, which will enhance law enforcement services over that which was provided previously while doing so at a reduction in cost to the residents of Lomira.

It is the mission of the Dodge County Sheriff’s Office to protect the lives, property, and constitutional rights of our citizens through honest, ethical, and professional service to our community. Our vision is to partner with the community to develop proactive solutions toward making Dodge County a safe and enjoyable place to live, work, and visit.