The Flathead County Sheriff Deputy Association has endorsed Brian Heino for sheriff in the upcoming Republican primary.
Four men – Heino, Calvin Beringer, Keith Stahlberg and Jordan White – are squaring off in the Republican primary on June 5. Because there is no Democratic challenger, whoever wins the primary next month will replace outgoing Sheriff Chuck Curry.
In a press release on May 1, the sheriff deputy association announced that its members had voted on whom to endorse after a debate last week. Heino won a “super majority” with 80 percent of the vote. Stahlberg received 12 percent of the vote, Beringer got 6 percent and White received 2 percent.
Heino is a Flathead native and has a degree in criminal justice. He spent three years as a police officer in Wyoming before returning to the Flathead Valley to work at the sheriff’s office for the last 15 years. Heino is currently a patrol commander, but in the past he has served as SWAT Team leader, Search and Rescue coordinator, a member of the Northwest Montana Drug Task Force, and a tactical flight officer with Two Bear Air.