Shawn has served as a law enforcement officer in Maryland since 1997. He currently serves as the Assistant Chief of Police with the Gaithersburg Police Department, having previously served as the Operations Bureau Commander and the Special Operations Bureau Commander. He worked his way up the ranks having worked in patrol, investigations, and in plainclothes capacities. He is a graduate of the both the Police Executive Research Forum’s Senior Management Institute for Police (2022) and Leadership in Police Organizations training program (2016). He manages the hiring process for the Gaithersburg Police Department and has conducted and supervised hundreds of both sworn and civilian background investigations over his career.
Shawn is a certified firearms and physical fitness instructor, is certified in Force Science, and is certified in Voice Stress Analysis. From 2006 to 2021, he served as an adjunct professor providing instruction in criminal justice related classes at the University of Maryland and Montgomery College (MD). He was awarded the Kendall Service Award for Excellence in Teaching (UMD) in 2014 and in 2020.
Shawn earned his Bachelor of Arts in Criminal Justice and Political Science from Frostburg State University (MD) in 1995. He earned his Master of Arts degree in Human Sciences from Hood College (MD) in 2005.
