Always do the next right thing, and be prepared to get fired for it. — Sheriff Bill Waybourn, Tarrant County, Texas
In this episode of The Hero Next Door from Proud American Studios, Sheriff Bill Waybourn of Tarrant County, Texas, sits down with host Dr. Darcy Leutzinger and co-hosts Michael Koscielniak and Trey Lindsey.
Together, they unpack a life spent in service: military, law enforcement, family, and faith.
Tarrant County Sheriff Bill Waybourn: From Small-Town Kid to Texas Lawman
Sheriff Waybourn is more than a badge and a title. He is a small-town kid turned Air Force cop, a record-setting young chief, a major-county sheriff confronting fentanyl and mental health crises, and a father who opened his home to some of the most vulnerable children in the world.
His story embodies the show’s mission: to reveal the everyday heroes who live among us and quietly hold the line.
Growing Up in Jal, New Mexico
Waybourn grew up in the small oil and cattle town of Jal in southeastern New Mexico. He describes it as “kind of like Mayberry,” with Friday night football at the center of community life.
He later moved to the Dallas-Fort Worth area. He finished high school in Arlington before entering the U.S. Air Force.
Air Force Service and the Road Into Policing
When he joined the Air Force, Waybourn asked for two things: to be a cop and to see the world.
At Lackland Air Force Base, he completed boot camp, the security police academy, and combat skills training. He eventually served on an anti-terrorism team and secured nuclear assets as part of the largest security police force in the world at that time.
The Air Force paid for him to attend a police academy while still on active duty. It also instilled a disciplined mindset, servant leadership, and a commitment to “mission accomplished” that he carried into civilian law enforcement.
Texas’s Youngest Police Chief to Tarrant County Sheriff
After leaving active duty, Waybourn joined the Dalworthington Gardens Police Department in April 1981.
By June 1984, he was promoted to Chief of Police. By his recollection and contemporaneous accounts, he became the youngest police chief in Texas at the time.
He credits rapid promotions and the willingness of a small agency to let him organize and lead. Mentors from the military and other chiefs around the state helped guide him when he felt overwhelmed.
Waybourn eventually transitioned from appointed chief to elected sheriff of Tarrant County. The jurisdiction serves roughly two million residents.
He now oversees both county-wide operations and a jail population that can exceed 4,600 inmates on any given day.
He describes the move from chief to sheriff as going from being “on call 24/7” to being “under a microscope 24/7.” Sixty percent of his job is running the county jail. The remaining 40 percent covers traditional law enforcement operations.
Innovating Texas Law: DWI and the Chris Kyle Bill
Two major legislative efforts define much of Waybourn’s statewide impact.
Texas DWI No Refusal and Blood Draws
In 2005, DWI conviction rates hovered around 50 percent due to widespread refusals of breath tests. Waybourn’s team leaned into case law identifying blood as the “gold standard.”
They trained officers as blood technicians, created safe draw rooms, and relied on blood evidence after arrests. Convictions climbed close to 100 percent.
After major legal battles, including a Fifth Circuit challenge and review by the U.S. Supreme Court, the program was upheld as constitutional.
The Chris Kyle Bill
In honor of Navy SEAL Chris Kyle, who was in the process of becoming a police officer with Waybourn’s agency when he was murdered, Texas passed landmark legislation.
The bill allows certain military veterans, especially special operations, military police, and other skilled specialties, to significantly reduce the length of a traditional police academy through targeted training and online coursework.
It also expanded to allow trades like electricians and plumbers to convert military experience into Texas licensure. Today, Waybourn oversees deputies who entered policing through that streamlined pathway.
Fighting Fentanyl, Cartel Crime, and Border-Driven Threats
As sheriff in a major Texas county, Waybourn remains on the front lines of the fentanyl crisis and cartel-related criminal activity.
After the federal administration changed, Tarrant County saw fentanyl deaths drop from around 300 per year to under 25. Waybourn attributes this to a combination of tighter border control, aggressive interdiction of cartel stockpiles, and increased public awareness.
One interdiction traffic stop alone yielded approximately 150,000 fentanyl pills in Tarrant County.
Federal data shows the proportion of cartel-manufactured fentanyl pills testing lethal dropped from six out of ten in 2024 to roughly three out of ten by late 2025. This signals that U.S. enforcement and supply-side pressure are disrupting the market.
ICE Partnerships and 287(g) in Tarrant County
Tarrant County operates under a 287(g) agreement. This deputizes certain jail personnel as federal officers empowered to place immigration detainers.
As of this episode, nearly 400 inmates in the county jail were held on ICE detainers. These individuals face serious charges such as murder, cartel hits, and aggravated sexual assaults of children.
ICE agents regularly pick these individuals up directly from the secure jail environment rather than locating them in the community after release. Waybourn argues this dramatically reduces risk to agents and the public.
Building a Premier Training Academy
Waybourn is opening a new 50,000-square-foot training academy. It features simulation driving and shooting systems designed so that even midnight shift officers can rotate through integrated scenarios.
These scenarios combine vehicle operations, shoot/no-shoot decisions, and crisis intervention in a single 30 to 40 minute block.
He believes frontline officers should be treated as “second cousins” to special operations forces. The emphasis is on perishable skills like driving, decision-making, and controlled use of force.
Mental Health Response in the County Jail
Around 60 percent of individuals entering the Tarrant County jail present with some form of mental health issue. This makes the jail effectively the largest mental health facility in the region.
The sheriff’s office employs roughly 100 mental health professionals within the jail. It also operates a diversion center where officers can take individuals in crisis for immediate treatment when appropriate.
Waybourn notes that truly violent offenders often have no alternative but jail, even when mental illness is a major factor.
The Hidden Cost: Trauma and Officer Wellness
Drawing on more than 40 years in uniform, Waybourn describes one of the most haunting calls of his career: a double suicide involving two 13-year-olds in a “Romeo and Juliet”-style pact.
Scenes like that impact not only the community but also the veteran officers and fathers who respond.
He emphasizes structured debriefings, ready access to chaplains, professional psychologists, and marriage counseling. He calls them “dumping grounds” where officers can talk through critical incidents without rank in the room.
A typical citizen may experience two or three lifetime critical incidents. A new patrol officer in his county will often surpass that within a 17-week field training program.
A Lawman’s Home: Adoption, Sacrifice, and a Family of Ten
Beyond badges and statutes, Waybourn’s life is defined by family. He and his wife have ten children: two biological and eight adopted.
Their journey began in 2002 when they took in a Russian orphan no one else had selected. They later adopted his best friend and the friend’s two brothers after they appeared on an international list and came to Texas through an orphanage program.
The family adopted a newborn whose birth mother struggled with addiction. They took in a medically abused girl whose case involved Munchausen by proxy and unnecessary surgeries.
They welcomed a six-month-old boy who had suffered 19 fractures and multiple broken ribs due to abuse. They also took in an older boy originally adopted from China whose first adoptive family attempted to “re-adopt” him out. Waybourn’s family took him in at age 12, and he has since graduated and is building his own life in South Texas.
Waybourn says this life has been “a bed of roses with some long thorns.” But faith, calling, and the commitment to give children a safe home have defined his household as much as any rank or badge.
Leadership, Politics, and the Battle for Law Enforcement’s Reputation
As Chairman of the Major County Sheriffs in Texas and Vice President of the Major County Sheriffs of America, Waybourn plays a national role in shaping law enforcement policy.
The organization has only around 110 member sheriffs representing roughly 140 million Americans. They have direct access to attorneys general, federal homeland security leaders, and key members of Congress.
Together with partners like the Major Cities Chiefs, they have twice helped defeat legislation that would have required warrants for law enforcement to use open-source investigative tools available to the general public.
Surviving Political Attacks
In a hard-fought 2024 reelection race, Waybourn faced a coordinated national campaign portraying him as responsible for deaths in custody during the COVID era.
He was one of the only large-county sheriffs issuing public press releases every time an inmate died, most often in hospitals due to chronic conditions. Despite death threats and nationwide negative headlines, an inspection by a Department of Justice-linked team concluded that Tarrant County’s jail was a “Cadillac model.”
Waybourn ultimately won reelection. One of his remaining goals is to help restore law enforcement’s reputation after the damage done in 2020. He wants young Americans once again to view policing as a noble profession.
He is even exploring ideas like a reduced federal tax rate for first responders to help recruitment and retention.
Advice to the Next Generation of Chiefs and Sheriffs
For aspiring chiefs, Waybourn’s advice is simple and blunt: always do “the next right thing,” and be prepared to get fired for it.
For future sheriffs, he stresses that the job is both deeply political and profoundly people-oriented. They must be visible in the community while constantly investing in their own leadership skills through reading, courses, and mentorship.
Watch the full episode on Proud American Studios.
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