David Tennessen has been appointed chief deputy by Ventura County Sheriff Bob Brooks. He will start the position April 5.

Tennessen has worked more than 30 years with the sheriff's department and is currently serving as commander of the Human Resources Bureau.

As chief deputy, Tennessen will assume leadership of the Special Services Division, which includes Major Crimes, Narcotics, Technical Services, Intelligence and the Aviation Unit.

"David has the diverse knowledge and experience needed to perform at the executive level and has consistently displayed strong leadership abilities throughout his career," Brooks said.

Tennessen has worked in every division of the sheriff's department at the management level since 1991.

Tennessen's previous assignments include chief of police for the contract city of Camarillo and four years as commander in the Special Services Division. In Special Services, he worked within Ventura County's Terrorism Working Group, which addresses homeland security issues on a countywide level.

He gained expertise in public safety aviation issues through his position as Special Services Unit commander and an earlier assignment as captain of the Aviation Unit.

Tennessen holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in organizational management from Ashford University in Iowa and is enrolled in the Master of Public Administration program at California State University Northridge.

He lives in Camarillo with his wife, Valerie. His adult daughter Jessie teaches school in Camarillo.