DEP. RAY WINKLER LCSO EMPLOYEE OF THE MONTH
At the July Liberty County Sheriff’s General meeting, Sheriff Bobby Rader named LCSO livestock Deputy Ray Winkler as the employee of the month. Deputy Winkler is the only livestock Officer for Liberty County as was pointed out at a recent convention. Winkler is on-duty 24/7 and averages 20 to 25 livestock calls each week with many of these calls late night calls and on week-ends during his “off duty” hours. In doing so he has saved the county a tremendous amount of money as he and other deputies have handled situations themselves without having to call in outside assistance from private organizations.
He certainly is no stranger to long hours and being on call as he has approximately 28 years of law enforcement experience under his belt and is very well versed in his assigned duties.
Having graduated from the Delmar College Police Academy in Corpus Christi in 1994 he first hired on with the Kleberg Sheriff’s Office then later transferred to the U.S. Boarder Patrol. He then transferred to Harris County Pct. 4 Constables office and still later to TABC where he spent twelve years before coming to the Liberty County Sheriff’s Office. His heart is fully into his present assignment as livestock Officer as he tried to help land owners secure their cattle when they escape fencing and to do that, Winkler carries post, wire and tools to mend a fence in a temporary fashion for land owners until they can arrive and make permanent repairs. He has put his Master certification to good use in the Patrol Division and now as the livestock Officer for the county.
During these 28 years of service Winkler has attended many law enforcement related schools such as Executive Protection, Undercover narcotic Investigators class, Search and Rescue techniques as well as K-9 Handling to name only a few. He says his most memorable case was when he stopped a truck pulling a horse trailer with two “sway back” horses in the trailer. The driver gave conflicting accounts of a rodeo he was going to and that he was a level 15 roper…. when there are actually only 10 levels for ropers. These inconsistent explanations led to a consent to search of the horse trailer and behind a false wall, Winkler discovered over 200 Kilos of cocaine.
When ask his reasons for becoming a Peace Officer, he simply said that it is a “calling and something that he knew he should do”. Deputy Winkler is married with two grown children and his favorite hobby is fishing. His said his ultimate goal is to retire someday so he and his wife can enjoy fishing on their favorite lake. So, it is with a tip of the hat and a sincere wish for future success that we congratulate Deputy Ray Winkler for his devoted dedication to his chosen profession and for being selected as the LCSO Employee of the Month for July, 2022.