Command Staff

Chief Deputy John Budensiek is a career law enforcement officer who has served the citizens of Martin County for 24 years. He began his career at the Martin County Sheriff’s Office in 1997 as a uniform deputy on Road Patrol. Throughout his career, he served as a narcotics detective and on SWAT, starting as an entry team member and working through the ranks to become the SWAT Team Commander. His career also includes working in every supervisory rank within the Sheriff’s Office. He currently oversees all the departments at MCSO. 

Chief Deputy Budensiek has a Bachelor of Science Degree in Criminal Justice from Columbia Southern University and has studied at IRSC and at The University of Virginia. He is also a graduate of the FBI National Academy. The Chief is a lifetime Martin County resident who lives in Hobe Sound with his wife and four children. 

Major John Cummings, Department of Corrections, is a career law enforcement professional with 33 years of experience. He began his career with the Martin County Sheriff’s Office in 1987 as a Corrections Deputy where he spent two years before transitioning to a Sheriff’s Deputy.  His career has taken him full circle.

Throughout Major Cummings' long-standing career with the Martin County Sheriff’s Office, he garnered vast experience serving as Major Crimes Detective, Uniform Road Patrol Sergeant, FBI Task Force Officer, and Special Deputy Marshall for the U.S. Marshals Task Force. In 2013, he was promoted to the rank of Captain of the Criminal Investigations Division where he was in charge of multiple units including the Special Victims Unit, Major Crimes, Warrants, Crime Scene, Evidence, Economic Crimes, and the newly developed Intelligence Unit.  In addition, Major Cummings was also in command of the Agency’s Tactical Surveillance Team.  

Captain Bill Dowdy, Special Operations Division, has more than 25-years of combined law enforcement experience.  He began his career in 1994 working as a Patrolman, K-9 Handler, and Detective at an agency in Central Florida before joining the Martin County Sheriff’s Office in 1997.   

Captain Dowdy currently oversees the Special Operations Division, which includes the Marine Unit, K-9 Unit, Aviation Unit, Narcotics, and the Ancillary Rapid Response Team. Captain Dowdy coordinates large scale Rapid Response Team deployments throughout Florida and the United States including missions to assists other law enforcement agencies in times of natural disasters, civil unrest, or dignitary protection.   

Throughout his career at the Martin County Sheriff’s Office, Captain Dowdy served as a Narcotics Detective and a Tactical Unit Deputy in the Special Investigations Division. In the Uniform Road Patrol Division, he served as a Field Training Officer before being promoted to Road Patrol Sergeant. He was again promoted to the rank of Lieutenant and served as Road Patrol Watch Commander then to 1st Lieutenant before being appointed to Captain of the Uniform Road Patrol Division. 

Captain Ryan Grimsdale, Commander of the Administrative Services Division in the Department of Administration, and has more than 20-years of law enforcement experience.  He follows in the footstep of his grandfather, Floyd McCallister, who retired with the rank of Lieutenant after serving 31-years at the Martin County Sheriff’s Office. 

Captain Grimsdale has extensive experience in nearly every unit within the agency, including Uniform Road Patrol, Criminal Investigations, Traffic, Dispatch, and Community Policing.  He was promoted to Sergeant in the Uniform Road Patrol Division, then transferred to the Criminal Investigations Division where he worked as a supervisor in the Special Victim’s Unit. He was later promoted to Lieutenant within that Division.  In 2020, he was appointed to the rank of Captain of the Community Operations Division, where he was in charge of multiple units such as Community Policing, Community Programs, Animal Services, School Crossing Guards, School Resource Officers, Court Security, and the Civil Process Unit.  His current role has him overseeing the Purchasing Unit, Fleet Maintenance Unit, Finance Unit, Dispatch Unit, Human Resources Unit, and Records Unit. 

Captain Grimsdale is a lifelong resident of Martin County, who through his family history, and his work as a deputy sheriff, has established strong ties within our community. These positive community relationships have been instrumental in developing his leadership style. 

Captain Joshua Kloster has a Bachelor of Science Degree in Criminal Justice from Liberty University and has over 13 years of combined law enforcement experience.  He began his law enforcement career working as a Police Officer for the State of Florida in 2008.  

In 2011, Captain Kloster was hired by the Martin County Sheriff’s Office and sworn in as a deputy sheriff assigned to the Uniform Road Patrol Division.  In 2013 he transferred into the Special Investigations Unit and was a member of the SWAT Team. In 2015, he was transferred into the Fugitive Warrants Unit where he was assigned to the U.S. Marshals Task Force. He was promoted to the rank of Sergeant in 2017 and transferred to the Uniform Road Patrol Division and then the Criminal Investigations Division. 

In 2020, while in the Criminal Investigations Division, Captain Kloster was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant. Captain Kloster was then assigned to the Community Operations Division where he assisted with the Community Policing Unit, School Resource Officer Unit, Behavior Health Unit, Community Programs Unit, Media Relations Unit, School Crossing Guards Unit, Animal Services Unit, Court Security, Civil Process, and Pre-Trial Release Units.   In 2022, he was promoted to the rank of Captain where he is now in command of the Community Operations Division. 

Captain Ruben Romero is Commander of the Criminal Investigations Division in the Department of Law Enforcement

Captain Jason Ward is a 3rd generation law enforcement officer at the Martin County Sheriff’s Office, following in the footsteps of both his father and grandfather.  He has 22-years of combined law enforcement experience, serving first with the Port Saint Lucie and Lynchburg (Virginia) Police Departments.  In 2003, Captain Ward was honored to join the Martin County Sheriff’s Office, where his father, Bill Ward proudly served the citizens of Martin County for many years before retiring with the rank of Lieutenant.
 
 Captain Ward currently oversees the Uniform Road Patrol Division which includes the Traffic Unit, Training, and West County Operations. Throughout his career at the agency, he was promoted to leadership roles overseeing Criminal Investigations, Special Operations, Community Operations, Special Investigations and Court and Civil Services.   He also has vast experience and training in SWAT, Field Training, and Rapid Response.   

Captain Ward served honorably on active duty in the United States Army.   He received specialized training including Airborne and Air Assault schools and proudly represented the United States on foreign soil.  He has an Associate Degree in Criminal Justice Technology from Indian River State College, and a Bachelor's Degree in Organizational Management from Warner Southern College. He continued his education and earned a Master’s Degree in Criminal Justice from University of Central Florida.
 
 

Kevin Youngblood is a lifelong resident of Martin County with a personal dedication to his community.  His grandfather, father and brother have all served this community as law enforcement officers.

After graduating from Florida Atlantic University with a Bachelor’s Degree in accounting, he began his career in public accounting at Hill, Barth & King, LLC.  Kevin then earned a Master’s Degree in Taxation and became a Certified Public Accountant.  In 2007, Kevin established the accounting firm of Youngblood Solutions, P.A.  During this time, Kevin served his clients with an emphasis in providing tax and accounting services to mid-sized and closely-held businesses in a variety of industries.  In addition, he advised closely-held business, their owners and other individuals with respect to tax planning and preparation.

After years of service in public accounting, Kevin was appointed as the Chief Financial Officer of the Martin County Sheriff’s Office by Sheriff William D. Snyder on November 12, 2013.  He has since been promoted to Chief Operating Officer and oversees the Finance Division and the Administrative Operations Division.

Kevin has also served his community by volunteering his time and financial expertise on the boards of local non-profit organizations such as the Historical Society of Martin County and the Martin County Healthy Start Coalition.  He is also an alumni of LEADERship Martin County, Class 26.

Bernard Romero was born in New London, Connecticut. As a military brat, his family moved frequently throughout the United States and abroad residing at United States Navy Bases.

After graduating high school in Roosevelt Roads U.S. Naval Station in Puerto Rico, Bernard moved back to the U.S. and attend the University of Miami where he earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management. He continued his education by attending law school at Florida State University, where he earned his Juris Doctor Degree.

Bernard spent much of his career as a prosecutor with the Office of the State Attorney-19th Judicial Circuit. During that time, he served as a Felony Attorney, A Felony Supervisor, the Attorney in Charge of Okeechobee County and as the Senior Major Crimes Attorney.

Bernard Romero joined the Martin County Sheriff’s Office in 2020 as the Agency’s internal legal counsel.

He is married, and has two children.

Christine Christofek Weiss has been with the Martin County Sheriff’s Office since 2013, when she joined Martin County’s newly elected Sheriff, William Snyder, to become the Agency’s Public Information Officer.

Christine is a former television news reporter for WPTV, a local NBC affiliate.  She spent 17-years with the network affiliate where she served in a number of media positions; such as a Field Producer, Line Producer, Investigative Producer, General Assignment Reporter, Crime and Courts Reporter, and Treasure Coast Reporter.  Christine left television news to take a position as the Director of Media and Advertising for the Solid Waste Authority of Palm Beach County.  For 13-years, she specialized in environmental advertising and promotions, producing and appearing in multiple television and print advertisements.  She produced and hosted an environmental awareness TV Special which earned her two Emmy Awards from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.  She is also the former host of the long running South Florida Business Report, which aired on WPEC News 12, the local CBS Affiliate.

In addition to being a sworn reserve Deputy Sheriff, Christine has a bachelor’s degree from Palm Beach Atlantic University, and has earned a specialized training in crisis negotiations, mediation and hostage negotiations.

Captain Jennifer Perkins joined the Martin County Sheriff’s Office in January of 2019.  She serves in the Corrections Division as a Commander.

Prior to joining MCSO, Captain Perkins worked in the Corrections Division at the St. Lucie County Sheriff’s Office. Her passion was Road Patrol and Investigations; however, after working Corrections, that changed. Captain Perkins feels that Corrections is vital to the Criminal Justice System and often overlooked.

Captain Perkins was a Field Training Officer for many years and trained several deputies during her tenure. In addition, she was a team member of the Emergency Response Team and The Gang Unit. In 2013, the she became an Assessor for The Florida Corrections Accreditation Commission, an Inspector for The Florida Sheriff’s Association and a Certified Jail Officer through American Jail Association joining the Accreditation Unit as a Coordinator. She became the Manager shortly thereafter. This appointment allowed her to create policies and procedures complying with all standards and statutes of the State. Her return back to Operations as a supervisor was a natural transition.

Captain Perkins is the recipient of many awards such as Deputy of the Year, Deputy of the Quarter, several Commendations, multiple Unit Citations and Inspector of the Year recognition through the Florida Sheriff’s Association.

Captain Perkins was raised in a family with a strong Italian-Irish heritage. She is the youngest of four siblings born to Al and Joan Aia of Boston, Massachusetts. She graduated high school in 1995 from Nipmuc Regional High School, and earned her Degree from Dean College in Franklin, Massachusetts.