Longtime Erie Sheriff Stepping Down

It's been bittersweet for our Erie County Sheriff, who has announced his retirement.

Merski is in the last of his 16 years as sheriff, no other sheriff has surpassed that in their time in office.

Driven... inspirational...leader... those are just some words colleagues used to describe their boss, Sheriff Bob Merski.

After four terms as sheriff of Erie County and 40 years working for the county, Merski is stepping down after this year to spend more time with his family, and dive into smaller projects.

But in his time in office, Merski tells us he's proud of his accomplishments.

This is the first sheriffs' office in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania to get a federal grant for schools to have resource officers...

Merski also worked to decrease violence at the courthouse by having a single entry point and having his team of deputies' check every person walking through...

And he's proud of his Triad program...that provides seniors with tracking bracelets and cell phones.

Chief Jon Habursky talked to us about what he's going to miss the most about his friend and mentor.