Chief Chamberlain is a 32 year veteran of the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office. He started as a special deputy in 1975. He has served in nearly every operational capacity that the Sheriff’s Office has had. As a Deputy Sheriff he served in the Jail, Patrol, Detectives and as a Hostage Negotiator. As a Sergeant he served in Patrol, Detectives, Special Enforcement, K-9, and S.W.A.T. During this time he was also the president of the Deputy Sheriff’s Association. He was promoted to Lieutenant in Patrol in 1991 and to Captain in 1994. His Captain assignments included Patrol, Narcotics, Homeland Security and Detectives. Sheriff Kimball promoted Jim to Chief Criminal Deputy on Jan. 1, 2007. He is in charge of the Operations Bureau which consists of Patrol, Detectives, and various specialty units such as S.W.A.T., Marine Services, Traffic, and Hostage Negotiations. This Bureau has 84 personnel and a 10 million dollar budget. 

Chief Chamberlain is married and he has two grown daughters and four grand children. He is a graduate of Centralia College and the Evergreen State College. He enjoys baseball, photography, fishing, reading and traveling. He believes in supporting his community by serving with groups such as Thurston County Area Crime Stoppers and Together. He also contributes to the United Way, Big Brothers-Big Sisters, R.O.O.F., The Boy Scouts and several other non-profit organizations.