The Delaware County Board of Commissioners appointed Chief Deputy Jeffrey C. Balzer to serve as acting sheriff Monday following the retirement of former Delaware County Sheriff Russell Martin.

Balzer was sworn in during the commissioners’ session Monday and will serve as acting sheriff for no less than five days and no more than 45 days before the Delaware County Republican Party’s Central Committee appoints a successor to Martin. The appointee will fill the remainder of Martin’s term, which expires on Dec. 31, 2024.

The county reported Monday that Balzer became a deputy sheriff in Champaign County after graduating from Ohio University and later moved to Delaware County, where he joined the City of Delaware Police Department. After several years on the force in Delaware, Balzer was appointed a deputy U.S. marshal for the Southern District of Ohio where his assignments involved court security, judicial protection, witness security, fugitive investigations and terrorism investigations. Balzer joined the sheriff’s office in 2016 after 24 years with the U.S. Marshals Service.

When Martin announced his retirement in February, he supported Balzer as his successor. In an interview last month, Martin said he’s known Balzer for more than three decades.

“He shares the same vision that I have for this profession and this office,” Martin said on March 30. “He’s worked side by side with me for several years on our strategic planning, our budgets and initiatives. He’s experienced, respected, and ready to step into the gap.”

Jeff Benton, president of the Delaware County Board of Commissioners, said that he and his fellow commissioners, Gary Merrell and Barb Lewis, felt that Balzer’s extensive experience in law enforcement, as well as his recent success in overseeing Delaware County Jail operations, more than qualifies him for the acting sheriff appointment.

“We have gotten to know this fine officer over the last 6-plus years,” Benton said, “and we have no doubt he will represent this office and our county with integrity.”

Balzer, who is originally from the Springfield, Ohio, area, has been a resident of Delaware County for 37 years. He and his wife, Amy, raised their three children in the county where all of them graduated from Buckeye Valley High School.

As for Martin’s plans for the future, he said last month he’s looking forward to nonprofit work in the community, including charity work and teaching. Martin had been sheriff since 2012.

Glenn Battishill can be reached at 740-413-0903 or on Twitter @BattishillDG.