The Fairfax County Sheriff’s Office welcomes Sam Souligne, who was sworn in as a Fairfax County deputy sheriff on June 7, 2022. For Souligne and the Sheriff’s Office, this was a repeat performance. Here is his story:
Souligne started community college after high school, wanting to follow in his mother’s footsteps as a schoolteacher. After earning his associate degree in teacher education, he chose to enter the workforce. Minus a bachelor's degree, he knew teaching school was not an option. He researched possibilities and saw that the Sheriff’s Office was hiring. “I had never considered entering the law enforcement field but decided to apply,” he said.
As a deputy sheriff recruit, Souligne spent seven months in training and was sworn in as a deputy sheriff on October 29, 2016.
During his time working on a confinement squad and later in the transportation unit, he took advantage of many opportunities the agency had to offer, including Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) training, Bike Patrol, Project Lifesaver and Honor Guard. “The Sheriff’s Office also afforded me the ability to complete my education, and I earned my bachelor's degree in history from University of Maryland Global Campus.”
In 2021, Souligne left the Sheriff’s Office for a law enforcement position with the Federal Reserve System. Often, people would ask where he had come from. “I’d tell them the Fairfax County Sheriff’s Office, and they would respond, ‘Why did you leave?’” He began to wonder himself. “I was looking for something different, but I learned that different isn’t better. The grass isn’t always greener.”
In his year away, Sam learned that the Sheriff’s Office has a “very, very good reputation.” He attributes much of that to an outstanding training program and the variety of opportunities in which employees can participate.
Now PFC Sam Souligne is back with his Sheriff’s Office family, and we are very pleased to have him.