RHINELANDER - Deputies think the Oneida County Sheriff's Office is operating smoothly.

But that doesn't mean they'll try to keep everything the same.

The man becoming the county's new sheriff is planning on making some changes to the department.

After more than 30 years on the force, Oneida County Sheriff Jeff Hoffman retired last month.

Within weeks, Lieutenant Jim Wood, who had been around for almost three decades, retired as well.

Chief Deputy John Sweeney worked with them for years.

"Jim had worked in all of the divisions our department has and had a big impact on the training. (There were) a lot of leadership qualities he retired with," says Sweeney. "Much like Jim, Jeff also had an opportunity to serve in a variety of our jobs, in different divisions."

Later this week, Grady Hartman will be sworn in as the new Sheriff.

He was picked by Governor Scott Walker for the job.

A Rhinelander native, Hartman has been with the Oneida County Sheriff's Office since 1999.

"About four or five years ago, I decided that I wanted to eventually become Sheriff of Oneida County, and I set my sights on that," says Hartman.

Veterans like Hartman, Sweeney, Hoffman, and Wood had worked together to lead the office.

That had put Oneida County in a stable place.

But now, two of them are gone and Hartman is running the department.

You can expect some changes with the new lineup.

"We have an organization of very qualified, very quality people. I think we appreciate change as an important part of that. I fully expect that Sheriff Hartman will take some time, review our operations, and I fully expect changes," says Sweeney.

Hartman will be officially sworn in on Friday.

We'll bring you coverage of the ceremony on Newswatch 12.

After that, we should learn even more about just what those changes in Oneida County will look like.

Story By: Ben Meyer