Adams County Sheriff’s Division Chief of 39 Years Retires While Under Investigation for Drinking On-Duty

Allegations from multiple officers led the sheriff's office to sustain policy violations against John Bungartz on the use of alcohol in uniform and recommended immediate termination.

John Bungartz, a division chief with the Adams County Sheriff’s Office, resigned on May 7 while he was under investigation for drinking on duty, according to an internal report obtained by Blue Surveillance. 

Adams County Sheriff Gene Claps recommended his immediate termination at the end of the investigation. Instead, the 39-year veteran of the department retired a month later to a warm send-off on the department’s Facebook page. 

“Chief Bungartz has left a lasting mark on the men and women of the Sheriff’s Office. He mentored many deputies and employees while serving his community with honor,” part of a post from May 7 by ASCO says. “We thank you, Chief Bungartz, for your many years of dedicated service and wish you the very best in your retirement.”

According to the report, the investigation began due to allegations that Bungartz, representing ACSO in uniform, had consumed alcohol before a public HOA meeting on February 5. Undersheriff Kevin Currier states in the report that he found Bungartz to be “more animated than usual” and that his eyes were "bloodshot and watery, and his speech was noticeably slurred,” and that it continued while he addressed the crowd.

An unnamed sheriff’s employee sitting at the same table as Bungartz and Currier was interviewed in the report and stated that Bungartz told him on a phone call before the HOA meeting that he had “drunk some beers” at home. The employee told Bungartz he had about 45 minutes before the meeting started, and the employee claims that Bungartz responded “I still have some time to drink another beer before the meeting." 

The employee stated they detected the “faint odor of fresh alcohol on Bungartz’s breath while sitting across from him at a table” at the meeting, but he did not notice slurred speech or other symptoms other than him being “slightly more talkative” than usual.

During the investigation, Bungartz was brought into a meeting with Sheriff Claps, the unnamed employee, and Currier. The report states that Bungartz became “defensive,” threw throat lozenges onto the tables, and said, “There's my alcohol, I get these raspberry lozenges from Trader Joe's." 

Bungartz denied drinking at all that day and making any statement to that employee about drinking beer. He then asked for the names of the witnesses in the investigation, accused Currier of being the source of the complaint against him, and shortly after, contacted the unnamed sheriff’s employee, demanding to know if he had told anyone about smelling alcohol.

The same employee told investigating officers about an April 18, 2025 incident where he smelled a “faint odor of alcohol” on Bungartz while he was conducting an official determination meeting related to an “officer-involved shooting.” He stated it was similar to what he observed on February 5. Bungartz told investigating officers that he did not recall specific details of that day, but denied consuming alcohol prior to the hearing.

The final incident detailed in the report came from a separate commander who had supervised Bungartz in the past. The commander said in the report that he had “personally never observed Bungartz consuming alcohol while on duty or in uniform,” but recalled a complaint that someone smelled alcohol on Bungartz’s breath during a December vigil. He stated that Bungartz denied drinking when confronted after the event, and because there was no proof, it was not formally documented. According to the report, Bungartz said he did not recall attending the event nor being confronted about allegations of alcohol use at the time when interviewed.

Investigating officers, according to the report, looked into whether Trader Joe’s throat lozenges might be mistaken for the smell of alcohol. They spoke with Trader Joe’s managers, who said no one had ever said the lozenges smell like someone drank alcohol, and investigating officers even bought multiple types of lozenges, had different people consume them, and stated none smelled like someone drank alcohol.

Sheriff Claps sustained policy violations of alcohol use on duty and professional conduct, recommending immediate termination with a “preponderance of evidence.”