Nick Odenath

Nick Odenath is the President of the Ventura County Deputy Sheriffs’ Association and an Executive Committee member of the Peace Officer’s Research Association of California.  In these roles, Nick works as a labor representative advocating for competitive first responder wage and benefits, improved wellness resources and enhanced education and training.

Nick is a Sergeant and 21-year veteran with the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office. He has served in several capacities with the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office, including as a custody officer, patrol officer, court services security supervisor, narcotics detective, asset forfeiture and financial crimes investigator, SWAT operator and human trafficking investigator.

Nick has become recognized as a national expert in the field of human trafficking investigations.  He is best known for his work on large-scale human trafficking investigations.  These investigations resulted in successful human trafficking prosecutions and used organized criminal investigative techniques that were victim-centered, multi-disciplinary and specifically focused on mitigating a victim’s need to testify against their traffickers in court. He has provided case debriefs, been a panelist and trained on the topic of human trafficking investigations throughout the United States. 

Nick is a Human Trafficking Task Force Grant Liaison for the federally-funded enhanced collaborative model tasks forces around the United States and co-facilitates an Advanced Human Trafficking course for California Peace Officer’s Standards and Training (POST).

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